Secretary of Education praises ASU Teachers College

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recently discussed how Arizona State University's nationally recognized teacher preparation programs are helping to recruit, prepare, develop and support great educators for America's classrooms.

Praised by Secretary Duncan in an April 25 press conference, ASU's Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College is enriching teacher candidates' clinical experiences through a variety of real-world student teaching opportunities that not only better prepare teachers for careers, but also improve retention rates, said Duncan.

"There are signs this real-world experience helps teachers stay in the classroom," said Duncan.

ASU's nationally recognized iTeachAZ year-long student teaching residency provides future teachers with twice the amount of classroom experience as other education programs.

Mari Koerner, dean of the Teachers College at ASU, recently testified before a congressional committee about the importance of teacher preparation in the nation’s education colleges.