Highlights of the Commission
August, 2003

Edith Thiessen, Fresno Pacific University &
Mel Hunt, St. Mary's College

GS 10: Responding to the State Board's No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Actions

Just over a year after NCLB became law, it is now possible for the Commission to begin to take action to conform to the State Board of Education's (SBE) proposed definition of "a highly qualified teacher," which has taken shape over the summer. It is important to note that NCLB specifically addresses specific academic core areas, defined as: English, reading, language arts, mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history and geography.

The SBE is currently drafting a set of guidelines for school districts that will be published as soon as possible following the Board's official response to NCLB. This publication will be the essential handbook for districts in implementing the steps necessary to become NCLB compliant. It was proposed at the meeting the suggested terminology to be used by the field is that teachers are either "NCLB compliant" or "non-compliant" rather than "highly qualified" or "not highly qualified," as some may believe that a highly qualified teacher requires more qualities than are tracked by the provisions of NCLB.

Summary of the State Board of Education's Definition

New and Not New

To be considered "highly qualified" under the SBE plan, all new teachers at the elementary (Multiple Subject) level will need to pass a subject matter exam, while those new to the profession at the middle or high school level (Single Subject) will need to either complete a major or pass an exam or complete an approved subject matter program in each of the areas that they teach. Not new teachers must have been issued a teaching credential or begun an intern program prior to July 1, 2002, when NCLB came into effect.

Current Options that do not meet the NCLB Definition: Individuals who are teacher of record under one of the following permits or authorizations are not NCLB compliant under the SBE definition:

• an emergency permit
• a local assignment based on less than a major - a supplementary authorization based upon units rather than a major - state or local waivers
• pre-intern documents

The HOUSE Process

Elementary teachers who are not new and have not passed an exam will be evaluated under a "High Objective State Standard of Evaluation" (HOUSE) process. The HOUSE Process includes classroom observation, demonstration of knowledge of appropriate State Academic Content Standards, and a portfolio review of lesson plans and student work for one academic year. National Board certification would exempt a not new teacher from participation on the HOUSE process. Not new teachers also have the option of passing the approved CSET examination instead of completing the HOUSE process.

Identifying Elementary, Middle and High School Teachers According to current US Department of Education (USDE) thought, the definition of elementary, middle and high school teachers will be based upon the curriculum actually taught in the classroom. Each LEA may make its own determination of the level of each individual teacher at a school site, based upon the actual classroom specific circumstances of that teachers duties. However, the USDE has yet to put its final definitions of elementary, middle and high school teachers into written form. When the final USDE definitions are issued, they could cause the SBE to modify Californias response to NCLB.

Effective Dates No Transition Period

While the SBE initially proposed a transition period to allow new teachers to meet the requirements of NCLB, the USDE advised that the provisions of the federal law did not allow for any transition periods. As a result, teachers hired in Title I Part A school in core academic subjects AFTER the first day of school in 2002-2003 should have met the NCLB highly qualified teacher definition when hired (even though California definition is even now not yet fully adopted). Teachers who are not working in a program supported with Title I part A funds and were hired AFTER the first day of school in 2002-2003 must come into compliance with NCLB by the end of the 2005-2006 school year. Credentialed teachers or interns hired BEFORE the first day of class in 2002-2003 if they teach in one of the core academic areas must meet the NCLB definition by the end of the 2005-2006 school year, whether teaching in a Title I Part A school or not.

Final SBE Action on the NCLB Definition

The proposed regulations will be brought to the SBE in September, following the 45-day period for public comment. The SDE anticipated that the USDE may provide additional written guidance prior to the September meeting. Further revisions could require the SBE to postpone final action to later meetings due to mandated public comment periods.

Implications for those holding California teaching credentials

If you hold a California teaching credential, that document will not be taken away from you nor will its authorizations lapse. However, depending upon the document you hold, when you earned it, how you established subject matter competence, and your specific teaching assignment, Federal Law may limit your employment options. These limits may come into effect immediately or at the end of the 2005-2006 academic year, depending upon your circumstances of your individual teaching assignment.

Implications for those currently in elementary teaching credential programs or who received their initial credential AFTER June 30, 2003.

At the August meeting, much of the Commission's attention focused on the Multiple Subject credential holders, the group for whom NCLB has the most significant implications, for the most part due to the manner in which NCLB defines elementary subject matter competence.

GS 10A: Elementary Subject Matter Competence and NCLB

Under the provisions of NCLB, subject matter competence for elementary teachers must be determined by measures that include a rigorous, uniform, state-approved subject matter exam. For Single Subject credential holders, CCTC approved subject matter programs (without a culminating exam) remain a valid alternative to passage of the approved subject matter exams.

After consultation with the SBE, the Commission decided to postpone final action on this item to the October meeting, due to some last minute concerns raised by the CSU. There remains a three-week window of opportunity to continue to receive comment from the field on this item.

However, the Commission did firmly adopt the provision that all teachers defined as new under the NCLB guidelines will need to take a state-approved exam to completely establish their subject matter competence. At the moment, the only approved exam option is the CSET, but in the future the Commission will consider if other exams, such as those adopted by other states to meet NCLB requirements, may also be considered valid. As noted above, some of the new teachers as defined by NCLB already hold valid California Multiple Subject teaching credentials and some have been employed by California school districts for as long as one year.

The area in which the Commission postponed making a decision was the time by which these new teachers and those in current credential programs must pass an exam either to obtain their first credential to establish their subject matter competence under NCLB if already credentialed. In the agenda, four options were presented for the Commissions consideration:

• A. Immediately, August 14, 2003
• B. January 1, 2004, allowing for Office of Administrative Law approval
• C. July 1, 2006 (with prior informational testing required)
• D. July 1, 2005 anticipated completion date of those already in programs (with or without legislative changes)
• E. The CSU system proposed an additional alternative, that instead of modifying Standard 6 to include a state-approved examination, that the Commission seek legislative authority to require that all candidates become subject matter competent before admission to teacher preparation programs.

The Commission gave notice that it intends to make a final determination on the implementation date and process at its October meeting. Note that only the final implementation date is yet to be determined: the Commission has agreed upon the concept that all new elementary teachers will need to pass a state-approved exam.

GS 10B: Supplementary Authorizations

As noted above, current Supplementary Authorizations based upon 20 semester units of lower division or 10 units of upper division coursework are not NCLB compliant. As a result, the Commission took action to establish a new authorization, the Degree Authorization, which will have both Introductory and Specific options. The Degree Authorization will not be available to the field until the Commission completes the regulatory process to establish it. In the meantime, the current Supplementary Authorizations earned by the degree option remain NCLB compliant.

When established, the Degree Authorization options will consist of:

• A. The new Introductory Degree Authorizations (K-9) in the seven main academic areas, with either a baccalaureate degree (or higher) in the area or at least one three semester unit (or five quarter unit) course in each specified sub-area and - a minimum of 32 semester units in the area, with at least 16 upper division units included in the 32.
• B. The new Specific Degree Authorizations (K-12) in 15 narrower academic areas with a baccalaureate (or higher) degree in the specific area or in the general area with a minor in the specific area (such as major in Social Science with a 20 unit minor in geography) or - a minimum of 32 semester units in the specific area, with at least 16 upper division units included in the 32.
  

GS 10C: Conforming Pre-intern Programs to NCLB Requirements

As noted above, pre-intern certificates do not comply with the requirements of NCLB. In order to comply with the requirements of NCLB to staff each classroom with an NCLB-compliant teacher, the following plan was adopted.

• Continue to monitor the staffing needs of districts that are currently participating in the program.
• Reduce the number of pre-interns served, including reducing the number of pre-interns hired in Title I classrooms to 12% of the total number of pre-interns to be served in 2004-2005.
• Discontinue the program effective July 1, 2005.
  

The Pre-Intern Program will also rely heavily on the Accelerated Subject Matter Acquisition Program (ASAP) option to ensure that pre-interns are focused on subject matter preparation. Once the pre-intern has met subject matter competency, they can move to an internship program which is NCLB compliant.

GS 10D: Proposed Options to Align Emergency Permits and Credential Waivers with NCLB

Emergency Permits

Commission staff brought several different options to the table with regard to emergency permits. They ranged from not issuing any emergency permits after September 1, 2003, to making no changes to the current procedures. After some discussion the Commission adopted the following options:

• The Commission will no longer issue emergency permits in the NCLB core areas of arts, English, math, science, foreign language and social science, in Title I classrooms file dated after September 1, 2003, and no longer issue emergency permits after file dated July 1, 2005.
• Emergency permits in non-core subjects will continue to be issued. Thus, all Emergency Permits will have expired before the start of the 2006-07 school year, when NCLB applies to all classrooms.

Credential Waivers

Again Staff brought different options which ranged from no waivers after September 1, 2003 to no change. The Commission adopted the following options:

• No longer initially issue multiple subject and single subject credential waivers in NCLB core areas of English, math, science, foreign languages, social science and arts in Title 1 classrooms after September 1, 2003, and all classrooms after July 1, 2005.
• Waivers will continue to be issued in all other areas with no phase out date.

FPPC 1 & 2: Governor's Budget and Fiscal Structure of the Commission

Due to the crisis in financing in the state, the CAW staff is obligated to make some changes in current public service areas in order to meet the limit of 75 working days to process a credential application. A year ago the typical processing time was 67 days, in June it had reached 80 days with a backlog of over 50,000 applications in house. To be able to allocate more staff time to processing applications, phone hours will be reduced to noon-5:00 PM, Monday to Friday, emails will be answered in 72 hours rather than 24, and public office hours will be reduced to three days a week, with appointments required. Even with these reductions, due to the positions lost in the budget reductions, it will still be difficult to meet the 75-day processing goal. Other divisions of the Commission will also be making some service reductions.

In addition to the service reductions, income at the current application fee of $55 is not enough to cover the core, non-exam related activities of the Commission. As a result, the field can expect that the Commission will soon be considering a return to a fee of at least $60, though this change will not occur until after the October meeting.