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Highly Qualified Teacher Information Page:Frequently Asked Questions for PGCPS Educators |
What does it mean for Prince George’s County Public Schools’ staff?
On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, titled the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The purpose of NCLB is to “ensure that all children have a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging State academic achievement standards and state assessments.”
In addition to requiring every state to set student achievement standards and hold schools accountable for every student making adequate yearly progress, NCLB calls for highly qualified teachers and paraprofessionals in the nation’s classrooms. This NCLB website is designed to explain how NCLB impacts PGCPS employees. Additional information will be provided as more decisions are made at the federal, state, and local levels.
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What are the two main components of the NCLB teacher quality guidelines?
1. Parents Right to Know 2. Teacher Quality Service
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What does “parents right to know” mean?
The local school system must provide information to the parents of students in schools supported by Title I funds regarding the parental “right -to-know.” Notifications should explain that parents may request information on the personal qualifications of their child’s classroom teachers and paraprofessionals.Information that can be requested includes:
• Any college or university degrees or certification held by the teacher
• The subject area of the teacher’s degree or certification
• Whether or not the teacher is certified by the State of Maryland to teach a particular grade level or subject area
• Whether or not the teacher holds a conditional certificate
• Whether or not the child is served by a paraprofessional and, if so, the qualifications of the paraprofessional| Back |
What is the general definition of a “highly qualified” teacher?
• All teachers teaching in any core academic subject area (including early childhood and elementary) must:
• Hold at least a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education (IHE) and meet one of the following conditions:
• Hold an Advanced Professional Certificate (APC) or National Board Certificate (NBC)
• Hold a Resident Teacher Certificate (RTC) or Standard Professional Certificate (SPC) and have passed all applicable Praxis examination requirements OR
• Hold a Standard Professional Certificate (SPC) and meets required point count under the High Objective Uniform State Standard Evaluation (HOUSSE)
AND
• Teach
• in the field of certification endorsement| Back |
What are the options to be designated as highly qualified if none of the previous applies?
In order to be designated as HQ, you must hold a regular Maryland certificate,
hold at least a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institute
of higher education, and complete one of the following options:
Option 1: Obtain an Advanced Professional Certificate (not applicable
for early childhood or elementary certified teachers hired after July
1, 2002)
Requirements: If you hold an SPC in the CAS you are teaching, you can obtain
an APC in the field(s) you are teaching to be designated HQ. The requirements
to obtain an APC are completion of a master’s degree or the equivalent
of 36 post- baccalaureate semester hours of credit, 21 of which must be graduate
credit from a regionally accredited college or university, three years of satisfactory
teaching experience, and any required reading courses for the renewal cycle.
Option 2: Pass PRAXIS II Content Tests
Requirements: To use the testing option, a teacher must hold a valid SPC or
APC and be certified in an early childhood, elementary 1–6 and middle
school, secondary, ESOL, or special education teaching subject area. (This
does not apply to those who hold only an administrator, supervisor, or specialist
certification area. However, if you hold a certificate that includes both
a teaching area and a specialist or administrative area, this new allowance
is acceptable.)
If you hold an SPC in a CAS and did not take tests to obtain it or if you are teaching in a CAS for which you do not hold certification, you can become certified and designated HQ by passing one or more of the PRAXIS II content tests. You also may use this option to add any other CAS or non-CAS to your certificate. Please see the testing section for more information.
- Example 1: If you hold an SPC in English without having taken tests to obtain the certificate, you can be designated HQ by passing the PRAXIS II English content test.
- Example 2: If you hold an SPC or APC in biology, but you also are teaching physics, you can be certified and designated HQ in physics by passing the PRAXIS II physics content test.
- Example 3: If you hold an SPC or APC in elementary 1–6 and middle school and you are teaching secondary English, you can pass the PRAXIS II English content test to become certified and designated HQ in English.
Option 3: Complete an academic major or the equivalent in the CAS (for
middle, secondary, and pre-K–12 art/music only)
Requirements: Complete or have already completed an academic content major/
degree or course work equivalent to an academic major (30 semester hours of
content credit from a regionally accredited college/university with 50 percent
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What are the specific requirements for my core academic subject area (CAS)?
ECE/Early Childhood Education Teacher (Pre-K–Grade 3)
You are already designated HQ if you—
• Hold a national board certificate in early childhood generalist or an APC in early childhood education pre-K-3..
To become designated as HQ, you would have the following options:
Option 1: Obtain an APC in ECE (as stated on page 2, only for those hired prior to July 1, 2002).
Option 2: Hold an SPC and pass both PRAXIS II 0020 Early Childhood Education and 0014 Elementary School Content Knowledge. (Most ECE teachers with an SPC have passed only 0020 and will need to pass PRAXIS II 0014 if they wish to use this method to be designated HQ.)
Option 3: Meet the points for the ECE HOUSSE (only for those hired prior to July 1, 2002).ELE/Elementary Education Teacher in an Elementary School
You are already designated HQ if you—
• Hold a national board certificate in middle school generalist or an APC in elementary education 1–6 and middle school or
• Hold an SPC and passed appropriate tests.
To become designated as HQ, you would have the following options:
Option 1: Obtain an APC in elementary education 1-6 and middle school (as stated on page 2, only for those hired prior to July 1, 2002).
Option 2: Hold an SPC and pass both PRAXIS II 0014 Elementary School Content Knowledge and 0012 Elementary Education: Content Area Exercises—pedagogy.
Option 4: Meet the points for elementary HOUSSE (as stated on page 2, only for those hired prior to July 1, 2002).MI/Middle School Teachers
You are already designated HQ if you—
• Hold a national board certificate in middle school generalist or an APC in elementary education 1-6 and middle school or
• Hold an APC in a secondary core academic subject (Grades 5–12 or Grades 7–12).
To become designated as HQ, you would have the following options:
Option 1: Obtain an APC in elementary 1–6 and middle school (only for those hired prior to July 1, 2002) or in a secondary CAS.
Option 2: Hold an SPC in elementary education 1–6 and middle school and pass the PRAXIS II middle school tests (English/language arts, science, social studies, and/or math) or the secondary PRAXIS II content tests for the CAS you are teaching.
Option 3: Complete an academic major or the equivalent in the CAS you are
teaching
Option 4: Meet the points for the secondary HOUSSE in the CAS you are teaching (only for those hired prior to July 1, 2002).| Back |
Which tests are acceptable to add CAS and obtain the HQ designation? Which tests are acceptable to add non-CAS areas?
Qualifying scores on PRAXIS II content tests will result in being both certified and meeting the designation of HQ in that subject area if a teacher is already certified in another teaching area. Please determine which test is appropriate for the field you wish to add. If the subject area is not indicated, it means that you cannot add that particular subject area through this option. For example, if you are interested in adding computer science certification to your current certificate, MSDE does not have a PRAXIS II test for this area; therefore, this new allowance is not applicable. Please contact the certification unit if you wish to add a subject area for which a test does not exist.
The appropriate test(s) for subject areas, with the test number(s) and qualifying scores, are listed below:
PRAXIS II: SUBJECT ASSESSMENTS
New Middle School Tests
MSDE has approved new certification areas that can be added as endorsements for
teachers who currently hold Maryland Professional certificates. This is especially
important for teachers with an Elementary endorsement who are teaching at the
middle school level.
- Middle School English/Language Arts Test # 0049 Passing Score: 160
- Middle School Mathematics Test # 0069 Passing Score: 152
- Middle School Science Test # 0439 Passing Score: 145
- Middle School Social Studies Test # 0089 Passing Score: 154
- New ESOL Testing Option Effective 7/1/2004
Effective, July 1, 2004, any teacher may add ESOL certification to a current certificate by passing the new PRAXIS II ESOL test. If you wish to use this new option, you can pass the test prior to the effective date of this new option. However, the endorsement will not be added to your certificate until July 1, 2004, and thereafter. (This test is not required if you already hold a standard or advanced professional certificate in ESOL nor is it related to HQ.)
- Teaching English as a Second Language Test #0360 Passing Score: 570
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What areas are most impacted by the requirements for HQ designation?
Early childhood teachers will have to obtain the APC, pass the PRAXIS II 0014 elementary content test, or complete HOUSSE to meet the HQ designation.
Middle school teachers with elementary 1–6 and middle school certification who hold an SPC will have to obtain an APC, or pass the middle school or secondary PRAXIS II content test(s) for the CAS they are teaching, or complete an academic major or the equivalent for the CAS they are teaching, or complete HOUSSE to meet the HQ designation.
Special education and ESOL teachers teaching a CAS will have to pass the ECE, elementary school, middle school, or secondary subject PRAXIS II test for the CAS they are teaching, or complete an academic major or the equivalent for the CAS they are teaching (where applicable), or complete HOUSSE to meet the HQ designation.
Educators teaching out-of-field in CAS will have to pass the appropriate
PRAXIS II test(s) for the CAS they are teaching, or complete an academic major or the equivalent for the CAS they are teaching (where applicable), or complete HOUSSE to meet the HQ designation.| Back |
Does having senior status (at least age 55 or with 25 or more years of teaching experience) exempt a teacher from the HQ designation?
No, you would not be exempt. The senior status allowance is related to certificate renewal requirements only. If you are not HQ in the CAS you are teaching, you will have to become HQ.
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