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Adler's plan: Require teachers to pass state board examinations before being allowed into the classroom. Tests of teacher competency are already required in 14 states. But as Adler sees it, such tests should be designed more broadly, to measure knowledge not just of teaching theory and basic pedagogic skills but of history, great literature and art. Furthermore, says Adler, the tests should be prepared "by the leading critics of our school system and of our teachers." Adler's plan could enhance opportunities for educated aspirants to become teachers by performing successfully on the licensing exams, while making the mere accumulation of required education course credits less important.
Adler would, in effect, weaken control of teaching by teachers. Other reformers seek to strengthen the organization of teaching as a profession. But all are in agreement on one fundamental: teaching and teacher education alike are in urgent need of overhaul.