Teach for America (TFA) was founded by Wendy Kopp as a way of reducing the racial and socio-economic inequities facing the majority of our nation's poorest schools. Ms. Kopp envisioned recent college graduates applying to TFA at the end of their senior year, and being placed in low-income schooling districts for two years in order to make a positive impact on the children. Graduates are not required to already have their teaching certificates, but instead go through alternative training. Although the Teach for America members are encouraged to stay and teach beyond the two- year requirement, the vast majority do not.
With about half of Americans growing up in poverty completing high school, education is becoming a very serious problem in America. Although TFA attempts to solve this problem, there are many people who feel it does not adequately do so. Some question the effectiveness of uncertified college graduates. While members are put through a five-week summer institute to prepare them, this is significantly less time than those who go through a standard teaching certification curriculum.
A study done by Linda Darling-Hammond at Stanford University found that "uncertified TFA recruits are less effective than certified teachers, and perform about as well as other uncertified teachers." Thus, the study has concluded "everyone benefits from preparation, including Teach for America teachers."
In a study produced by the College of Education at Arizona State University, Teach for America's uncertified teachers were ineffective at producing superior results to certified teachers. Findings indicated "in reading, mathematics, and language, the students of certified teachers outperformed students of under-certified teachers by about 2 months on a grade equivalent scale. Students of under-certified teachers [made] about 20% less academic growth per year than students of teachers with regular certification."
Another study though, done by Mathematica Policy Research directly addressed these findings in 2004. The study showed that on average, students with TFA teachers raised their mathematics test scores 0.15 standard deviations more than the gains made by other students, which is equivalent to students having had an extra month of math instruction.
Also, an independent study by Kane, Parsons and Associates Inc found that over 90% of school principals believed that TFA teachers make significant, positive change in their classrooms, and 66% believed that Teach For America's training is "better than average." New studies have found that students of TFA teachers raise their math scores by an average of 12%, when compared with students of non-TFA math teachers. In reading and science though, the scores remained the same.
TFA is also growing, and thereby increasing its impact on the American educational system. From 2007 to 2008, the number of incoming teachers jumped over 25%. In eight years, TFA has seen an almost 400% increase in applicants, and now has an operating budget of $73.5 million. Some TFA members stay longer than the two years of the program, as well. US News & World Report reports that 43.6% remain in the low-income placement school for more than two years and 35.5% teach for more than four years. TFA hopes that members not only make a direct impact on the lives of the children they teach, but use their experience to train future leaders and advocates in education policy. Notably, TFA alumni Dave Levin and Mike Feinberg went on to create the KIPP charter schools.
Furthermore, president-elect Barack Obama has praised former TFA corp member and current chancellor of the Washington, D.C. public schools, Michelle Rhee. TFA continues to grow in terms of applications and placements per year, and its effect on the American educational system is felt through the local schools in which corp members serve. However, after nearly 20 years, the verdict is still out on whether or not TFA is simply a band-aid on a broken system or if it is slowly changing the course for American education and the teaching profession as a whole.
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