Opportunity

Quality early learning has an enormous impact on a child’s future success, and teacher effectiveness is critical to quality early learning programs. Research shows that teacher coaching programs can improve both child outcomes and teacher satisfaction.

Once an early learning teacher completes his or her formal education, teaching becomes a very solitary profession. High-speed fiber has the potential to help bring coaches into the classroom and build virtual learning communities among teachers.

Teacher professional development is a proven — but extremely labor-intensive — way to form better teachers and improve early learning outcomes. High-speed Internet access can transform coaching programs, giving coaches a real-time connection to the teachers and classrooms. High-speed Internet access can also support developmental screenings of children and increase communications among teachers.

Solutions

MBIT  recommends development of a Pre-K teacher coaching pilot project that will use high-speed fiber to enhance current Pre-K teacher coaching programs and take them to scale. The pilot project has the potential to:

• Improve the reach of coaches
• Improve teacher intentionality of instruction
• Improve teacher satisfaction and professional development
• Increase technology integration into early learning classrooms
• Work with community leaders and parents to monitor improvements.