DELANO, Calif. (KERO) — Delano students who are interested in becoming a teacher are able to receive the full experience through the districts ED program. Pairing students with teachers and working along side them.
- The ED Pathway program has been molding the next generation of teachers for the past eight years and on average, they recruit about 35 students per year.
- The year long program is split into two parts, during the first semester students focus on course work and in the second semester, students are paired with a teacher to work hands on with the students.
- It’s a collaboration between the high school and elementary school district.
It's a collaboration between the high school and elementary districts school. High school students preparing to be teachers with younger kids getting the proper support needed. The ED Pathway program is helping to close the teacher shortage epidemic.
"Education has always been something I did want to pursue in life so it wasn't something I had to think about, I've always enjoyed working with children and working with others,” says Lizeth Menchaca, pathway participant. “I did it just because I want the assistance from the classroom because I feel like it's beneficial to have students in the classroom."
Menchaca went through the ED pathway program her senior year and says it not only prepared her with classroom skill sets but has truly solidified her dream of becoming an educator.
Program directors tell me it's been going strong for eight years... and counting.
"What has been neat about this program is that we know that these students are interested in becoming teachers so what we've started doing is bringing them in and we provide them with some professional development just like we would a teacher,” said Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the District Kerry Wallace.
Wallace says the year-long program is split into two parts. In the first semester, students focus on coursework, and for the second semester, students are paired with a teacher to work hands-on with students.
"I hear them talking as they're going down the hallways about what they're seeing in the classrooms and the things that they got to try that day and it's really exciting to see the enthusiasm and how much they're enjoying the program as well,” said Wallace.
Wallace says in the second half, students thrive since they have the opportunity to learn what it's like to be a teacher, the younger students have extra support and the teacher has a helping hand in the classroom.
For Menchaca, she says the experience has been amazing from the start, and can't wait to graduate from student teacher to teacher.
"Now I do have a realistic understanding of how education plays out in the classroom,” said Menchaca. “I went through it I lived through it now I get to know okay this is what I want."
For more information on how to get involved, students can reach out to their high school counselors.
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