The passage of Bill 1706 by the Oklahoma State Legislature is a major step toward building professional schools of education and a true profession. Through the specifications of this law, the total process is to be strengthened, since changes in teacher education are severely limited if done in a piecemeal fashion. There are five major points which address competency issues: (1) Admissions criteria for colleges of education will be strengthened by requiring a higher grade point average and by assessing competence in oral and written communication skills. (2) The quantity of clinical field experience will be increased and placed in settings which demonstrate first-rate educational practices. (3) The academic competence of teachers in their subject fields will be tested beginning in 1982 by required curriculum examinations. (4) A one-year internship or entry year is mandated, making teacher preparation a five-year process. At the end of the entry year, each beginning teacher is assessed by a three person committee, composed of a teacher, an administrator, and a teacher educator. (5) Continuing education activities will be planned by all boards of education, and participants rewarded in school system salary schedules. Colleges of education also come under this provision, in increased attention to faculty development. (FG)