When faced with an economic recession as enormous and widespread as the one in which we currently still stand, many facets of daily life can be cut back, downsized, or given up altogether. We can eat out less, walk more, and generally repair the hole that had been burned through our wallets and purses. One aspect of American life that is absolutely indispensible is the ability to give our children a proper education, with the proper number of teachers and the proper facilities. Unfortunately, a recession often takes local education programs into its vice grip along with the new televisions or clothes we can agree to give up. This one was no different, and many states found themselves facing massive budget deficits, forcing large cutbacks that would leave the public school system in shambles.

In response to this, the White House launched the renowned American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, with more than $100 billion targeted at preventing suffering at the hands of the public school system. Fortunately, the results were nearly immediate. A rapidly approaching October 30th release of the first quarterly public accounting of all expenditures to date will be posted by the Recovery, Accountability, and Transparency Board, posts Jesse Lee on the White House blog. Amongst many positive signs of the recession dwindling is the figure of at least 250,000 teaching jobs being created or salvaged directly from the Obama initiated stimulus package.

The St. Louis public school system was attempting to recover from the reality of the ever looming $53 million budget shortfall carrying over from 2008. At risk were more than 85 teachers jobs, and with that the veracity of over-crowded classrooms and under-educated children. Thanks to the stimulus, these jobs were saved and the public school crisis was averted. This video released by the Department of Education provides the story of three young women who were directly affected by this aid. This city serves as a positive exemplification for many other American school systems, and this release brings new reason to believe that teaching will be a profession closely protected by its government.

The fact that teaching jobs are being created in large numbers is a good sign for the fortitude of our country. With strong education programs comes an even stronger generation of future leaders and contributors. The government clearly recognizes this and will do what it takes to invest in maintaining the roots of the economy. Obama spent much of Monday visiting with the students in Viers Mill, MD encouraging the hard work necessary to achieve goals. Lee blogs that Obama had the following message to relay: “I am hoping that you guys will continue to read, read, read, and that all of you are going to be really working hard not just this year but all the way through high school and then all the way through college…”

With a government supporting our teachers, we find encouragement for the future. Children will continue receiving the education they need and education professionals will have an increasing number of jobs. Experts remain optimistic that many other areas of the economy and country will look as bright as education does. Search Jesse Lee’s White House blog for more information on how the stimulus act is influencing education.

Certification Map is attracting more and more attention as a comprehensive and helpful resource for anyone with questions about teacher certification, says USC News in their recently published article.

Numerous education news sources have noted the value of the map as a source of information for prospective teachers, teachers relocating to a different state or anyone seeking teacher credential information.

Accessible online at http://certificationmap.com/, the Certification Map provides a wealth of state-by-state information on the process to become a teacher, certification requirements and average state salaries, and industry news.

The map also features a teacher credential blog.

Hey! That’s us!

For all aspiring and current teachers in the New York City Area:

Tuesday February 24, 2009 at 6:30pm
Marriott Downtown
85 West Street (map)
New York, New York

The MAT@USC is a new and innovative Master of Arts in Teaching program delivered online from the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education. Designed for aspiring and current teachers, the program combines interactive online learning with carefully selected field-based experiences in your local area, to provide you with the knowledge, skills, and experience needed to make a difference in the classroom.

Join us on February 24th for a free MAT@USC program information session. The session will feature MAT@USC faculty and staff and will take an in-depth look at the curriculum, technology platform, student services and financial aid opportunities, and much more. Representatives will be on hand to answer any questions you may have about the program and the University.

Space is limited, so reserve your spot today! Please RSVP here.

From Education Week:

Students who have teachers certified through alternative-training programs do no worse in mathematics or reading achievement than students whose teachers have been certified by traditional teacher education programs, according to a study released today by Mathematica Policy Research Inc.

The study, which was commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, also found no correlation between teacher effectiveness and the amount of coursework that teachers received as part of their alternative or traditional teacher-training programs.

“Our bottom line is that when students are placed with teachers with alternative routes versus traditional routes [for certification], there’s no harm in terms of student achievement,” said Jill Constantine, an associate director of research at the Princeton, N.J.-based Mathematica and the project director for the study. She said the researchers based their findings on students’ math and reading scores on the California Achievement Test, a standardized test.

The Mathematica study compared students from the same schools who were randomly assigned to teachers from alternative-certification programs or regular teacher education programs. It tracked 2,600 students in 63 schools in six states.

Sixteen of the sponsoring organizations for alternative certification were colleges or universities, half of which also operate traditional programs.

The study found that the amount of coursework required by training programs varies greatly within alternative-certification programs and also within traditional programs. Alternatively certified teachers were required to take 75 to 795 hours of coursework. Teachers from traditional programs were required to take anywhere from 240 to 1,380 hours of instruction.

Read the full story here.

Access the full study here.

–Online Tool Offers Custom, State-by-State Certification Information for Prospective Teachers–

LOS ANGELES (February 5, 2009) – Certification Map today announced the launch of its new Web site, CertificationMap.com, a comprehensive online portal for current and prospective teachers to locate teaching certification requirements for every state in the country. CertificationMap.com is the first dedicated web site to customize information state-by-state, providing users with actionable information on attaining necessary certifications and offering guidance on the teaching profession.

CertificationMap.com is sponsored by MAT@USC, the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education’s Master of Arts in Teaching program delivered online, the first of its kind from a major research university. The tool allows users to easily research certification requirements, including skill testing, subject area competence testing and pre-requisite coursework, among others. CertificationMap.com also provides easy click-through access to state Department of Education homepages, creating a convenient one-stop location for information from all 50 states.

“With quality teachers in demand, now more than ever, CertificationMap.com will serve as a tool to help alleviate the frustrations prospective teachers encounter while moving through the sometimes challenging certification process,” said Dean Karen Symms Gallagher of the USC Rossier School of Education. “This is just one more step in our progressive strategy to bring more quality teachers to the workforce by making the entire end-to-end process as accessible and seamless as possible.”

In addition to certification information, the site also provides a snapshot of the education environment in each state, including analyses on average state teaching salaries, student enrollment and rankings by state. Prospective and current teachers can also find relevant daily news articles on “The Credentials Blog” and discuss important issues with other industry professionals and thought leaders on the interactive open forum. Those seeking to obtain certification can also seek additional information via a dedicated Facebook page and via continuous, streaming updates on Twitter, while simultaneously building a virtual community with peers.

“Certification Map goes beyond providing rich content to current and prospective teachers by offering them a portal to interact and participate in discussions with professionals from across the country, ensuring they are continually learning from their peers and sharing experiences,” said Jeremy Johnson, Chief Technology Officer of MAT@USC.

The MAT@USC combines online learning with carefully selected field-based experiences and provides ongoing support for new teachers, including job placement assistance and partial tuition reimbursement opportunities. For additional information on requirements and admissions, please visit http://rossier.usc.edu/mat/ or call 1-888-628-1872.

About Certification Map
Certification Map (www.certificationmap.com) is the first dedicated comprehensive online portal that provides prospective teachers state-by-state information on obtaining certification. Sponsored by MAT@USC, Certification Map is a one-stop, interactive site supplying actionable information on certification requirements and guidance on the teaching profession.

About the USC Rossier School of Education
As part of the University of Southern California and located in the heart of urban Los Angeles, the USC Rossier (ross-EAR) School of Education is one of the world’s premiere centers for the study of urban education, preparing teachers and educational leaders who are committed to strengthening urban education locally, nationally and globally. USC Rossier is leading the search for innovative solutions to the challenges in urban education, and creating mutually beneficial partnerships to rethink curricula, develop sound policy and improve educational environments. (http://rossier.usc.edu)

Last year, legislators passed the new certification law in hopes of cutting into Missouri’s teacher shortfall. Now nearly a year later, the new program is booming with success, but creating a controversy along the way.

There are currently more than 700 people who are learning about Missouri’s new teaching certification process. The state will now certify anyone with a bachelor’s degree who can pass teaching and subject area exams, as well as complete 60 contact hours in the classroom.

As far as how long it takes for the certification process, each individual is unique, but you could be teaching within eight to nine months of the program.

Read the full story here.

Please keep checking back, as we post up-to-date information on teaching certification and credentials.

For the time being, please check out our data on certification for every state: