Teacher preparation is mediocre

– US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan says so

Our concerns about teacher preparation programs are no secret to our readers, but some would like to just dismiss that as ramblings of the Bluegrass Institute.

Well, we have some pretty well-informed, high power company with the same concerns – the US Secretary of Education, to be exact.

As quoted in this Education Week item, Secretary Arne Duncan says, "...by almost any standard, many, if not most, of the nation's 1,450 schools, colleges, and departments of education are doing a mediocre job of preparing teachers for the realities of the 21st-century classroom.”

The secretary also takes aim at states for not effectively riding herd on their teacher preparation programs.

Along these lines, we’ll have more to say in a couple of days, so stay tuned.