TEACHER CERTIFICATE EXCEPTION
House Bill 4048
Sponsor: Rep. Ken Bradstreet
Committee: Education
Complete to 1-31-03
A SUMMARY OF HOUSE BILL 4048 AS INTRODUCED 1-28-03
House Bill 4048 would amend the Revised School Code to allow the board of a local or intermediate school district, or the governing board of a nonpublic school, to engage a full-time or part-time non-certificated, non-endorsed teacher to teach in grades 9 through 12, under certain conditions.
Generally, the bill would change a number of provisions in the existing law to enable an alternative route to teacher employment. Currently, the law specifies that only local and intermediate school districts may hire non-certificated, non-endorsed teachers, and they may do so only for grades 9 through 12, and only in subject areas designated by the state board, as well as in computer science, a foreign language, mathematics, biology, chemistry, engineering, physics, and robotics. Currently a non-certificated, non-endorsed teacher is qualified to teach if he or she meets all of the following minimum requirements: (a) possesses an earned bachelor's degree from an accredited post-secondary institution; (b) has a major or a graduate degree in the field of specialization in which he or she will teach; (c) if the teacher desires to teach for more than one year, has passed both a basic skills examination and a subject area examination, if a subject area examination exists, in the field of specialization in which he or she would teach; and (d) except in the case of people engaged to teach a foreign language, has, in the five-year period immediately preceding the date of hire, not less than two years of occupational experience in the field of specialization in which he or she will teach.
More specifically, House Bill 4048 would allow the board of a local or intermediate school district, or the governing board of a nonpublic school, to engage a full-time or part-time non-certificated, non-endorsed teacher to teach in grades 9 through 12, if he or she met one or both of the following minimum requirements:
-Possessed an earned master's or doctorate degree from an accredited post-secondary institution in a field of study related to the subject that he or she was assigned to teach.
-Possessed an earned bachelor's degree from an accredited post-secondary institution and met both of the following: (i) had a major or a degree in the field of study in which he or she would teach; and, (ii) was annually and continually enrolled and completing credit in an approved teacher preparation program leading to a teaching certificate. House Bill 4048 would eliminate the requirement in the law that specifies that if the teacher desires to teach for more than one year, he or she must also pass both a basic skills examination and a subject area examination, if an applicable subject area examination exists, in the field of specialization in which he or she would teach. The bill also would eliminate an exception to this requirement for
those who in the immediately preceding five-year period, have two years of occupational experience in the field of specialization in which he or she would teach (excepting those who would teach foreign languages).
The bill specifies that these requirements would be in addition to others that could be established by a local or intermediate school board, or the governing board of a nonpublic school.
The current law also specifies that a local or intermediate school district cannot engage a full-time or part-time non-certificated, non-endorsed teacher to teach a course if the district is able to engage a certificated, endorsed teacher. Under the law, if the board is able to hire the certificated teacher, the board may employ or continue to employ the teacher to teach the course if both of the following conditions are met: (a) the teacher is annually and continually enrolled and completing credit in an approved teacher preparation program leading to a provisional teaching certificate; and (b) the teacher has a planned program leading to teacher certification on file with the employing school district, his or her teacher preparation institution, and the Department of Education. Under House Bill 4048 these provisions would be eliminated.
Finally, under the law, if a non-certificated, non-endorsed teacher completes three years of successful classroom teaching, as determined by regular observation and review by school district and teacher preparation institution personnel, the department and a teacher preparation institution must use the teaching experience for the purpose of waiving student teaching as a condition for receiving a continued employment authorization in the school district and a provisional teaching certificate. House Bill 4048 would retain but modify this provision. Specifically, the bill would eliminate the requirement that the teaching experience be used for the purpose of waiving student teaching as a condition for receiving a continued employment authorization in the school district, and a provisional teaching certificate. Under the bill, the waiver for student teaching would be retained as a condition of receiving a teaching certificate.
MCL 380.1233b
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This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.