Years 2-4

Year 2

After the Residency Year, Urban Teachers start their first of three years as a teacher of record. After your 14 month residency, you will have over 1500 hours of practice with students. You continue to receive 1:1 coaching, you complete your graduate school coursework and receive your Master's degree from the graduate university that May. You need to meet Urban Teacher's accountability bars to continue to move on in Urban Teachers' program each year.

Year 3

In year 3, you will continue as a teacher of record and, while receiving your final year of 1:1 coaching, you will continue to develop your teaching practice. During the third year, if you can demonstrate your ability to improve student achievement through nationally normed assessments, as well as the skills and behaviors of an effective teacher, you will earn your teaching certifications in the grade and content of your placement and program of study, along with Special Education. (In Dallas, you will also be certified in ESL.) Once you pass the exams you will be a fully licensed teacher in the state in which you are teaching!

Year 4

Year 4 is your year! Throughout this year, you will teach full-time and mentor Urban Teachers residents. Now it is time to transition from Teacher to Teacher Leader! Read more about some alumni in our program here.

Beyond Teaching

Many of our teachers are ambitious and excited about leading other activities outside of their primary teaching job. While some are concerned about finances, working a second job would not be possible during your first two years in the program. Between coursework and training, there is rarely enough time to balance the demands of a second job but in the third and fourth years, your time is yours to do with as you please. If you'd like to coach or lead a club after your second year with Urban Teachers, we say "Definitely!" We have many Fellows who take on leadership/coaching/mentoring roles in years three and four.

Performance Evaluation 

Urban Teachers' performance evaluation system includes multiple gateways through which participants must pass as they demonstrate increasing levels of proficiency with content and pedagogical knowledge and effective teaching practice. These performance and program expectations help track the progress of every participant, determine who will advance from one stage to the next, and inform program completion. During each year of the program, participants must meet expectations to remain in good standing, both with respect to master’s degree coursework and our Teacher Practice Rubric (TPR) evaluating teaching practice (sample TPR here).

How We Are Different from Other Teacher Preparation Programs

All of our teachers are prepared through a 14-month residency and clinically-based master's degree from a graduate university that gives them the skills and knowledge needed to be successful in the most challenging urban school environments with high-needs communities. They also receive three years of one-on-one coaching to ensure they are developing into effective educators. Before becoming eligible for program completion and full certification, all participants are evaluated for effective teaching practice. Our teachers are among the most expert and results-oriented in the nation, assuming leadership roles and making the case for better teacher preparation and educator accountability.