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Baton Rouge – The Louisiana Department of Education today released the latest results of the state’s Teacher Preparation Quality Rating System. Required by federal regulations, the rating system is designed to provide teacher preparation providers with meaningful information for improvement, identify programs of excellence, and provide aspiring educators with information on selecting quality programs.

Available in the LDOE’s preparation library, these state quality rating scores from the 2020-2021 school year are the highest since the accountability’s inception in 2017-2018.

Just over 95 percent of Louisiana’s teacher preparation provider programs maintained or improved their rating. The state’s undergraduate pathway score increased by .6 to a 2.6, which is Level 3 Effective. The state’s post-baccalaureate pathway score increased by .4 to a 2.8, which is also a Level 3 Effective.

An undergraduate teacher preparation pathway consists of earning a Bachelor of Arts or Science degree program. A post-baccalaureate teacher preparation pathway is best suited for individuals who already hold a Bachelor’s degree that become alternatively certified.

Overall domain scores and ratings improved in both pathways.

• Post-baccalaureate pathways are scoring higher than undergraduate.
• 78% of pathways increased their score or remained the same, and 85% of pathways increased their level or remained the same.
• 52% of the pathways increased their domain score for Meeting Workforce Needs.

This is the first year the results will be used by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) to inform continued program approval decisions. Previous years were for information purposes only.

A teacher preparation program is a post-secondary, state-approved course of study. Completion signifies that an enrolled teacher candidate has met all state educational and training requirements to be recommended for initial certification.

The system rates providers on a four point scale: Level 1 Ineffective, Level 2 Needs Improvement, Level 3 Effective and Level 4 Highly Effective. The teacher preparation quality rating is based on three domains:

• Preparation Program Experience, as measured by an on-site review;
• Meeting Educator Workforce Needs, as measured by the number of candidates placed in high-need schools and the number of program completers in high-need certification areas;
• Teacher Quality, as measured by the value-added results on the state standardized assessment of program completers.

The profiles for each provider are a tool for aspiring teachers to use when selecting a program that meets their needs. They also support decision making for providers and LDOE around supports needed for improvement.

The LDOE released the first round of informational results for the state’s Teacher Preparation Quality Rating System in 2021. In 2020, the LDOE, Louisiana Board of Regents, and BESE debuted LouisianaTeacherPrep.com to help soon-to-be educators choose the teacher preparation program that fits them best.