TEACHER LICENSURE

Education Program

Teacher Licensure

Traditionally, certification and licensure requirements have been well used by legislatures and other state policymakers who are attempting to leverage change in the teaching profession. Hesitant to micromanage teacher preparation institutions and apprehensive to overregulate districts determination of professional development needs, licensure has been one of the few avenues available to affect the quality of state teaching corps.

Licensure requirements attempt to set at least a minimal standard for entry into the teaching profession. Until recently, states have relied primarily on two mechanisms: 1) a basic skills and/or subject area test of licensees and 2) mandated coursework in areas the state deems important, such as classroom management, literacy and teaching to diverse learners.

Forty-three states now test prospective teachers before granting a certificate or license. However, this testing and coursework mandates have been question across the states as to whether these "inputs" really do serve to ensure teacher quality. Ten states contract with National Evaluation Systems (NES) to develop a state specific exam, while the rest rely on the Praxis series published by Education Testing Services. Thirty-three states use some combination of the Praxis I, a three-part exam in mathematics, reading and writing; Praxis II subject area tests or the older National Teachers Exam and Core Battery that will be phased out by June 2000.

Teacher licensure tests in all states have come under fire for a variety of reasons. Some argue that these tests do little to help states assess whether teachers will actually be able to perform in the classroom and raise student achievement. Without multiple measures based on actual classroom performance, these exams will do little to ensure quality teachers enter the profession. Even as a screen for weeding out the least knowledgeable educators, many assert that these tests do not go far enough. A recent content analysis of state teacher licensing exams found that the majority of tests were dominated by high school level material, and that tests did not contain the content necessary for teachers charged with getting all students to high standards.

Some of this criticism is leveled at the pass scores necessary to become licensed, which varies tremendously across the states, even on the same tests. For example, Virginia, with the highest pass scores on all three sections of the Praxis based on national test takers would have between 43 percent and 56 percent fail to attain a passing mark. Other states such as Tennessee and Montana have lower passing scores that yield high percentages of success applicants.

In an effort to determine if teachers can increase student learning, at least 24 states are evaluating or attempting to revamp licensure requirements to make them performance based. Following the lead of states such as Connecticut and Indiana, in 1999, Colorado passed legislation authorizing the creation of performance based preparation and licensure standards and Maine authorized the State Board to implement a results based system.

Additional information on the web:

National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification

National Commission on Teaching and America's Future

The Education Trust

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