Proposed Rules Title 19

TITLE 19. EDUCATION

Part 7. STATE BOARD FOR EDUCATOR CERTIFICATION

Chapter 233. CATEGORIES OF CLASSROOM TEACHING CERTIFICATES

19 TAC §233.2

The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) proposes an amendment to §233.2, relating to categories of classroom teaching certificates. The section addresses generalist certificates. The proposed amendment would create a new certificate for Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6 to be issued no earlier than September 1, 2008. In addition, the proposed amendment would allow a standard certificate holder assigned to teach in a self-contained classroom for Grades 5 and 6 prior to the 2007-2008 school year to remain in the assignment, at the discretion of the employing school district, through the 2009-2010 school year. This assignment extension is necessary to cover the transition period when educator standards and tests are being developed and approved prior to full implementation of the Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6 certificate.

19 TAC Chapter 233, Categories of Classroom Teaching Certificates, §233.2, Generalist, provides for the issuance of the Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4 and Generalist: Grades 4-8 certificates. Beginning in fall 2002, the SBEC began issuing certificates for Early Childhood-Grade 4, Grades 4-8, and Grades 8-12.

In 2003, due to a shortage of fifth and sixth grade teachers, the SBEC adopted an amendment to 19 TAC §233.2 that allowed school districts to assign the holder of a Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4, Bilingual Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4, or English as a Second Language Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4 certificate to teach in a self-contained classroom for Grades 5 and 6 during the 2003-2004, 2004-2005, and 2005-2006 school years. In May 2006, the SBEC approved an amendment to extend the timeline of the rule through the 2006-2007 school year, including summer school 2007. This provision expires August 1, 2007. At the May 2006 SBEC meeting, staff was asked to review the current certification structure and develop a plan for a permanent solution to alleviate the staffing problem in Grades 5 and 6.

At the direction of the SBEC, an educational stakeholder group met in September 2006, November 2006, and February 2007 to discuss possible solutions and implications of changes to the certification structure. On March 9, 2007, the SBEC reviewed the information generated by the stakeholder meetings regarding the certification structure. Texas Education Agency (TEA) staff provided the SBEC with data regarding the number of certificates that have been issued at different levels under the current Early Childhood-Grade 4, Grades 4-8, and Grades 8-12 structure. Several grade level configurations were presented to the SBEC for consideration regarding revisions to the certification structure in an attempt to address the shortage of teachers in self-contained classrooms for Grades 5 and 6.

At the March 9, 2007, meeting, the SBEC directed staff to meet again with stakeholders. The stakeholders met on March 30, 2007, reaching consensus that creating a Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6 certificate would provide school districts the most flexibility in assignment.

The proposed amendment to 19 TAC §233.2 would create a new subsection (c) to add a new Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6 certificate to be issued no earlier than September 1, 2008. In order to allow time for educator standards to be developed and approved, including proficiencies for teaching Grades 5 and 6; examinations to be developed; and educator preparation programs to adjust curriculum for the new certificate, proposed new subsection (d), formerly subsection (c), would add a provision that would allow persons who hold standard Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4 certificates assigned to self-contained classrooms in Grades 5 and 6 prior to the 2007-2008 school year to remain in these assignments through the 2009-2010 school year, including summer school programs. The extension of assignments would be at the discretion of the employing school districts. The proposed amendment would exclude programs beginning in fall 2010 as proposed in §233.2(d)(4).

Raymond Glynn, acting associate commissioner for educator quality and standards, has determined that, for each year of the first five years the proposed amendment is in effect, there will be no fiscal implications for state or local government as a result of enforcing or administering the amendment.

Dr. Glynn has determined that, for each year of the first five years the amendment is in effect, the public benefit anticipated as a result of enforcing the proposed amendment will be issuance of appropriate certificates to educators who demonstrate content mastery toward meeting the certification requirements. Also, school districts, in the interim, would be allowed to extend the 2006-2007 school year assignments of educators placed in hard-to-fill vacancies in self-contained classrooms for Grades 5 and 6 until the transition to the new certificate is complete. There will be no effect on small businesses. There is no anticipated economic cost to persons who are required to comply with the amendment.

Comments on the proposal may be submitted to Cristina De La Fuente-Valadez, Policy Coordination Division, Texas Education Agency, 1701 North Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78701, (512) 475-1497. Comments may also be submitted electronically to sbecrules@tea.state.tx.us or faxed to (512) 463-0028. All requests for a public hearing on the proposed amendment submitted under the Administrative Procedure Act must be received by the Department of Educator Quality and Standards, Texas Education Agency, 1701 North Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78701, Attention: Dr. Raymond Glynn, not more than 15 calendar days after notice of the proposal has been published in the Texas Register.

The amendment is proposed under TEC, §21.031(b), which requires the SBEC to ensure that all candidates for certification or renewal of certification demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to improve the performance of the diverse student population of this state and §21.041(b)(2), which requires the SBEC to specify the classes of certificates to be issued.

The proposed amendment implements TEC, §21.031(b) and §21.041(b)(2).

§233.2.Generalist.

(a) Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4. The Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4 certificate may be issued no earlier than September 1, 2002. The holder of the Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4 certificate may teach the following content areas in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-4:

(1) Art;

(2) Health;

(3) Music;

(4) Physical Education;

(5) English Language Arts and Reading;

(6) Mathematics;

(7) Science; and

(8) Social Studies.

(b) Generalist: Grades 4-8. The Generalist: Grades 4-8 certificate may be issued no earlier than September 1, 2002. The holder of the Generalist: Grades 4-8 certificate may teach the following content areas in Grades 4-8:

(1) English Language Arts and Reading;

(2) Mathematics;

(3) Science; and

(4) Social Studies.

(c) Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6. The Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6 certificate may be issued no earlier than September 1, 2008. The holder of the Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 6 certificate may teach the following content areas in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-6:

(1) Art;

(2) Health;

(3) Music;

(4) Physical Education;

(5) English Language Arts and Reading;

(6) Mathematics;

(7) Science; and

(8) Social Studies.

(d) [ ~~(c)~~ ] The holder of the Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4, Bilingual Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4, or English as a Second Language Generalist: Early Childhood-Grade 4 certificates may be assigned to teach the content areas specified in subsection (a) of this section in a self-contained classroom in Grades 5 and 6 during the school years 2003-2004, 2004-2005, 2005-2006, and 2006-2007. Standard certificate holders assigned prior to the 2007-2008 school year, in accordance with this subsection, may remain in these assignments, at the discretion of the employing school districts, through the 2009-2010 school year.

(1) The superintendent of a school district or designee must report the assignment to the State Board for Educator Certification in a manner approved by the Texas Education Agency staff [ ~~executive director~~ ] .

(2) The superintendent or designee must affirm:

(A) the school district's efforts to recruit and employ a fully certified and qualified teacher for the assignment, including the reason for determining as unqualified each appropriately certified applicant. The district must maintain documentation of its recruiting efforts for a period of two years from the date of the making of the record;

(B) that the holder of one of the certificates specified in this subsection will be provided with a trained mentor for the entire period of the assignment to help the person perform effectively in the assignment; and

(C) that written consent has been obtained from the holder of one of the certificates specified in this subsection prior to assignment to self-contained classes in Grades 5 or 6.

(i) A teacher who refuses to consent to assignment under the provisions of this subsection may not be terminated, nonrenewed, or otherwise retaliated against because of the teacher's refusal to consent to the assignment.

(ii) A teacher's refusal to consent to the assignment under the provisions of this subsection shall not impair a school district's right to implement a necessary reduction in force or other personnel action in accordance with school district policy.

(3) Individuals assigned to self-contained classrooms in Grades 5 and 6 under the provisions of this subsection are subject to the provisions of the Texas Education Code, §21.057.

(4) The provisions of this subsection shall expire on August 1, 2010 [ ~~2007~~ ] . The provisions of this subsection include 2009-2010 [ ~~2006-2007~~ ] summer school programs and exclude programs beginning in fall 2010 [ ~~2007~~ ] .

This agency hereby certifies that the proposal has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be within the agency's legal authority to adopt.

Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on May 14, 2007.

TRD-200701854

Raymond Glynn

Acting Associate Commissioner, Educator Quality and Standards

State Board for Educator Certification

Earliest possible date of adoption: June 24, 2007

For further information, please call: (512) 475-1497

19 TAC §233.15

The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) proposes an amendment to §233.15, relating to categories of classroom teaching certificates. The section addresses languages other than English certificates. The proposed amendment would expand the certificates issued for languages other than English (LOTE) by adding new certificates for Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and Vietnamese in Early Childhood-Grade 12, to be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007.

Texas Education Code (TEC), §21.041(b)(1), authorizes the SBEC to propose rules that provide for the regulation of educators. Currently, 19 TAC §230.193, Teacher Certificate--Secondary, authorizes secondary certification for Grades 6-12 in Spanish, French, German, Latin, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Czech, and Hebrew. Written examinations are available for Spanish, French, German, and Latin; and oral examinations are available in Spanish and French.

Currently, there is no state-approved written or oral examination available for Italian, Japanese, Russian, Czech, or Hebrew. The majority of certificates issued have been for Spanish, French, German, and Latin, with a limited number issued in other languages. In the absence of state-approved examinations in some languages, educator preparation programs preparing candidates for LOTE certification have been responsible for determining language proficiency of candidates through other means of assessment such as interviews, military interpreter instruments, and instruments developed by individuals.

Texas currently does not offer LOTE certification in Arabic, Chinese, or Vietnamese; however, school districts recommend that certificates be created to be responsive to the needs of multicultural communities and to prepare students for increasing globalization of the economy.

On March 9, 2007, the SBEC approved the use of oral and written examinations available through the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) for Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and Vietnamese. Educators seeking certification in Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and Vietnamese for Early Childhood-Grade 12 in Texas would be required to complete the appropriate requirements for certification and pass the available ACTFL written and oral examinations for language proficiency.

The proposed amendment to 19 TAC §233.15 would create new subsections (b) - (f) to add new certificates for languages other than English in Arabic: Early Childhood-Grade 12; Chinese: Early Childhood-Grade 12; Japanese: Early Childhood-Grade 12; Russian: Early Childhood-Grade 12; and Vietnamese: Early Childhood-Grade 12. The new certificates would allow the holder to teach in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-12. The new certificates would be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007.

Dr. Glynn has determined that, for each year of the first five years, the proposed amendment is in effect, the public benefit anticipated as a result of enforcing the amendment will be having highly qualified and certified teachers in LOTE classes. Also, districts would be able to begin or expand current LOTE programs to include emerging languages. There will be no effect on small businesses. There is no anticipated economic cost to persons who are required to comply with the amendment.

The amendment is proposed under TEC, §21.031(a), which vests the SBEC with the authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of the certification, continuing education, and standards of conduct of public school educators; §21.041(b)(1), which requires the SBEC to propose rules that provide for the regulation of educators and the general administration of Chapter 21, Subchapter B, in a manner consistent with that subchapter; and §21.041(b)(4), which requires the SBEC to specify the requirements for the issuance and renewal of an educator certificate.

The proposed amendment implements TEC, §21.031(a) and §21.041(b)(1) and (4).

§233.15.Languages Other Than English.

(a) American Sign Language (ASL): Early Childhood-Grade 12. The American Sign Language (ASL): Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate may be issued no earlier than September 1, 2005. The holder of the American Sign Language (ASL): Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate is eligible to teach American Sign Language in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-12.

(b) Arabic: Early Childhood-Grade 12. The Arabic: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate may be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007. The holder of the Arabic: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate is eligible to teach Arabic in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-12.

(c) Chinese: Early Childhood-Grade 12. The Chinese: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate may be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007. The holder of the Chinese: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate is eligible to teach Chinese in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-12.

(d) Japanese: Early Childhood-Grade 12. The Japanese: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate may be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007. The holder of the Chinese: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate is eligible to teach Japanese in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-12.

(e) Russian: Early Childhood-Grade 12. The Russian: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate may be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007. The holder of the Russian: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate is eligible to teach Russian in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1-12.

(f) Vietnamese: Early Childhood-Grade 12. The Vietnamese: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate may be issued no earlier than October 15, 2007. The holder of the Vietnamese: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate is eligible to teach Vietnamese in a prekindergarten program, in kindergarten, and in Grades 1- 12.