No Teacher Better than a Bad Teacher?

Yes, I believe so.  I've seen lots of good teachers and lots of bad teachers come and go in my sixteen years of teaching.

All the research shows that fully qualified teachers do a better job that those who aren't, one of the reasons that NCLB requires that, and one of the reasons that Texas makes us jump through hoops.

Unfortunately too many people in industry think they can teach and don't think they need teacher training.  Yes, I was one of those, and still don't regret a moment I spent doing teacher certification courses.   I've met a few in the classroom who I honestly believe sitting through and listening to some classroom management classes would help, but unfortunately they know too much and won't listen.

Actually I think that's a problem with a lot of people, not just CS and not just teachers.

I've seen a lot of bad teachers, some of whom I don't think have any of the necessary skills:

a) The ability to manage a classroom.

b) The ability to write a readible, maintenable program.

c) The ability to get what is in their head into words that a high school student can understand.

I think that not having these skills is really detrimental to the student.

I've had students who didn't want to be in my class, and I've had to pull out every classroom management skill I have, and then some.  A few of them have gone on to be good programmers and major in it in college.  I think that they would not have succeeded with teacher who had lesser skills or did not care.

I will brag — even my students who don't care for programming at the end of the year, recognize that I am passionate about the field, and I think they do benefit from the class, if nothing else they recognize CS BS when they see it.

I really believe that if we want to see successful CS programs we need to develop teachers.  I also think we don't need people who think of teaching as a stopgap or last resource of a poor economy.  I also don't think it should treated as a Peace Corps opportunity as it usually takes more than 3 years to turn a degreed, newly certified teacher into a competent teacher.  Myself included.  Unfortunately classroom management skills are learned.