One Bloomberg contributor believes the U.S. education systems suffers from mediocrity because some states are making it far too difficult for quality teachers to get jobs.

Given as example is Scott McKim,who "can claim a master's degree in watershed science, an undergraduate degree in meteorology, with minors in math and physics, and statewide teacher of the year honors for his work as a math and science teacher at a middle school in Alaska."

Even more, McKim helped develop a charter school that focuses on outdoor learning and STEM subjects. But when he tried to move to New York, he was unable to get a teaching job in a public school because he was deemed unqualified.

McKim was told he "needed 10 more credits in physics and eight more credits in math -- even though he has a minor in each and experience teaching both," the article said. He was specifically only qualified in the state's eyes to teach Earth science, which there were no openings for where he lived.

Because the state requires strong content preparation in a budding teacher's undergraduate career, typically qualified teachers have an incredibly difficult time securing jobs especially when coming from out of state where the requirements aren't as rigid.

"McKim supports high standards for teacher certification: 'Much of what is wrong with our educational system can be traced back to colleges/universities not adequately preparing teachers,' he wrote in an e-mail... But there is a world of difference between a certification system that is intellectually rigorous and one that is bureaucratically rigid," the article said.

As to what happened to McKim? He found a job teaching as an adjunct college professor. "That's a loss for the local middle school students, and a troubling sign for the future of education in the U.S," the article said.

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Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

05/14/2015