The words “education reform” are often thrown around by people who say they want to move the needle on public education, but in reality too little ever changes.
Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, is the latest to give voice to several ideas worth mentioning — inasmuch as they attempt to offer solutions to current problems — even if they never see the light of day.
On The Michael Patrick Leahy Show last week, he raised the issue of a teacher shortage — currently about 2,000 statewide — and suggested an accelerated two-year community college teaching degree to fill the gap.
Such a program, Sexton said, would focus on pre-K through fifth grade and would place an emphasis on reading, writing and math, and how to handle a classroom.
He said the two-year degree still would require some of the standards for a four-year degree, like internships and the Praxis exam. Plus, he said, students still would have the option to finish a four-year degree at another school.