Interesting science and mathematics graduate students in secondary teaching.(Report)

State and national initiatives attempt to increase the quantity and quality of secondary mathematics and science teachers. Research suggests that if one could appeal to something inside of people or about the process of teaching and learning itself, then one might draw current mathematics and science graduate students into secondary teaching. This study placed eight mathematics and science graduate students in secondary schools for ten hours a week. Pre- and post-measures of their interest level in becoming secondary teachers were made. Overall, graduate students decreased in their desire to become secondary teachers. The main reasons were (1) fellows wanted to work with higher-level mathematics and science; (2)fellows felt students were not behaved and unmotivated," (3)fellows did not view being a teacher as a career, but only as a job; and (4)fellows felt school systems had to do too many things that fellows did not want to do.

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The number of students enrolled in K-12 education is rapidly increasing, while the number of teachers retiring is also at an all time high, and mathematics and science teachers leaving the field (e.g., switching careers) is an even more significant factor than retirement (Hussar, 1999; Ingersoll, 2004; National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, 2003; National Education Association, n.d.; National Science Board, 2006; Reys & Reys, 2004; Thomas, Mahlios, Friedman-Nimz, & O'Brien, 2005). In addition, only 60% of those trained to be teachers end up taking a teaching job (National Governor's Center for Best Practices, 2000). Thus, the yearly supply of new secondary mathematics and science teachers is not enough to meet the demand (Abell et al., 2006; National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century, 2000; National Education Association, 2003; National Science Board, 2006). President Bush, in his State of the Union address in 2006, specifically called for the recruitment of more mathematics and science teachers by "bring[ing] 30,000 math and science professionals to teach in classrooms" (Bush, 2006).

State and national initiatives have attempted to increase the quantity of new secondary mathematics and science teachers (Darling-Hammond, 1998; National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century, 2000; Reys & Reys, 2004; Selke & Fero, 2005; Thomas et al., 2005; U.S. Department of Education, 2004). Many of these initiatives, such as Math for America and California Teach Science and Mathematics Initiative, draw on mathematics and science majors or graduates who have not pursued teaching. These so called alternative licensure programs often offer financial incentives to draw people and then require a teaching commitment. Annually, approximately one-third of new teachers come from an alternative route (Feistritzer, 2007).

Besides attempting to increase the quantity of secondary mathematics and science teachers, state and national efforts are attempting to increase the quality of secondary mathematics and science teachers (U.S. Department of Education, 2004). No Child Left Behind (2001) requires that all mathematics and science teachers be "highly qualified." That is, they must hold at least a bachelor's degree, have competency in their subject matter, and hold a teaching license. People who hold bachelor's degrees in mathematics or science have two of these three requirements automatically met. In 2000, about 38% of all the teachers in the United States who taught mathematics did not have a major or minor in mathematics (Ingersoll, 2003). Science is more difficult to summarize, as someone might major in biology, for example, and teach physics. In life science, about 45% of teachers do not have a major or minor in the field, and nearly 60% of all teachers teaching physical science do not have a major or minor in the field (Ingersoll).

Both in quantity and quality, motivation exists to recruit mathematics and science graduates into secondary teaching. However, only a very small percent of people who have established careers in mathematics or science are drawn into alternative teaching licensure programs (Humphrey, Wechsler, & Hough, 2005). Recruiting candidates for these alternative licensure programs from mathematics and science graduate students would avoid attempting to remove mathematicians and scientists from established careers.

However, there would still need to be an incentive besides money. Most people who enter an alternative licensure program will have opportunity for a higher salary once they are a teacher than they would have without the teaching license (Humphrey & Wechsler, 2005). This is not the case with mathematics and science graduates who usually have many prestigious and lucrative opportunities to consider (Abell et al., 2006). To draw mathematics and science people into teaching, one is going to have to appeal to something inside of the people or about the process of teaching and learning itself (Thomas et al., 2005).