Kentucky earned higher marks than most other states in reporting teacher preparation program data to federal officials, a new analysis by a Washington-based advocacy group shows. That's the good news.

        The bad news is that Kentucky was chided for not having content standards for teachers that are based on student standards. Only 23 states have implemented teacher standards tied to their academic content standards for grades K-12.

        “That's one of the issues that we've been talking to higher education folks about — trying to more closely align teacher education programs with what students are actually doing,” Kentucky Department of Education spokeswoman Lisa Gross said.

        Federal officials also said Kentucky is setting its standards too low when evaluating content test results.

        Overall, most states reported information that was inconsistent and incomplete, according to the Education Trust, which this week released its analysis, “Interpret With Caution: The First State Title II Reports on the Quality of Teacher Preparation.”

        The findings were based on responses from state reports on teacher quality submitted to the U.S. Department of Education for the first time, as required by Title II of the Higher Education Act of 1998.

        States were asked to report on six areas of teacher preparation and perform ance:

        • Standards for teachers.

        • Requirements for licensure and certification.

        • Assessment requirements and pass rates.

        • Criteria for measuring program performance.

        • Efforts to improve teacher quality.

        • Waivers.

        Sandra Huang, a policy analyst with the Education Trust, said the intent of Title II is to provide more comprehensive information about teacher preparation.

        The data reported, she said, “doesn't give us an adequate picture. In fact, we need to be very careful that we don't get lulled into thinking that everything's fine, because it's not.”

        The report comes as President Bush's new federal education law — the “No Child Left Behind Act” — calls for highly qualified teachers in every classroom by 2006.

        Kentucky received good marks for its pass rates of aspiring teachers, the low number of teachers on waivers and for providing alternative certification.

        But Ms. Huang said states, including Kentucky, need to include more rigorous content on tests that aspiring teachers must pass. In Ken tucky, it's called the Praxis test.

        Officials at the state Education Professional Standards Board, disagree. In April, Dr. Phillip S. Rogers, director of the board's Division of Testing and Research, told the Enquirer the exam isn't meant to ensure aspiring teachers are experts in certain areas or show how well someone is capable of teaching.

        In 2000-01, Kentucky's institutions of higher of learning had a 93 percent pass rate on the Praxis test.

        “Across the board, Kentucky's cut scores are very, very low. Most or all of them are below the 25th percentile in test performance,” Ms. Huang said.

        Mary Kirk, acting dean of Northern Kentucky University's College of Education, said officials constantly evaluate the quality of its teacher education program.

        NKU recently concluded the first year of its alternative teaching certification program, which offers less red tape than traditional preparation programs. The pro gram — which had 42 students this year — was so popular that officials doubt they will be able to accommodate all qualifying students in the fall.

        “The whole purpose of this is to accommodate those people who want to make a career change to teaching and also to address the need of the schools. There's a shortage of teachers ... and it's probably going to get worse,” Ms. Kirk said.

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