January 2008 — News
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K-12 Online Teaching Endorsements: Are They Needed?
Teachers would also know the legal and ethical issues relating to online courses (e.g., copyright, plagiarism, intellectual property, privacy, accessibility) and have developed skills in curriculum and basic media design for online learning. They would have gained an understanding and working knowledge of asynchronous and/or synchronous features offered within a variety of online course management systems, Web 2.0, and emerging technologies such as virtual worlds for learning.
More Pros and Concerns
As with National Board Certification, an online teaching endorsement would signify "professional excellence and demonstrate that a practitioner has met standards through intensive study, self-assessment, and evaluation by others. Certification assures the public that a specialist has the requisite knowledge, experience, and skills for high-quality practice" (NBPTS, 2007, p. 6). Upon employment by a virtual school, an endorsement in online teaching might cut down on the initial PD for core knowledge and skills that virtual schools might now provide. The teacher would only need additional training for the specifics of the job at hand, such as school policies and procedures, features unique to the online delivery system in use, and familiarity with the specific course materials that will be used.
Further, successful completion of an endorsement program meeting nationally accepted criteria would enable teachers to teach more easily across state lines once the endorsement was added to a state certificate. This, however, assumes that the current barrier to teaching across state lines would be resolved, perhaps in consideration of NEA policy 13 on distance education.
The largest barrier to an endorsement in online teaching on one's state certificate is national acceptance of it. I agree with Carnevale (2003) that it would not necessarily lead to employment or job security. Because present certification programs in teaching online vary greatly, the certificate earned has no official weight unless the program is tied to a specific degree. As per the results of recent studies on National Board Certification (e.g., Harris & Sass, 2007; McColskey, Stronge et al., 2005), I suspect that an endorsement would not necessarily mean that the online teacher who has one will be more effective in ensuring student achievement than one who does not have an endorsement.
Ultimately, there is the practical reality: The additional time involved for rigorous training to teach online is more than some educators might be willing to expend, particularly if it extends into a time period affecting the economic stability of the potential employee. Even individuals who have undergone training at one institution might not be willing to repeat that training to teach in another online program, if much of that training includes repeat core content.
A Matter of Time
Four states now have specific endorsements for online teachers.
