From a very young age, some individuals recognize the rewards of imparting some wisdom, lesson or skill on to an apprentice, friend, or younger sibling. Regardless of the path to careers in education, a genuine interest in leaving students with broader horizons seems to be the most important criteria for being an effective teacher. A unique job, however, teaching may require some experience in the classroom before lessons get underway.

An Arizona State University program was recently awarded a $33.8 million federal grant to allow future teachers to gain experience in the school setting. The program hopes to extend the state's resources to urban and rural areas and Indian communities, thereby allowing more students to maximize their preparation for teaching before a class.

State education officials say the University's Professional Development School (PDS) program will give prospective teachers three times the amount of practical job experience as other teacher education programs.

Scott Ridley, assistant dean of the College of Teacher Education commented, "These new facets of PDS are designed to produce highly skilled new teachers who understand the content they are teaching and how best to teach it, and to foster measureable gains in effective school functioning, teacher retention, teaching effectiveness and student achievement."

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 479,000 new teacher positions will be created by 2016.