<span class="R~sep~EdDropCapPressEd">Louisiana’s state school board agreed this week to revamp its teacher training requirements.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">The key feature of the changes is a requirement for aspiring teachers to go through a one-year residency teaching students as college seniors.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">“Oftentimes the first-year teacher feels overwhelmed, not sufficiently prepared,” said Commissioner of Higher Education Joseph Rallo in endorsing the change.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">The move — which was also pushed by state superintendent John White and Board of Elementary and Secondary Education member Holly Boffy — went against the wishes of Gov. John Bel Edwards. Edwards, as well as other opponents — including education unions and traditional public school groups — said pilot programs would be better because of the dire straits public schools, colleges and universities are in.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">The revamp plan has been two years in the making and was initiated after a 2014 survey in which about half of 6,000 teachers said they were ill-prepared for their first year in the classroom.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">The last piece of the puzzle was worked in on Oct. 3 when it was announced the state was awarded a $67 million federal Teacher Incentive Fund grant over a five-year period to help finance the change. The grant will benefit 16 rural school districts with 137 schools, including two charter schools. The department will also receive $7.3 million in transitional funding through 2019 for university administration costs, teacher resident stipends, and mentor teacher stipends and training.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">“With our 2025 plan, we are raising our expectations for Louisiana’s K-12 students. That makes it even more important that our new teachers enter the classroom well prepared on day one,” said BESE president Jim Garvey in a prepared statement. “We are ending the concern that some parents have about being assigned a first-year teacher, because now our new teachers will start their careers as second-year teachers.”</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">Teacher candidates admitted into programs in the 2018-2019 year will be the first cohort to experience the required year-long residency and new competency-based curricula, White said.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">He said he envisions $1,000 stipends for teachers who serve as mentors and $2,000 for students in training.</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">“Excellent teaching gives students the best chance to grow and fulfill their potential,” Boffy said. “Today’s complex classroom environment and higher academic standards place increased demands on new teachers. By ensuring their readiness for the classroom through the mentorship and residency program, we’re investing in the future success of not only Louisiana’s kids, but the teaching profession as well.”</span>

<span class="R~sep~EdPressedtext">We applaud White on his vision. These changes will better prepare teachers for the classroom and help retain teachers who, if unprepared, can get overwhelmed and leave the profession.</span>