The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall
have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise.
(1)Academic year--If not referring to the academic
year of a particular public, private, or charter school or institution
of higher education, September 1 through August 31.
(2)Accredited institution of higher education--An
institution of higher education that, at the time it conferred the
degree, was accredited or otherwise approved by an accrediting organization
recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
(3)Alternative certification program--An approved
educator preparation program, delivered by entities described in §228.20(a)
of this title (relating to Governance of Educator Preparation Programs),
specifically designed as an alternative to a traditional undergraduate
certification program, for individuals already holding at least a
bachelor's degree from an accredited institution of higher education.
(4)Benchmarks--A record similar to a transcript for
each candidate enrolled in an educator preparation program documenting
the completion of admission, program, certification, and other requirements.
(5)Campus supervisor--A school administrator
or designee responsible for the annual performance appraisal of an
intern.
(6)[(5)] Candidate--An individual
who has been formally or contingently admitted into an educator preparation
program; also referred to as an enrollee or participant.
(7)Candidate coach--A person as defined
in §228.33(b)(1)-(3) of this title (relating to Intensive Pre-Service)
who participates in a minimum of four observation/feedback coaching
cycles provided by program supervisors, completes a Texas Education
Agency-approved observation training or has completed a minimum of
150 hours of observation/feedback training, and has current certification
in the class in which supervision is provided.
(8)[(6)] Certification category--A
certificate type within a certification class, as described in Chapter
233 of this title (relating to Categories of Classroom Teaching Certificates).
(9)[(7)] Certification class--A
certificate, as described in §230.33 of this title (relating
to Classes of Certificates), that has defined characteristics; may
contain one or more certification categories, as described in Chapter
233 of this title.
(10)[(8)] Classroom teacher--An
educator who is employed by a school or district and who, not less
than an average of four hours each day, teaches in an academic instructional
setting or a career and technical instructional setting. This term
does not include an educational aide or a full-time administrator.
(11)[(9)] Clinical teaching--A
supervised educator assignment through an educator preparation program
at a public school accredited by the Texas Education Agency (TEA)
or other school approved by the TEA for this purpose that may lead
to completion of a standard certificate; also referred to as student
teaching.
(12)[(10)] Clock-hours--The
actual number of hours of coursework or training provided; for purposes
of calculating the training and coursework required by this chapter,
one semester credit hour at an accredited institution of higher education
is equivalent to 15 clock-hours. Clock-hours of field-based experiences,
clinical teaching, internship, and practicum are actual hours spent
in the required educational activities and experiences.
(13)[(11)] Contingency admission--Admission
as described in §227.15 of this title (relating to Contingency
Admission).
(14)[(12)] Cooperating teacher--For
a clinical teacher candidate, an educator who is collaboratively assigned
by the educator preparation program (EPP) and campus administrator;
who has at least three years of teaching experience; who is an accomplished
educator as shown by student learning; who has completed cooperating
teacher training, including training in how to coach and mentor teacher
candidates, by the EPP within three weeks of being assigned to a clinical
teacher; who is currently certified in the certification category
for the clinical teaching assignment for which the clinical teacher
candidate is seeking certification; who guides, assists, and supports
the candidate during the candidate's clinical teaching in areas such
as planning, classroom management, instruction, assessment, working
with parents, obtaining materials, district policies; and who reports
the candidate's progress to that candidate's field supervisor.
(15)[(13)] Educator preparation
program--An entity that must be approved by the State Board for Educator
Certification to recommend candidates in one or more educator certification
classes.
(16)[(14)] Entity--The legal
entity that is approved to deliver an educator preparation program.
(17)[(15)] Field-based experiences--Introductory
experiences for a classroom teacher certification candidate involving,
at the minimum, reflective observation of Early Childhood-Grade 12
students, teachers, and faculty/staff members engaging in educational
activities in a school setting.
(18)[(16)] Field supervisor--A
currently certified educator, hired by the educator preparation program,
who preferably has advanced credentials, to observe candidates, monitor
their performance, and provide constructive feedback to improve their
effectiveness as educators. A field supervisor shall have at least
three years of experience and current certification in the class in
which supervision is provided. A field supervisor shall be an accomplished
educator as shown by student learning. A field supervisor with experience
as a campus-level administrator and who holds a current certificate
that is appropriate for a principal assignment may also supervise
classroom teacher, master teacher, and reading specialist candidates.
A field supervisor with experience as a district-level administrator
and who holds a current certificate that is appropriate for a superintendent
assignment may also supervise principal candidates. If an individual
is not currently certified, an individual must hold at least a master's
degree in the academic area or field related to the certification
class for which supervision is being provided and comply with the
same number, content, and type of continuing professional education
requirements described in §232.11 of this title (relating to
Number and Content of Required Continuing Professional Education Hours),
§232.13 of this title (relating to Number of Required Continuing
Professional Education Hours by Classes of Certificates), and §232.15
of this title (relating to Types of Acceptable Continuing Professional
Education Activities). A field supervisor shall not be employed by
the same school where the candidate being supervised is completing
his or her clinical teaching, internship, or practicum. A mentor,
cooperating teacher, or site supervisor, assigned as required by §228.35(f)
of this title (relating to Preparation Program Coursework and/or Training),
may not also serve as a candidate's field supervisor.
(19)[(17)] Formal admission--Admission
as described in §227.17 of this title (relating to Formal Admission).
(20)[(18)] Head Start Program--The
federal program established under the Head Start Act (42 United States
Code, §9801 et seq.) and its subsequent amendments.
(21)[(19)] Initial certification--The
first Texas certificate in a class of certificate issued to an individual
based on participation in an approved educator preparation program.
(22)[(20)] Intensive Pre-Service--An
educator assignment supervised by an educator preparation program
accredited and approved by the State Board for Educator Certification
prior to a candidate meeting the requirements for issuance of intern
and probationary certificates.
(23)[(21)] Intern certificate--A
type of certificate as specified in §230.36 of this title (relating
to Intern Certificates) that is issued to a candidate who has passed
all required content pedagogy certification examinations and is completing
initial requirements for certification through an approved educator
preparation program.
(24)[(22)] Internship--A paid
supervised classroom teacher assignment for one full school year at
a public school accredited by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) or
other school approved by the TEA for this purpose that may lead to
completion of a standard certificate.
(25)[(23)] Late hire--An individual
who has not been accepted into an educator preparation program before
the 45th day before the first day of instruction and who is hired
for a teaching assignment by a school after the 45th day before the
first day of instruction or after the school's academic year has begun.
(26)[(24)] Mentor--For an internship
candidate, an educator who is collaboratively assigned by the campus
administrator and the educator preparation program (EPP); who has
at least three years of teaching experience; who is an accomplished
educator as shown by student learning; who has completed mentor training,
including training in how to coach and mentor teacher candidates,
by an EPP within three weeks of being assigned to the intern; who
is currently certified in the certification category in which the
internship candidate is seeking certification; who guides, assists,
and supports the candidate during the internship in areas such as
planning, classroom management, instruction, assessment, working with
parents, obtaining materials, district policies; and who reports the
candidate's progress to that candidate's field supervisor.
(27)[(25)] Pedagogy--The art
and science of teaching, incorporating instructional methods that
are developed from scientifically-based research.
(28)[(26)] Post-baccalaureate
program--An educator preparation program, delivered by an accredited
institution of higher education and approved by the State Board for
Educator Certification to recommend candidates for certification,
that is designed for individuals who already hold at least a bachelor's
degree and are seeking an additional degree.
(29)[(27)] Practicum--A supervised
educator assignment at a public school accredited by the Texas Education
Agency (TEA) or other school approved by the TEA for this purpose
that is in a school setting in the particular class for which a certificate
in a class other than classroom teacher is sought.
(30)[(28)] Probationary certificate--A
type of certificate as specified in §230.37 of this title (relating
to Probationary Certificates) that is issued to a candidate who has
passed all required certification examinations and is completing requirements
for certification through an approved educator preparation program.
(31)[(29)] School day--If not
referring to the school day of a particular public or private school,
a school day shall be at least seven hours (420 minutes) each day,
including intermissions and recesses.
(32)[(30)] School year--If not
referring to the school year of a particular public or private school,
a school year shall provide at least 180 days (75,600 minutes) of
instruction for students.
(33)[(31)] Site supervisor--For
a practicum candidate, an educator who has at least three years of
experience in the aspect(s) of the certification class being pursued
by the candidate; who is collaboratively assigned by the campus or
district administrator and the educator preparation program (EPP);
who is currently certified in the certification class in which the
practicum candidate is seeking certification; who has completed training
by the EPP, including training in how to coach and mentor candidates,
within three weeks of being assigned to a practicum candidate; who
is an accomplished educator as shown by student learning; who guides,
assists, and supports the candidate during the practicum; and who
reports the candidate's progress to the candidate's field supervisor.
(34)[(32)] Texas Education Agency
staff--Staff of the Texas Education Agency assigned by the commissioner
of education to perform the State Board for Educator Certification's
administrative functions and services.
(35)[(33)] Texas Essential Knowledge
and Skills (TEKS)--The kindergarten-Grade 12 state curriculum in Texas
adopted by the State Board of Education and used as the foundation
of all state certification examinations.
The agency certifies that legal counsel has reviewed
the proposal and found it to be within the state agency's legal authority
to adopt.
Filed with the Office
of the Secretary of State on May 18, 2020
TRD-202001950 Cristina De La Fuente-Valadez
Director, Rulemaking
State Board for Educator Certification
Earliest possible date of adoption: June 28, 2020
For further information, please call: (512) 475-1475
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