Educator Preparation and Advancement Pathways

Dear Colleagues,

As education leaders respond to global, technological, and political evolutions and address the global need for 44 million teachers by 2030, it is essential to explore how educator preparation and career advancement initiatives are evolving to equip educators for success across the expanding variation in learning contexts and possible futures. In this Special Issue of Education Sciences, we invite authors who are examining the dynamic landscape of educator preparation and expanding career advancement pathways within the education field globally. 

We seek contributions that explore who educators are, how they are prepared, and how they advance in the profession. We welcome a variety of methodological approaches that explore educator preparation and advancement pathways that progress the following themes: innovative school models that center student learning, the science of learning and development (SoLD), competency- or mastery-based models, professional and community agency, strategic staffing models that support advancement and specialization, the use of agentic artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced technologies, and advances in policy that promote innovation (LernerStudio, Horizon 3).

By drawing on the wealth of research and practice globally, we aim to foster cross-cultural dialogue and inform policy and practice that strengthen educator preparation pipelines, provide opportunities for career advancement for educators, and ensure high-quality teaching for all learners. 

Dr. Nicole L. Thompson
Dr. Wendy Oakes
Dr. Tanya Pinkerton
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.