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Acceptable
Alternative Routes to Certification Programs under
the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act updated
6/7/07
NCLB
Information available through the Texas Education
Agency:
The
Board-approved Alternative Certification
Programs and post-baccalaureate programs
whose letter of intent have been reviewed
and approved by SBEC have been annotated
with the letters “NCLB” to reflect compliance
with the USDE provisions. Individuals in
these programs will serve on the Probationary
Certificate during their year of internship
as a teacher of record and can be considered
as “highly qualified”.
When
hiring a teacher for a Title I campus that has
not completed all requirements for certification
in Texas the district should ensure:
1.
the teacher has at least a baccalaureate degree,
2.
is enrolled in an acceptable alternate route
to certification program that has been reviewed
under the NCLB criteria, and
3.
has demonstrated content mastery. These teachers
will fulfill the requirements of the USDE “highly
qualified” under NCLB.
a. Options
available for demonstration of competency: A “new” teacher,
that is a teacher who is new to the profession,
is much more limited in how competency may
be demonstrated. A new elementary teacher may
demonstrate competency only by passing the
appropriate elementary ExCET or TExES exam.
A new secondary teacher may demonstrate competency
in his/her subject by passing the subject-specific
ExCET or TExES exam, or by having college coursework
equivalent to an academic major in the subject.
USDE rule 34 CFR §200.56(a)(2)(ii) allows for a teacher participating in an alternative route to certification program who holds at least a bachelor's degree and has demonstrated subject area mastery to also be considered “highly qualified.” The cited rule establishes standards for an acceptable alternative route to certification program as being one that:
| 1. |
Provides high-quality professional development that is sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused in order to have a positive and lasting impact on classroom instruction before and while teaching; |
| 2. |
Provides intensive supervision that consists of structured guidance and regular on-going support for teachers or a teacher mentoring program; |
| 3. |
Allows the candidate to assume the functions as a teacher only for a specified period of time not to exceed three years; and |
| 4. |
Requires the teacher to demonstrate satisfactory progress toward full certification as prescribed by the State. |
The rule further stipulates that the State must ensure through its certification and licensure process that these provisions are met.
In SBEC Board rule, 19 TAC Chapter 228 Requirements for Educator Preparation Programs describes the construct of educator preparation programs. By Board rule, the respective certificate standards adopted by the Board address the relevant knowledge and skills and form the curricular basis for the preparation of the candidate. In addition, the preparation program must provide evidence of on-going and relevant field-based experiences in a variety of educational settings with diverse student populations. The preparation program must establish benchmarks and structured assessments of the candidate's progress throughout the program.
To fulfill the NCLB requirements for “highly qualified” teachers, both the Board-approved Alternative Certification Programs and the post-baccalaureate programs have been allowed to submit a letter of intent to SBEC for review and approval in regards to meeting the USDE regulations. The letter of intent must clearly address each of the four USDE standards set out above showing how the program fulfills each requirement. In order to fulfill the requirements of NCLB, SBEC may conduct random surveys of students in such programs as a means of verifying compliance with the USDE provisions.
To assist educator preparation programs in developing and organizing NCLB Letters of Intent, the following check list may be downloaded:
NCLB Compliance Checklist for Educator Preparation Programs
NCLB
Letters of Intent should be sent electronically
to Dr. Karen Loonam at Karen.Loonam@sbec.state.tx.us.
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Board Members
