At a meeting last month for prospective graduate elementary education students, a recent Syracuse University graduate asked what he was expected to do with his bachelor's degree in communications, no longer an undergraduate major approved for admission to UB's Graduate School of Education.
Told by Kim Truesdell, associate director of the Teacher Education Institute at UB, that he could obtain a degree in an approved field and apply to the school again, he stood to say, "Forget this, I'm leaving the state," and abruptly left the room.
For some seniors about to enter UB's Graduate School of Education, new teacher certification requirements, part of an initiative undertaken by New York's Board of Regents, will necessitate another year or more of undergraduate study for an additional degree, a move into school counseling or other non-instructional capacity or relocation to another state.
Students without a bachelor's degree in one of seven learning standards areas - arts, history and social sciences, humanities, foreign languages, mathematics, natural sciences and writing - cannot obtain a state teaching license after the new guidelines take effect on Feb. 1, 2004. UB's GSE submitted a list of approved programs to the state last April, one that excluded psychology, communications, business and nursing, among others.
"That was tough," said Truesdell. "Psychology and communications seemed to lend themselves well to teaching, and our students [in those majors] have always been good."
A UB psychology senior, who asked that her name not be used, stated in an e-mail that she has "known for quite a while that [she] wanted to be an elementary school teacher." Since UB does not have an undergraduate component to its education program, she was "advised that a good major to do this with was psychology."
"I have a hard time believing that they could just do away with these majors in one summer, without any grandfather clauses for people already pursuing their degree," she said. "I just don't know how someone that majored in dance is more qualified to teach little kids than a psych major."
According to Truesdell, the state's new licensing requirements place a stronger emphasis on the mastery of a subject relevant to the students' curriculum. A degree in psychology or communications, neither of which are social sciences nor humanities, may not prepare teachers for "a very different game" in elementary and secondary education.
Mary Gresham, dean of the GSE, said the goal of a teacher's undergraduate degree was that the subject be revisited throughout their career to ensure that "teaching be kept current."
"The other motivating factor is to make sure teachers are knowledgeable to a graduate level in a field. . What we want to avoid at all costs is somebody specializing in English teaching math."
"The stakes have been raised for students, the new standards are difficult to achieve for many students, and [the state was] finding that teachers weren't prepared to teach," said Truesdell. "Because schools have changed so much in the last few years, what we have to do is work on closing the gaps."
Part of closing those gaps involves ensuring that teachers in every subject have a broad base of study in all seven of the learning areas, along with breaking the "elementary" and "secondary" licensing system into four specific parts.
Robert Bennett, a New York regent who served on the education department's "Taskforce on Teaching Report" committee that proposed the licensing guidelines, said the changes were initially an attempt at "increasing breadth and depth of teachers' knowledge base."
Amanda Smegelsky, a senior psychology major and Spanish minor, has taken numerous courses outside her major to speed her progress towards acceptance into the GSE, including physical education classes last summer.
"I'm glad I took all those courses in a way, so now I'm more well-rounded, but those courses mean nothing, school-wise," said Smegelsky. "I couldn't understand why psychology isn't acceptable. Why wouldn't psychology be as good as dance or art history?"
Like the others, Smegelsky first heard her degree would be unacceptable at the informational meeting last month, which according to Truesdell is due in part to the nature of a graduate education program. Since UB's GSE does not accept freshmen, it was required to submit its updated program only last April. Buffalo State College, by contrast, submitted their undergraduate program in April of the previous year.
According to Truesdell, "[GSE] met with admissions advisors a year ago to talk about it," asking that advisors working with students in those majors now excluded from the program work towards turning other interests into an admissible degree. "Anybody that I could personally catch, as well, I would tell them," said Truesdell.
Truesdell, along with Elfreda Blue, assistant dean of the GSE, has also spoken with math department faculty concerning the two-course literature requirement now applied to math majors interested in elementary education. Reaching out to students among all the school's departments, however, is a tough proposition.
"If you don't explicitly state 'I wanna be a teacher' to your counselor, they'll never advise you on these kind of things that matter," said Truesdell. She said she feels "extremely sorry for" the students she missed.
"I'm just glad I went that day, or I still wouldn't know anything," Smegelsky said of the informational meeting. Having decided not to pursue a career in education, Smegelsky will attempt to make the most of her psychology degree.
"I'm going to go for counseling [at UB]. I wasn't going to go and get another major now," said Smegelsky.
The unnamed senior is considering a different plan.
"Personally, I don't feel like re-doing undergrad, only to go to school for two years after that to get my certification, and then one more year to get my master's," said the senior. "If it's true [that I can't get into the GSE], I don't plan on going back for another B.A. I will probably move out of state. . Most other states that I have looked at since this readily accept psychology as one of the preferred majors."
In New Jersey and Connecticut, teaching certification requires a liberal arts or pure science degree, excluding all of New York's non-approved majors, according to each state's department of education. Delaware also does accept psychology as a certifiable degree.
Smegelsky said that she would not consider moving out of state, because both her family and friends are here, and New York has "a really great education system, regardless of this whole mess."
"[Teaching is] something I really wanted to do, but I'm moving on."
