Possible New Teacher Preparation Regulations & the Definition of

“Highly Qualified Teacher”

Jane E. WestSenior Vice President

Policy, Programs & Professional Issuesjwest@aacte.org

Teacher Preparation Regulations

• Negotiated rulemaking held January – April 2012

• No consensus reached• Regulations would implement Title II of

the Higher Education Act and the TEACH grants (a form of federal student financial aid for aspiring teachers)

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Teacher Preparation Regulations (cont’d)

• State would evaluate every teacher preparation program annually and rate each on a 1-4 rating scale

• Only those in a high category (1, possibly 2) would be eligible for federal student financial aid (TEACH grants)

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Teacher Preparation Regulations (cont’d)

1. K-12 student learning outcomes, value-added2. Annual employer and graduate surveys3. Employment outcome – place of employment,

retention4. Professional accreditation of program or state

approval that includes clinical preparation, candidate qualifications and pedagogical and content skills of graduate

• Value-added would carry the most weight 4

Big Concern for K-12

• The language used in the NCLB waivers would be in these regulations requiring states to develop assessments in all non-tested grades and subjects

• For the first time this language would appear in a binding policy framework – a regulation. It currently does not exist in either statute or regulation

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Other Concerns• Criteria not documented to be valid and reliable measures of

program effectiveness• Impossible to implement

– Students won’t know from year to year if they are eligible for financial aid

– States have no capacity to implement– Higher education has no capacity to gather data

• Violates statutory authority which gives state program evaluation authority

• Represents major policy shift better suited for reauthorization• Makes state arbiter of student aid eligibility – precedent setting• Disproportionate impact on minority serving institutions and

programs that prepare teachers for high needs schools & fields6

Next Steps

• Vigilance and education

• Higher Education Task Force on Teacher Preparation

• Generate robust response from the field

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Definition of a “Highly Qualified” Teacher

• 2010 Appeals Court Decision (Renee v. Duncan) found that NCLB regulations violated the statute

• Decision said “teachers in training” should not be considered highly qualified

• Congress attached a rider to an appropriations bill overturning the ruling– The provision is set to expire

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Definition of a “Highly Qualified” Teacher (cont’d)

• The Coalition for Teaching Quality (CTQ) formed to challenge the provision – 89 education, disability, civil rights, higher education groups – ACE, AAPD, CEC, Easter Seals, NCLD, HECSE, TED, NAACP, School Principals groups, NCTM, NCTE, NEA, National PTA, Rural School and Community Trust, TESOL, Native Americans, Latino groups, state and local organizations

• The vehicle for possible extension is the FY 2012 Labor/HHS/Education Appropriations bill

• The Senate version does not include the provision• The House version extends the provision for 2 more

years 9

Definition of a “Highly Qualified” Teacher (cont’d)

• CTQ effort to add data collection, parental notification to the amendment

• Aggressive lobbying by TFA and allies (Great City Schools, NCTQ, Eli Broad, Chiefs for Change, Democrats for Education Reform, Fordham Institute, New Schools Venture Fund, Relay Graduate School of Education)

• Respond to alerts; communicate with policy makers; educate your colleagues

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And remember…

If you are not at the table,

you are probably on the menu.