Bill Text: MN HF63 | 2011-2012 | 87th Legislature | Engrossed
Bill Title: Teacher licensure provisions amended, alternative teacher preparation program and limited-term teacher license established, and report required.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 8-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-02-09 - HF indefinitely postponed [HF63 Detail]
Download: Minnesota-2011-HF63-Engrossed.html
1.2relating to education; amending teacher licensure provisions; establishing
1.3an alternative teacher preparation program and limited-term teacher license;
1.4requiring reports;amending Minnesota Statutes 2010, sections 122A.16;
1.5122A.23, subdivision 1; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes,
1.6chapter 122A; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.24.
1.7BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.8 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.16, is amended to read:
1.9122A.16 HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHER DEFINED.
1.10(a) A qualified teacher is one holding a valid license, under this chapter, to perform
1.11the particular service for which the teacher is employed in a public school.
1.12(b) For the purposes of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, a highly qualified
1.13teacher is one who holds a valid license under this chapter, including under section
1.14122A.245, among other sections, to perform the particular service for which the teacher is
1.15employed in a public school or who meets the requirements of a highly objective uniform
1.16state standard of evaluation (HOUSSE).
1.17All Minnesota teachers teaching in a core academic subject area, as defined by the
1.18federal No Child Left Behind Act, in which they are not fully licensed may complete the
1.19following HOUSSE process in the core subject area for which the teacher is requesting
1.20highly qualified status by completing an application, in the form and manner described by
1.21the commissioner, that includes:
1.22(1) documentation of student achievement as evidenced by norm-referenced test
1.23results that are objective and psychometrically valid and reliable;
1.24(2) evidence of local, state, or national activities, recognition, or awards for
1.25professional contribution to achievement;
2.1(3) description of teaching experience in the teachers' core subject area in a public
2.2school under a waiver, variance, limited license or other exception; nonpublic school; and
2.3postsecondary institution;
2.4(4) test results from the Praxis II content test;
2.5(5) evidence of advanced certification from the National Board for Professional
2.6Teaching Standards;
2.7(6) evidence of the successful completion of course work or pedagogy courses; and
2.8(7) evidence of the successful completion of high quality professional development
2.9activities.
2.10Districts must assign a school administrator to serve as a HOUSSE reviewer to
2.11meet with teachers under this paragraph and, where appropriate, certify the teachers'
2.12applications. Teachers satisfy the definition of highly qualified when the teachers receive
2.13at least 100 of the total number of points used to measure the teachers' content expertise
2.14under clauses (1) to (7). Teachers may acquire up to 50 points only in any one clause (1)
2.15to (7). Teachers may use the HOUSSE process to satisfy the definition of highly qualified
2.16for more than one subject area.
2.17(c) Achievement of the HOUSSE criteria is not equivalent to a license. A teacher
2.18must obtain permission from the Board of Teaching in order to teach in a public school.
2.19 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.23, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
2.20 Subdivision 1. Preparation equivalency. When a license to teach is authorized to
2.21be issued to any holder of a diploma or a degree of a Minnesota state university, or of the
2.22University of Minnesota, or of a liberal arts university, or a technical training institution,
2.23such license may also, in the discretion of the Board of Teaching or the commissioner of
2.24education, whichever has jurisdiction, be issued to any holder of a diploma or a degree
2.25of a teacher training institution of equivalent rank and standing of any other state. The
2.26diploma or degree must be granted by virtue ofthe completion of completing a course in
2.27teacher preparation essentially equivalent in content to that required by such Minnesota
2.28state university or the University of Minnesota or a liberal arts university in Minnesota
2.29or a technical training institution as preliminary to the granting of a diploma or a degree
2.30of the same rank and class. For purposes of granting a Minnesota teaching license to a
2.31person who receives a diploma or degree from a state-accredited, out-of-state teacher
2.32training program leading to licensure, the Board of Teaching must establish criteria and
2.33streamlined procedures to recognize the experience and professional credentials of the
2.34person holding the out-of-state diploma or degree and allow that person to demonstrate to
3.1the board his or her qualifications for receiving a Minnesota teaching license based on
3.2performance measures the board adopts under this section.
3.3 Sec. 3. [122A.245] ALTERNATIVE TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAM
3.4AND LIMITED-TERM TEACHER LICENSE.
3.5 Subdivision 1. Requirements. (a) The Board of Teaching must approve qualified
3.6teacher preparation programs under this section that are a means to acquire a two-year
3.7limited-term license and to prepare for acquiring a standard license. The following entities
3.8are eligible to participate under this section:
3.9(1) a school district or charter school that forms a partnership with a college or
3.10university that has a board-approved alternative teacher preparation program;
3.11(2) a school district or charter school that forms a partnership with a nonprofit
3.12corporation formed under chapter 317A for an education-related purpose that has a
3.13board-approved teacher preparation program; or
3.14(3) a board-approved teacher preparation program within a district.
3.15(b) Before participating in this program, a candidate must:
3.16(1) have a bachelor's degree;
3.17(2) pass the reading, writing, and mathematics skills examination under section
3.18122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (b); and
3.19(3) obtain qualifying scores on applicable board-approved content area and
3.20pedagogy examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (e).
3.21(c) The Board of Teaching must issue a two-year limited-term license to a person
3.22who enrolls in an alternative teacher preparation program.
3.23 Subd. 2. Characteristics. An alternative teacher preparation program under this
3.24section must include:
3.25(1) a minimum 200-hour instructional phase that provides intensive preparation
3.26before the teacher candidate assumes classroom responsibilities;
3.27(2) a research-based and results-oriented approach focused on best teaching practices
3.28to increase student proficiency and growth measured against state academic standards;
3.29(3) strategies to combine pedagogy and best teaching practices to better inform
3.30teacher candidates' classroom instruction;
3.31(4) assessment, supervision, and evaluation of teacher candidates to determine
3.32their specific needs throughout the program and to support their efforts to successfully
3.33complete the program;
3.34(5) intensive, ongoing, and multiyear professional learning opportunities that
3.35accelerate teacher candidates' professional growth, support student learning, and provide a
4.1workplace orientation, professional staff development, and mentoring and peer review
4.2focused on standards of professional practice and continuous professional growth; and
4.3(6) a requirement that teacher candidates demonstrate to the local site team under
4.4subdivision 5 their satisfactory progress toward acquiring a standard license from the
4.5Board of Teaching.
4.6 Subd. 3. Program approval. The Board of Teaching must approve alternative
4.7teacher preparation programs under this section based on board-adopted criteria that
4.8reflect best practices for alternative teacher preparation programs, consistent with this
4.9section. The board must permit teacher candidates to demonstrate mastery of pedagogy
4.10and content standards in school-based settings and through other nontraditional means.
4.11 Subd. 4. Employment conditions. Where applicable, teacher candidates with a
4.12limited-term license under this section are members of the local employee organization
4.13representing teachers and subject to the terms of the local collective bargaining agreement
4.14between the exclusive representative of the teachers and the school board. A collective
4.15bargaining agreement between a school board and the exclusive representative of the
4.16teachers must not prevent or restrict or otherwise interfere with a school district's ability to
4.17employ a teacher prepared under this section.
4.18 Subd. 5. Approval for standard license. A local site team that includes teachers
4.19and school administrators, and that may include postsecondary faculty under subdivision
4.201, paragraph (a), clause (1), or staff of a participating nonprofit corporation under
4.21subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (2), must evaluate the performance of the teacher
4.22candidate. The evaluation must be consistent with board-adopted performance measures,
4.23use the Minnesota state standards of effective practice and subject matter content standards
4.24for teachers established in rule, and include a report to the board recommending whether
4.25or not to issue the teacher candidate a standard license.
4.26 Subd. 6. Applicants trained in other states. A person who successfully completes
4.27another state's alternative teacher preparation program, consistent with section 122A.23,
4.28subdivision 1, may apply to the Board of Teaching for a standard license under subdivision
4.297.
4.30 Subd. 7. Standard license. The Board of Teaching must issue a standard license
4.31to an otherwise qualified teacher candidate under this section who successfully performs
4.32throughout a program under this section, successfully completes all required skills,
4.33pedagogy, and content area examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraphs
4.34(a) and (e), and is recommended for licensure under subdivision 5 or successfully
4.35demonstrates to the board his or her qualifications for licensure under subdivision 6.
5.1 Subd. 8. Highly qualified teacher. A person holding a valid limited-term license
5.2under this section is a highly qualified teacher and the teacher of record under section
5.3122A.16.
5.4 Subd. 9. Reports. The Board of Teaching must submit an interim report on the
5.5efficacy of this program to the policy and finance committees of the legislature with
5.6jurisdiction over kindergarten through grade 12 education by February 15, 2013, and a
5.7final report by February 15, 2015.
5.8EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective for the 2011-2012 school year and
5.9later.
5.10 Sec. 4. REPEALER.
5.11Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.24, is repealed.
5.12EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective August 1, 2011.
1.3an alternative teacher preparation program and limited-term teacher license;
1.4requiring reports;amending Minnesota Statutes 2010, sections 122A.16;
1.5122A.23, subdivision 1; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes,
1.6chapter 122A; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.24.
1.7BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.8 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.16, is amended to read:
1.9122A.16 HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHER DEFINED.
1.10(a) A qualified teacher is one holding a valid license, under this chapter, to perform
1.11the particular service for which the teacher is employed in a public school.
1.12(b) For the purposes of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, a highly qualified
1.13teacher is one who holds a valid license under this chapter, including under section
1.14122A.245, among other sections, to perform the particular service for which the teacher is
1.15employed in a public school or who meets the requirements of a highly objective uniform
1.16state standard of evaluation (HOUSSE).
1.17All Minnesota teachers teaching in a core academic subject area, as defined by the
1.18federal No Child Left Behind Act, in which they are not fully licensed may complete the
1.19following HOUSSE process in the core subject area for which the teacher is requesting
1.20highly qualified status by completing an application, in the form and manner described by
1.21the commissioner, that includes:
1.22(1) documentation of student achievement as evidenced by norm-referenced test
1.23results that are objective and psychometrically valid and reliable;
1.24(2) evidence of local, state, or national activities, recognition, or awards for
1.25professional contribution to achievement;
2.1(3) description of teaching experience in the teachers' core subject area in a public
2.2school under a waiver, variance, limited license or other exception; nonpublic school; and
2.3postsecondary institution;
2.4(4) test results from the Praxis II content test;
2.5(5) evidence of advanced certification from the National Board for Professional
2.6Teaching Standards;
2.7(6) evidence of the successful completion of course work or pedagogy courses; and
2.8(7) evidence of the successful completion of high quality professional development
2.9activities.
2.10Districts must assign a school administrator to serve as a HOUSSE reviewer to
2.11meet with teachers under this paragraph and, where appropriate, certify the teachers'
2.12applications. Teachers satisfy the definition of highly qualified when the teachers receive
2.13at least 100 of the total number of points used to measure the teachers' content expertise
2.14under clauses (1) to (7). Teachers may acquire up to 50 points only in any one clause (1)
2.15to (7). Teachers may use the HOUSSE process to satisfy the definition of highly qualified
2.16for more than one subject area.
2.17(c) Achievement of the HOUSSE criteria is not equivalent to a license. A teacher
2.18must obtain permission from the Board of Teaching in order to teach in a public school.
2.19 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.23, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
2.20 Subdivision 1. Preparation equivalency. When a license to teach is authorized to
2.21be issued to any holder of a diploma or a degree of a Minnesota state university, or of the
2.22University of Minnesota, or of a liberal arts university, or a technical training institution,
2.23such license may also, in the discretion of the Board of Teaching or the commissioner of
2.24education, whichever has jurisdiction, be issued to any holder of a diploma or a degree
2.25of a teacher training institution of equivalent rank and standing of any other state. The
2.26diploma or degree must be granted by virtue of
2.27teacher preparation essentially equivalent in content to that required by such Minnesota
2.28state university or the University of Minnesota or a liberal arts university in Minnesota
2.29or a technical training institution as preliminary to the granting of a diploma or a degree
2.30of the same rank and class. For purposes of granting a Minnesota teaching license to a
2.31person who receives a diploma or degree from a state-accredited, out-of-state teacher
2.32training program leading to licensure, the Board of Teaching must establish criteria and
2.33streamlined procedures to recognize the experience and professional credentials of the
2.34person holding the out-of-state diploma or degree and allow that person to demonstrate to
3.1the board his or her qualifications for receiving a Minnesota teaching license based on
3.2performance measures the board adopts under this section.
3.3 Sec. 3. [122A.245] ALTERNATIVE TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAM
3.4AND LIMITED-TERM TEACHER LICENSE.
3.5 Subdivision 1. Requirements. (a) The Board of Teaching must approve qualified
3.6teacher preparation programs under this section that are a means to acquire a two-year
3.7limited-term license and to prepare for acquiring a standard license. The following entities
3.8are eligible to participate under this section:
3.9(1) a school district or charter school that forms a partnership with a college or
3.10university that has a board-approved alternative teacher preparation program;
3.11(2) a school district or charter school that forms a partnership with a nonprofit
3.12corporation formed under chapter 317A for an education-related purpose that has a
3.13board-approved teacher preparation program; or
3.14(3) a board-approved teacher preparation program within a district.
3.15(b) Before participating in this program, a candidate must:
3.16(1) have a bachelor's degree;
3.17(2) pass the reading, writing, and mathematics skills examination under section
3.18122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (b); and
3.19(3) obtain qualifying scores on applicable board-approved content area and
3.20pedagogy examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (e).
3.21(c) The Board of Teaching must issue a two-year limited-term license to a person
3.22who enrolls in an alternative teacher preparation program.
3.23 Subd. 2. Characteristics. An alternative teacher preparation program under this
3.24section must include:
3.25(1) a minimum 200-hour instructional phase that provides intensive preparation
3.26before the teacher candidate assumes classroom responsibilities;
3.27(2) a research-based and results-oriented approach focused on best teaching practices
3.28to increase student proficiency and growth measured against state academic standards;
3.29(3) strategies to combine pedagogy and best teaching practices to better inform
3.30teacher candidates' classroom instruction;
3.31(4) assessment, supervision, and evaluation of teacher candidates to determine
3.32their specific needs throughout the program and to support their efforts to successfully
3.33complete the program;
3.34(5) intensive, ongoing, and multiyear professional learning opportunities that
3.35accelerate teacher candidates' professional growth, support student learning, and provide a
4.1workplace orientation, professional staff development, and mentoring and peer review
4.2focused on standards of professional practice and continuous professional growth; and
4.3(6) a requirement that teacher candidates demonstrate to the local site team under
4.4subdivision 5 their satisfactory progress toward acquiring a standard license from the
4.5Board of Teaching.
4.6 Subd. 3. Program approval. The Board of Teaching must approve alternative
4.7teacher preparation programs under this section based on board-adopted criteria that
4.8reflect best practices for alternative teacher preparation programs, consistent with this
4.9section. The board must permit teacher candidates to demonstrate mastery of pedagogy
4.10and content standards in school-based settings and through other nontraditional means.
4.11 Subd. 4. Employment conditions. Where applicable, teacher candidates with a
4.12limited-term license under this section are members of the local employee organization
4.13representing teachers and subject to the terms of the local collective bargaining agreement
4.14between the exclusive representative of the teachers and the school board. A collective
4.15bargaining agreement between a school board and the exclusive representative of the
4.16teachers must not prevent or restrict or otherwise interfere with a school district's ability to
4.17employ a teacher prepared under this section.
4.18 Subd. 5. Approval for standard license. A local site team that includes teachers
4.19and school administrators, and that may include postsecondary faculty under subdivision
4.201, paragraph (a), clause (1), or staff of a participating nonprofit corporation under
4.21subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (2), must evaluate the performance of the teacher
4.22candidate. The evaluation must be consistent with board-adopted performance measures,
4.23use the Minnesota state standards of effective practice and subject matter content standards
4.24for teachers established in rule, and include a report to the board recommending whether
4.25or not to issue the teacher candidate a standard license.
4.26 Subd. 6. Applicants trained in other states. A person who successfully completes
4.27another state's alternative teacher preparation program, consistent with section 122A.23,
4.28subdivision 1, may apply to the Board of Teaching for a standard license under subdivision
4.297.
4.30 Subd. 7. Standard license. The Board of Teaching must issue a standard license
4.31to an otherwise qualified teacher candidate under this section who successfully performs
4.32throughout a program under this section, successfully completes all required skills,
4.33pedagogy, and content area examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraphs
4.34(a) and (e), and is recommended for licensure under subdivision 5 or successfully
4.35demonstrates to the board his or her qualifications for licensure under subdivision 6.
5.1 Subd. 8. Highly qualified teacher. A person holding a valid limited-term license
5.2under this section is a highly qualified teacher and the teacher of record under section
5.3122A.16.
5.4 Subd. 9. Reports. The Board of Teaching must submit an interim report on the
5.5efficacy of this program to the policy and finance committees of the legislature with
5.6jurisdiction over kindergarten through grade 12 education by February 15, 2013, and a
5.7final report by February 15, 2015.
5.8EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective for the 2011-2012 school year and
5.9later.
5.10 Sec. 4. REPEALER.
5.11Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 122A.24, is repealed.
5.12EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective August 1, 2011.
