Topic: Teacher Licensure and Certification
Teacher Licensure and Certification
SREB’s Teacher Preparation Commission recommended that states require all teacher candidates to meet the same high criteria for initial licensure, whether their preparation is traditional or alternative, undergraduate, post-baccalaureate or graduate. Another recommendation: Identify a continuum of teacher development and link it to the licensure system.
Policymakers set certification requirements that cover coursework, clinical practice experiences and exams. SREB offers guidance and technical assistance on these complex decisions and analyzes policies in areas such as tiered licensure, alternative pathways to certification and reciprocity among states.
State Policy Flexibilities in Response to COVID-19
Avoid Failing the Next Cohort of New Teachers
With colleges and schools moving online to curb the spread of COVID-19, state leaders will need to act quickly to ensure that policies do not prevent student-teachers from graduating and becoming licensed to teach in the fall. This brief includes immediate and longer-term recommendations to prevent pandemic closures from escalating the teacher shortage crisis.
State Efforts to Promote Teacher Leadership
In the face of teacher shortages, state leaders have an opportunity to explore ways of remaking the teaching profession from the inside out, rather than relying solely on short-term solutions. One strategy: teacher leadership and mentorship initiatives. This brief highlights how education leaders in six states used three levers ─ certification, pay and recognition ─ to identify and retain teacher leaders.
Alternative Certification Pathways in SREB States
Summary of State Requirements
All SREB states provide alternative routes to teacher certification, however the strategies for approving nontraditional pathways vary from state to state. This brief provides 10 examples of alternative certification programs in eight SREB states and includes recommendations policymakers should consider when designing or approving alternative certification programs.
Teacher Licensure Governance by State
February 2020
In 15 of 16 SREB states, the state education agency governs teacher certification. In Georgia, a professional standards commission governs licensure.
Licensure Reciprocity in SREB States
Summary of State Requirements
This brief describes state policies for granting teaching licenses to educators from other states. Some policies are common across many states, but requirements vary significantly from state to state based on the experience level of the teacher. Clarifying requirements for recent graduates of out-of-state teacher preparation programs could improve interstate transfer.
A Review of State Teacher Licensure Strategies
Summary of State Requirements
SREB reviewed state teacher licensure policies to inform leaders about trends including how states regulate alternative pathways and the move toward practice-based assessments. The brief also includes questions for policymakers who are considering changes to their states’ teacher preparation and licensure requirements.
State Teacher Licensure Information
Licenses Types and Approved Alternative Pathways by State
Updated July 2019
The SREB Teacher Preparation Commission recommends that states hold all new teachers to the same high standards , regardless of the pathway type.
The updated table summarizes the types of licenses issued by SREB states and alternative pathways into the teaching profession.
Teacher Licensure Requirements
Minimum Requirements for Initial Teacher Licensure by State
Updated July 2019
The SREB Teacher Preparation Commission recommends that state licensing require practice-based assessments. Eight SREB states have adopted practice-based assessments since 2010.
The updated table summarizes state licensure assessment and clinical practice requirements for all licensure candidates, including those enrolled in alternative pathways.