A Note from the
Teacher Preparation Section Editor
Chance Hoellwarth
In the last few issues, we have made the case that future physics teachers
have different needs than typical physics majors. In the summer
newsletter,
McDermott, Heron, and Shaffer made the case that K-12 teachers need special
courses, in addition to their content courses, that address their special
needs. Then in the fall
issue,
we heard from four institutions that not only designed special courses for
future teachers, but also designed special programs for their future teachers.
This month I would like to continue in that vein and share with you two more
programs designed especially for future physics teachers.
Ed van den Berg will tell us about a teacher
preparation program that he helped develop at the University
of San Carlos (located in the Philippines),
which highlights the fact that many of the features we heard about last issue
(specially designed programs, recruitment, etc.) are important and transferable,
even to other countries. Dan MacIsaac will tell us about alternative
certification,
which refers to the re-certification of teachers from different disciplines
and/or people making career changes into teaching from technical fields,
and describe the program at the State University
of New York (SUNY)-Buffalo
State College designed especially for this group. You may not have heard
anything about alternative certification, but the group of people interested
in it have the potential to become new physics teachers At any rate, the
program itself has features that might work at your institution. |