Comparing the teaching quality of alternatively certified teachers and traditionally certified teachers: findings from a large-scale study

The present study investigates whether alternatively and traditionally certified teachers differ in their teaching quality. We conducted doubly latent multilevel analysis using a large-scale dataset with student ratings on the quality of instruction provided by 1550 traditionally and 135 alternatively certified secondary school mathematics teachers in Germany. Findings show no evidence of differences in teaching quality between alternatively and traditionally certified teachers. Independent of the type of certification, novice teachers scored lower on classroom management than experienced teachers. Findings suggest that beginning teachers—whether alternatively or traditionally certified—need to be better prepared for classroom management before starting to teach.