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Description
First authorized by the Teacher Education Internship Act of 1967,
internship programs provide many uncredentialed teachers with structured
coursework while they maintain a job as a salaried district employee
and teacher of record for one or more classes. The Hughes-Hart Education
Reform Act of 1983 (SB 813) allowed districts to create and implement
their own internship programs; therefore, prospective teachers wishing
to complete an internship program currently may do so through a
district or an institute of higher education (IHE). Additionally,
legislation in 2002 (SB
2029, Alarcon) allows district internship programs approved
by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC) to
offer intern certificates in all areas of special education. Internship
programs generally begin with a summer session or other preservice
workshops that provide an introduction to teaching. Over the course
of one or two years, interns take seminars and coursework while
working as a teacher of record. Many programs provide additional
support via an experienced teacher who acts as a mentor or coach.
Funding
The Alternative Certification Act of 1993 (AB
1161, Quackenbush) legislated funding criteria for the district
and university internship programs. The 2000–01 budget increased
the reimbursement rate to districts and IHEs to $2,500 per intern.
Since AB 1161, funding for intern programs has increased dramatically
from $2 million to more than $30 million per year. SB
1666 (Alarcon, 2000) allows the intern program funds, also known
as the alternative certification funds, to be spent on the preintern
program as needed. In 2000–01, the combined funds of the
preintern and intern programs reached $43.6 million. In 2002–03,
the state budget authorized $25.6 million for alternative certification
programs, a 19 percent drop from the previous year.
Intern Funding and Participation
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Fiscal Year
|
Number of Programs Funded
|
Number of Interns Served
|
Number of Districts Involved
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Funding (in millions)
|
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1994–95
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29
|
1,238
|
150
|
$2.0
|
|
1995–96
|
23
|
1,471
|
178
|
$2.0
|
|
1996–97
|
23
|
1,888
|
186
|
$2.0*
|
|
1997–98
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52
|
3,706
|
271
|
$4.5*
|
|
1998–99
|
58
|
4,340
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330
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$6.5*
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|
1999–2000
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65
|
4,827
|
408
|
$11.0*
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|
2000–01
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75
|
5,649
|
465
|
$21.5*
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|
2001–02
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82
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7,146
|
637
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$31.8*
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|
2002–03
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–
|
–
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–
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$25.6
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Participation
Since 1994–95, internship programs have maintained a steady
growth in number of participants in more than half of California’s
school districts. Participation in district and university internship
programs grew more than 450 percent from 1,228 in 1994–95 to
7,146 in 2001–02. Preliminary numbers show that intern participation
rates may increase to more than 8,500 in 2002–03. Intern programs
initially were targeted at those prospective teachers who could
not afford the costs of traditional preparation programs and those
willing to work in districts with shortages of fully credentialed
teachers. Legislation in 2001 (SB
57, Scott) sought to also attract private school teachers to
internship programs by allowing them (along with district interns)
to get through the internship program more quickly.
Evaluations
The Legislature has mandated several
evaluations of the state’s intern program. The most comprehensive
reports to the Legislature occurred when the intern program was
still relatively small, in 1987, 1992 and 1996. A study in 1999
focused solely on Los Angeles Unified School District’s intern
program for special education teachers. Annual reports to the Legislature
by CCTC staff provide data on participant characteristics and retention.
The Office of Educational Research and Improvement recently funded
an independent evaluation of California’s internship programs;
this study is in its initial stages.
Additional Resources
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