Teachers' questions concerning a proposed master teacher incentive pay plan for Tennessee are stated in this address. Questions teachers raised most frequently centered around four main issues: recertification/tenure, fair evaluations, across-the-board pay raises, and promotion quotas. Summaries of teachers' discussions on each issue are presented…

Part 1 of this publication lists certification regulations for prospective public school teachers in South Carolina and includes policy statements on: (1) school personnel required to have credentials; (2) requirements for certification; (3) application procedures; (4) credential classification; (5) additional areas of certification; (6) renewal…

A study of family day care was made in Casper, Wyoming, (1) to develop a profile of the family day care provider in Casper, (2) to determine the extent of need for family day care services, (3) to evaluate how well those needs were being met, and (4) to provide guidelines for meeting currently unmet and future needs. Data were obtained via…

Five states (Georgia, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Florida, and Arizona) are currently either administering or field-testing classroom observation systems for certification or employment decisions regarding beginning teachers. In Georgia, a beginning teacher has three years to demonstrate competence. Observations are completed by an external data…

This paper describes the Teacher Assessment Project at Stanford University, which is currently examining the use of performance-based methods for assessing teachers' competence. The research outlined in this work-in-progress explores the feasibility of documenting teaching through the use of portfolios. The paper identifies three…

Annual surveys by the Association for School, College, and University Staffing show that various categories of special education are among the major areas of personnel shortage in all of education. Especially severe areas of shortage occur in the areas of emotional disturbance/behavior disorders, learning disabilities, and multiple/severe…

Minimum state standards for teacher education/teacher certification of selected states across the United States are reviewed, including admission to teacher education, general education, professional education, specialization studies, and any additional state requirements. Recommendations and findings of effective schools studies are presented. A…

These three brochures outline entry requirements and certification information for: (1) emergency medical technician (EMT)-ambulance and EMT-non-ambulance; (2) EMT-intermediate; and (3) EMT-paramedic. Each brochure provides information on entry requirements, including provisional registration and expiration date; lapsed registration; examination…

Legislative and/or state department of education mandates requiring some form of competency assessment of teachers are currently in force in 38 states. An additional seven states report planning activity, and only five states report no plans to test the competency of teachers. Descriptions are given of competency assessment activities in each…

This document sets forth the requirements for teacher education and certification for the State of South Carolina. There are four sections: (1) certification and credentialing requrements; (2) requirements for additional areas of certification; (3) requirements for initial certification at the advanced level; and (4) requirements for trade and…

A brief overview of the status of state programs designed to assess teacher competency is provided. Tests commonly used by states include tests of persons who apply to educational programs (admissions tests) and tests for graduates of teacher education programs (certification tests). Admissions tests are used by 24 states, while certification…

The three articles in this newsletter focus on questions of what teacher knowledge consists of and how it can be measured. Three contemporary efforts to assess teacher knowledge, each with a different purpose, are presented. The first, based on a report of the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, summarizes state assessment efforts and…

This study examines the issues of teaching out-of-field and the issuance of emergency certificates in Mississippi school districts as well as student-teacher ratios in schools and the problem of a shortage of minority teachers. The implications inherent in these issues are discussed along with recommendations for solutions to the problems. Data…

As the result of educational reform legislation passed in Texas in 1984, a recertification examination was instituted for practicing elementary and secondary school teachers and administrators. The deadline for successful completion of the test by educators was June 30, 1986. The emphasis was on measuring reading and writing abilities, and an…

In 1983, New Jersey's governor, Tom Keane, proposed the Alternative Path to Certification as a means to alleviate the state's growing teacher shortage. At least 12 other states are now using similar plans to recruit teachers possessing liberal arts bachelor's degrees who have passed a standardized test and completed successfully a one-year…