Use of a Residency Program in Preservice Teacher Preparation

Chapter Objectives

• 1.

  Discuss the definition of a residency program and various ways to structure the program.

• 2.

  Describe how residency programs can benefit residency candidates.

• 3.

  Understand challenges of residency programs and ways to overcome these challenges.

Introduction

Educator preparation programs (EPPs) have a significant amount of content to cover, including content pedagogy; knowledge of disabilities; classroom management; and social skills development, among other important areas (Brownell et al., 2009), while also providing opportunities for authentic practice (Risko et al., 2008; Shulman, 1987). While EPPs work to align their content with field experiences (Leko et al., 2012) to build knowledge and application skills, many programs have minimal field experiences. Because there are critical teacher shortages in special education classrooms, many districts hire teachers on provisional licenses or teachers who were trained through alternative teacher programs; both of which may not result in improved student outcomes or teacher retention (Ross & Lignugaris-Kraft, 2015). However, programs that feature on-going support, place teachers in well-run schools, and focus on field experiences that are enhanced by coursework (like a residency program model), are more likely to create teachers who are effective and remain in the field (Ross & Lignugaris-Kraft, 2015).