Title II and Teacher Testing

Abstract

IT IS NOW almost official policy that high-quality teachers are good test-takers -- but not necessarily anything more. At least, that's the idea you get from reading more than 80 pages of the draft guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) on the state grants under Title II -- the Improving Teacher Quality title -- of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. Like the provisions for school accountability in NCLB, what is all about comes down to performance on single The folks at ED insist that they are not imposing any requirements beyond those in the law, but the guidance they offer makes no attempt to put teaching into context most teachers would find compatible with why they chose teaching as career. The law says that qualified teacher is prepared for the classroom once he or she has bachelor's degree and state certification or has passed the state licensing exam and a state academic subject test. Teachers who obtain their training via alternative routes are considered highly qualified as beginning teachers provided they are being mentored and supervised in program leading to certification. The specific requirements for teachers at various levels of schooling call for new elementary to be certified (no provisional, temporary, or emergency licenses allowed) and to have passed rigorous state test of subject knowledge and teaching skills in reading, writing, math, and other areas of the basic elementary school curriculum. A new middle or high school must have major, graduate degree, or coursework equivalent to an undergraduate academic major in each academic subject to which he or she is assigned and must have passed one of those state tests in each academic area to which he or she is assigned. Teachers in Title I programs who were hired after school started this year must also meet these requirements. Current teachers must meet similar requirements by the end of the 2005- 06 school year. They can take test or demonstrate their competence in all the subjects they teach as determined by state standard of evaluation that is uniform across the state and aligned with challenging state standards. How can that be done quickly and cheaply except with standardized test? Moreover, beginning this school year, local districts must report adequate yearly progress on meeting the deadlines to have all classrooms staffed with qualified teachers. The Title II requirements eliminate the middle school practice of assigning teachers out of field or assigning those with only general elementary certificate to teach specific subject areas. If you teach math, you need major in math or passing grade on the math If you're teaching applied physics to vocational students and they receive credit for physics, then you must have major in physics. As with other components of the new law, professional development funded under Title II (which replaces the Eisenhower grants) must meet scientifically based research standards. Moreover, one-shot workshops or conferences can no longer be paid for with federal funds. Instead, teachers must have high-quality, sustained, intensive, and classroom- focused professional development. If requested, school districts must also provide professional development for private school teachers, tailoring the training to their specific needs. Title II gives higher education institutions role in professional development, but that role is structured to ensure that arts and sciences faculty members are as involved with school district partners as are schools of education. …