For Immediate Release
Office of Laura Bush
March 5, 2002

Backgrounder: White House Conference on Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers

As part of her Ready to Read, Ready to Learn initiative, Laura Bush is hosting the White House Conference on Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers on Tuesday, March 5, 2002. Just as children need to be ready to learn to read when they enter school, teachers need to be ready to teach when they enter the classroom. The Conference brings together university and business leaders, teacher education advocates, teachers' union representatives, public policy organizations, and foundations from across the country, and it will help develop solutions for enhancing teacher training.

The goal of this Conference is to ensure that our nation's children can count on having teachers who not only bring love, compassion, and dedication to their profession, but also possess:

• A deep and up-to-date knowledge of the concepts and subjects they are teaching; and
• The ability to assess each student's academic strengths and weaknesses and to apply the most effective instructional methods, strategies, and materials to meet his or her learning needs.

The Conference focuses on two major areas of teacher instruction: preparation at the nation's colleges of education for teacher candidates and professional development for those teachers who have already answered the call to teach. It also highlights research regarding teacher preparation and student achievement. Presentations will showcase innovative and successful teacher training and recruitment programs that help bring the best and the brightest to our nation's classrooms, especially to those in our underserved neighborhoods.

Research shows that children learn and achieve at much higher levels when their teachers know the subject content thoroughly and know how to teach it effectively. Good teachers monitor the progress of their students and adjust instruction for students who are falling behind.

With this in mind, Laura Bush and the Bush Administration are committed to encouraging schools of education, school districts and other learning institutions to significantly strengthen their teacher training programs.

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