Pringle has bachelor's and master's degrees in education, but that's not enough under federal education law. Because she doesn't have a science degree, she'll have to take a test showing her mastery of the topic or pass a state evaluation that could include a test.
"I'm still in a state of anger and resistance," said Pringle, an eighth-grade teacher at Susquehanna Township Middle School in Harrisburg, Pa. "It's not fair to change the rules in the middle of the game. ... I have prided myself in staying current and being active in the field. For all that to be reduced to a multiple-choice test is an insult."
Around the country, public school teachers are going through a quality check. By the end of the 2005-06 school year, federal education law says, every teacher of core subjects from English to the arts must be highly qualified.
The premise of the law is widely embraced: Quality teaching leads to higher student achievement, and poor and minority students, in particular, deserve a greater supply of teachers who are well versed in their subjects. The premise of the law is widely embraced: Quality teaching leads to higher student achievement, and poor and minority students, in particular, deserve a greater supply of teachers who are well versed in their subjects.
Of 3 million teachers, it is not clear how many meet the mark. By Monday, states must report their share of highly qualified teachers and how quickly the number will rise over three years.
"Highly qualified" means teachers who have a bachelor's degree, a state license or certification and clear knowledge of the topic they teach.
It's the way the law is playing out that has many teachers unsettled.
Beverly Ingle, a sixth-grade teacher at Laredo Middle School in Aurora, Colo., is starting her 25th year teaching. She may not be highly qualified because of the way the law handles different grades.
Middle school teachers must have a college major in each subject they teach — in her case, social studies and reading — or pass a rigorous test in those subjects. If Ingle taught sixth grade at an elementary school, she would only have to show mastery over a basic elementary curriculum.
It's not yet clear if she'll satisfy the third option, her state's evaluation.
"It's really unfair, but what am I going to do about it?" Ingle said. "I'll suck it up, like we always do as teachers, and I'll take more classes."
States are figuring out how teachers can show mastery of their subjects without taking tests that some consider demeaning. Among the proposals: strong job evaluations, service on curriculum committees, published articles and leadership. Under the law, states may consider how long a teacher has taught a subject but, significantly, may not base their standard on that.
The law isn't meant to punish, said Eugene Hickok, the undersecretary of education. ***