Teacher Residency as an Alternative Teacher Preparation Program: A Program Review

Teacher residency programs have emerged as an alternative teacher preparation program that prepares teacher candidates; also known as residents, for high-need areas such as special education in the United States of America. The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review of the literature on teacher residency programs in the United States of America. Electronic databases were searched for articles examining teacher residency programs. Forty-five articles met the inclusion criteria. Results from the analysis of the articles and some selected teacher residency programs showed that the most common characteristic of teacher residency programs was a yearlong clinical residency experience. Residents also committed to teaching in a high-need school district upon completion of their programs. The most common goal was to increase teacher retention in high-need schools. Moreover, the programs offered induction support for residents upon completion of their programs. Limitations of teacher residency programs and directions for future research were provided.