The proposed amendments would serve a limited, but critical, purpose. They will allow the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education to issue a provisional license for up to three years to an applicant enrolled in an alternative educator preparation program who has not yet passed the state-mandated assessment for the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach. In lieu of having passed the assessment, however, the applicant must either hold a bachelor's degree in the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach, have earned 18 hours of college credits in the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach, or have documented successful, relevant work experience in the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach. This would enable qualified applicants to teach for up to three years while working toward meeting all requirements of obtaining a standard license. This framework is permitted by Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-409(d), which provides that the State Board may require passage of the content-area assessment for a provisional license but does not make it mandatory.
The State of Arkansas currently is suffering from a severe teacher shortage, which creates an imminent peril to the welfare of the State and its public school students. Consequently, the Division seeks to promulgate these amendments as emergency rules pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. § 25-15-204(c). The Division also will simultaneously promulgate the amendments through the permanent rulemaking process.
DIVISION OF ELEMNTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION RULES GOVERNING EDUCATOR LICENSURE
1-2.0 DEFINITIONS
For the purposes of these Rules:
1-2.01
"Accredited College or
University" means an institution of higher education that is regionally
or nationally accredited by an accrediting organization recognized by the U.S
Department of Education or the Council for Higher Education
Accreditation.
1-2.02
"Accredited School Psychology program" means a program of study
for school psychology that is offered by an accredited college or university
and the program is:1-2.02.1 Nationally
accredited in school psychology by the Commission on Accreditation of the
American Psychological Association; or
1-2.02.2 Approved by the National Association
of School Psychologists (NASP) or
1-2.02.3 Nationally accredited by an
accrediting organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the
Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
1-2.03
"Accredited Speech-Language
Pathology Program" means a speech-language pathology program that is
offered by an accredited college or university, and the program is
1-2.03.1 Nationally accredited by the Council
on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology of the
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association; or
1-2.03.2 Nationally accredited by an
accrediting organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the
Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
1-2.04
"Accredited Approved Educator
Preparation Program" means an educator preparation program that is
1-2.04.1 Accredited by an accrediting
organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council for
Higher Education Accreditation; and
1-2.04.2 Approved by the licensing authority
of a state government.
1-2.05
"Additional Licensure Plan
(ALP)" means a plan approved by the Office of Educator Licensure that
allows an individual holding a Standard License or Provisional License (by
reciprocity only) to accept employment or assignment in an out-of-area
position, prior to completion of the requirements for the required endorsement
licensure content area, or level of licensure, for no more than six (6)
consecutive semesters.
1-2.06
"Administrator License" means an endorsement to a standard five
(5)-year renewable license, issued by the State Board, which allows the license
holder to serve as an administrator in an educational entity.
1-2.07 "Administrator Licensure
Completion Plan (ALCP)" means a plan approved by the Office of Educator
Licensure that allows an individual holding a Standard License to accept
employment as an administrator, prior to completion of the requirements for an
Administrator License, for no more than six (6) consecutive
semesters.
1.2.08
"Alternate
Assessment Plan (AAP)" means a plan submitted by a building or district
level administrator approved by the Office of Educator Licensure on behalf of
an applicant for a standard license in a first time licensure area (See
Appendix A) who has not demonstrated competency in their subject matter content
with a passing score on a State Board approved content area
assessment.
1-2.09
"Alternative Educator Preparation Program" means a program of
study approved by the Division for candidates who have a bachelor's degree and
are preparing for licensure as teachers and leaders in public schools in this
state.
1-2.10
"Ancillary
License" means a five (5)-year renewable license, issued by the State
Board, that does not require prior classroom teaching experience, and which
allows the license holder to practice in Arkansas public schools in a licensure
area identified on Appendix A, excluding an administrator's
endorsement.
1-2.11
"Approved
Professional Development" means the continuing learning experiences for
educators that meet the standards and focus areas under the Division's Rules
Governing Professional Development.
1-2.12
"Approved Program for Educator
Preparation" means an educator preparation program that is approved by
the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education to prepare candidates for a
license issued by the State Board of Education.
1-2.13 "Arkansas IDEAS" means
Internet Delivered Education for Arkansas Schools, a partnership between the
Division and the Arkansas Educational Television Network (AETN) to provide
through the AETN access to high-quality, online professional development for
Arkansas licensed educators.
1-2.14
"Arkansas Professional Educator Preparation Program (ArPEP)" means
the alternative educator preparation program administered by the Division,
whose participants hold a minimum of a baccalaureate degree and are allowed to
teach with a Provisional License. The program requirements consist of two (2)
years of teaching and instructional modules, which must be completed within
three (3) years.
1-2.15
"Building-Level Administrator" means a principal, assistant
principal, or vice principal in an educational entity.
1-2.16
"Candidate" means an
individual who has been admitted into an educator licensure program.
1-2.17
"Charter School" includes
an open-enrollment public charter school, conversion public charter school, or
other type of public charter school authorized under Arkansas law.
1-2.18
Clinical experiences"
means the activities for candidates in educator preparation programs that allow
early and ongoing practice opportunities to apply content and pedagogical
knowledge, such as observations, tutoring, assisting teachers and
administrators, and practicums.
1-2.19
"Clinical Internship"
means a culminating clinical practice experience that can be of varying
duration but no less than 15 weeks. The clinical internship takes place in an
authentic educational setting where teacher candidates engage in the
pedagogical work of the profession of teaching, closely integrated with
educator preparation instruction and supported by a formal school-educator
preparation partnership. Placements must reflect the subject area and grade
level of the license being sought.
1-2.20
"Core Academic Subject
Areas" means the following areas approved by the State Board:
Elementary Education (K-6);
English Language Arts;
Mathematics;
Science;
Social Studies;
Art;
Music; and
Foreign Language
1-2.21
"District-Level
Administrator" means a superintendent, assistant/associate
superintendent, or deputy superintendent.
1-2.22
"Division" means the
Arkansas Department of Education Division of Elementary and Secondary
Education.
1.2.23 "Division
recognized external...
