Delivering Well Prepared Teachers Policy
The District of Columbia does not require that teacher preparation
programs for elementary teacher candidates address the science of reading. The
District has neither coursework requirements nor standards related to this
critical area.
The District also does not require teacher candidates to pass an
assessment that measures knowledge of scientifically based reading instruction
prior to certification or at any point thereafter.
Ensure that teacher preparation programs prepare elementary teaching candidates in the science of reading instruction.
The District of Columbia should require that teacher preparation
programs train candidates in the five instructional components of
scientifically based reading instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency,
vocabulary and comprehension.
Require teacher candidates to pass a rigorous assessment in the science of reading instruction.
The District of Columbia should require a rigorous reading assessment tool to ensure that
its elementary teacher candidates are adequately prepared in the science of
reading instruction before entering the classroom. The assessment
should clearly test knowledge and skills related to the science of reading, and
if it is combined with an assessment that also tests general pedagogy or
elementary content, it should report a subscore for the science of reading
specifically. Elementary teachers who do not possess the minimum knowledge in
this area should not be eligible for licensure.
The District of Columbia recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.