Dive Brief:

• Education groups in Indiana are banding together in protest of a plan that would create an adjunct/career specialist teacher license that requires no teacher training.  
• The plan, which received preliminary approval from the state's education policy board, gives Indiana residents who have worked for three years and received a 3.0 in college the opportunity to get a license that would allow them to teach classes on the field they work in.   
• Opponents are concerned about the lack of training required for this license, as the adjunct/career specialist teachers would simply need to complete coursework on teaching within two years of being hired as an educator.  
• The plan must be given a final vote, as well as the approval of Gov. Mike Pence, before it is put into effect.  

Dive Insight:

Those on the state's board of education who favor of the bill believe that the teaching profession should be open to more people. This argument isn't sitting well with those who believe that, while we can open up teaching to more people, that doesn't mean individuals should be allowed to work with children without adequate training.  

"This is reckless, scary and disrespectful to professional educators and all the students they serve," said Indiana State Teachers Association President Teresa Meredith. "Not everyone can teach —​ just because they want to, doesn't mean they can."

The lack of training that would be permitted also runs counter to the national discussion about setting higher bars and requiring more rigorous training for educators.