Teacher Preparation Program Accountability:
Connecticut

Analysis of Connecticut's policies

Connecticut's approval process for its traditional and alternate route teacher preparation programs does not hold programs accountable for the quality of the teachers they produce.

Most importantly, Connecticut does not collect or report data that connect student achievement gains to teacher preparation programs. The state also fails to collect other objective, meaningful data to measure the performance of teacher preparation programs, and it does not apply any transparent, measurable criteria for conferring program approval. Regrettably, Connecticut sets a low bar in its definition of a low-performing institution, only requiring teacher preparation programs to show a Praxis II pass rate of at least 70 percent.

There is little evidence that the state's standards for program approval are resulting in greater accountability. In the past three years, two programs in the state have been identified in required federal reporting as low performing.

On its website, Connecticut only makes available pass rates for the Foundations of Reading test by institution. 

Connecticut maintains full authority over teacher preparation program approval. The state also conducts its own program reviews.

Citation

Pass Rates http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2613&Q=333728 Program Approval http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2613&q=321812

Recommendations for Connecticut

Collect data that connect student achievement gains to teacher preparation programs. 
As one way to measure whether programs are producing effective classroom teachers, Connecticut should consider the academic achievement gains of students taught by programs' graduates, averaged over the first three years of teaching. Data that are aggregated to the institution (e.g., combining elementary and secondary programs) rather than disaggregated to the specific preparation program are not useful for accountability purposes. Such aggregation can mask significant differences in performance among programs.

Gather other meaningful data that reflect program performance. 
Although measures of student growth are an important indicator of program effectiveness, they cannot be the sole measure of program quality for several reasons, including the fact that many programs may have graduates whose students do not take standardized tests. The accountability system must therefore include other objective measures that show how well programs are preparing teachers for the classroom, such as: 
1.    Evaluation results from the first and/or second year of teaching
2.    Satisfaction ratings by school principals and teacher supervisors of programs' student teachers, using a standardized form to permit program comparison
3.    Average raw scores of teacher candidates on licensing tests, including academic proficiency, subject matter and professional knowledge tests
4.    Number of times, on average, it takes teacher candidates to pass licensing tests
5.    Five-year retention rates of graduates in the teaching profession.

Establish the minimum standard of performance for each category of data. 
Merely collecting the types of data described above is insufficient for accountability purposes. The next and perhaps more critical step is for the state to establish precise minimum standards for teacher preparation program performance for each category of data. Connecticut should be mindful of setting rigorous standards for program performance, as its current requirement that 70 percent of program graduates pass the state's licensing test is too low a bar. Programs should be held accountable for meeting rigorous standards, and there should be consequences for failing to do so, including loss of program approval.

Publish an annual report card on the state's website. 
Connecticut should produce an annual report card that shows all the data the state collects on individual teacher preparation programs, which should be published on the state's website at the program level for the sake of public transparency. Data should be presented in a manner that clearly conveys whether programs have met performance standards.

State response to our analysis

Connecticut recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis. The state also noted that, as part of the Educator Preparation Advisory Council process, Connecticut is currently in the process of developing a state data and accountability system for publicly reporting the data elements included in the NCTQ list, in addition to others.

In addition, starting in Fall 2015, the state will distribute a standardized survey to all principals and new teachers to complete regarding their experiences with student teachers and their preparation within the institution they attended.