I had to Swivl live with a mentor while I was teaching 25 students, set all that up, which mostly occurred on my lunch hour, be observed by them. Now, think of all the technical aspects of this. Just to give you a picture, last year on an embedded license, I had a mentor that I had to Swivl live. I was also working as a hospice PRN at night-the TA salary was helpful, but it did not sustain what I needed it to. It was almost like they took me in as their mother or grandmother, but they were helping me navigate Canvas, helping me with some of those technology obstacles that I faced. They were in their 20s, so I had to work extra hard.

$1st class work$

So I had a big learning curve, probably, compared to my much younger cohort and colleagues. When I was in school there wasn’t Canvas -I mean, honestly, we didn’t really have computers. It was a big game changer for me not having to pay all those expenses. I’d always wanted to go back, but I just thought at my age, I don’t have that many years in the career, and I don’t want student debt going into retirement. I love hospice, but it’s a lot of burnout watching that many folks pass. Honestly, had been why I had not made a change earlier. It was almost like a paid internship, as an assistant. I was able to get some pay because I was a teacher resident. Davis, who worked in hospice for most of her career and now teaches 1st grade at Hazelwood Elementary School, spoke to Education Week about her journey into the classroom and the joys and frustrations of teaching so far.

Rhonda Davis is one of the teachers trained under this approach, at Lipscomb and Clarksville-Montgomery.

The state now has approved seven teacher-preparation providers to run apprenticeship programs, including Lipscomb University, a private college that runs a master’s degree program targeted toward career-changers in partnership with the Clarksville-Montgomery County district. Department of Labor to establish a registered apprenticeship program for teachers. Tennessee became the first state to be approved by the U.S. With these types of programs, prospective teachers work in the classroom and earn a paycheck while completing their preparation to become a licensed teacher. Teacher apprenticeship models have been touted by experts in the field and the federal government as a promising solution to teacher shortages.