A Narrative Review of Public Perceptions of Teachers and Teacher Preparation Programs

Newspapers are a longstanding medium of disseminating information and offering commentary on important social issues within the United States. Op-ed sections of newspapers have offered the citizenry an outlet for voicing their concerns related to important social institutions including teachers and teacher preparation programs. This narrative review surveys the shifting of public perceptions of teachers and teacher preparation programs across sixty years as manifested in reader opinion pieces in a major Midwestern newspaper. The results of this analysis indicates that the authors of these pieces have consistently felt that teachers and teacher preparation programs require significant reform, increased accountability, and pervasive incorporation of corporatist influence and tools. The review concludes with two recommendations for teachers and teacher preparation programs to maintain their professional sovereignty. Keywords: teacher preparation, corporatism, edTPA A Narrative Review of Public Perceptions of Teachers and Teacher Preparation Programs