The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) adopts amendments to §§231.3, 231.9, 231.15, 231.17, 231.19, 231.49, 231.51, 231.55, 231.61, 231.63, 231.65, 231.91, 231.93, 231.123, 231.125, 231.127, 231.129, 231.151, 231.153, 231.177, 231.191, 231.193, 231.195, 231.201, 231.203, 231.205, 231.207, 231.209, 231.211, 231.213, 231.215, 231.217, 231.219, 231.271, 231.283, 231.287, 231.289, 231.305, 231.331, 231.333, 231.335, 231.337, 231.339, 231.341, 231.361, 231.365, 231.392-231.395, 231.397, 231.421, 231.423, 231.425, 231.427, 231.445, 231.483, 231.487, 231.503, 231.521, 231.525, 231.541, 231.543, 231.545, 231.565, 231.567, 231.569, 231.573, 231.575, 231.577, 231.579, and 231.581; the repeal of §§231.251, 231.253, 231.255, 231.257, 231.259, 231.485, 231.591, 231.595, 231.611, 231.613, 231.615, 231.617, 231.619, 231.621, 231.623, 231.641, 231.643, and 231.645; and new §§231.485, 231.491, 231.585, 231.587, 231.589, 231.591, 231.593, 231.595, 231.631, 231.633, 231.651, 231.701, 231.703, 231.705, 231.707, 231.709, 231.711, 231.713, 231.751, 231.753, and 231.755, concerning requirements for public school personnel assignments. The revisions are adopted without changes to the proposed text as published in the August 21, 2020 issue of the Texas Register (45 TexReg 5778) and will not be republished. The adopted revisions to 19 Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Chapter 231, Subchapters B, C, D, E, F, and G, implement the statutory requirements in House Bill (HB) 3, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019, that requires that all master teacher certificates be designated as "legacy" certificates and recognized for assignment purposes until they expire. The adopted revisions also incorporate courses approved by the State Board of Education (SBOE), add certificate areas to the list of credentials appropriate for placement into an assignment, and reorganize current provisions to improve readability and align citations.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND JUSTIFICATION: The SBEC rules in 19 TAC Chapter 231 establish the personnel assignments that correlate with appropriate certifications and are organized as follows: Subchapter A, Criteria for Assignment of Public School Personnel; Subchapter B, Prekindergarten-Grade 6 Assignments; Subchapter C, Grades 6-8 Assignments; Subchapter D, Electives, Disciplinary Courses, Local Credit Courses, and Innovative Courses, Grades 6-12 Assignments; Subchapter E, Grades 9-12 Assignments; Subchapter F, Special Education-Related Services Personnel Assignments; and Subchapter G, Paraprofessional Personnel, Administrators, and Other Instructional and Professional Support Assignments.

These subchapters provide guidance to school districts and educators by providing a listing of courses by grade level and subject area and by identifying the corresponding certificates and other requirements for placement of individuals into classroom and/or campus assignments. This information assists districts with hiring and personnel assignment decisions.

The following is an overview of adopted revisions to 19 TAC Chapter 231.

Subchapter B. Prekindergarten-Grade 6 Assignments

HB 3 Legacy Master Teacher Updates

Adopted amendments to the following sections in Subchapter B implement HB 3, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019, which requires all master teacher certificates be designated as "legacy" certificates and recognized for assignment purposes: §231.3(b)(15)-(17); §231.9(b)(11)-(13); §231.15(17)-(21); and §231.17(16).

§231.19. Languages Other Than English, Grades 1-6.

The adopted amendment in §231.19 adds Classical Languages and Discovering Languages and Cultures to align with the current list of SBOE-approved Languages Other Than English (LOTE) courses. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

Subchapter C. Grades 6-8 Assignments

HB 3 Legacy Master Teacher Updates

Adopted amendments to the following sections in Subchapter C implement HB 3, which requires all master teacher certificates be designated as "legacy" certificates and recognized for assignment purposes: §231.49(19); §231.51(22); §231.61(14) and (15); §231.63(27); and §231.65(38) and (39).

§231.55. Languages Other Than English, Grades 6-8.

The adopted amendment in §231.55(a) adds Classical Languages and Discovering Languages and Cultures and deletes Exploratory Languages and Cultural and Linguistic Topics for LOTE classrooms for Grades 6-8 to align with the current list of SBOE-approved LOTE courses. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

Subchapter D. Electives, Disciplinary Courses, Local Credit Courses, and Innovative Courses, Grades 6-12 Assignments

Adopted amendments in Subchapter D streamline rules to prevent redundancy and confusion with SBOE and commissioner of education rules regarding student course credit so that the SBEC rules pertain only to educator certificates and assignments and provide clarity for district personnel, as student course credit decisions are determined by SBOE or Texas Education Agency (TEA) and not the SBEC.

§231.91. Reserve Officer Training Corps.

The adopted amendment in §231.91(d) deletes the provision pertaining to student course credit for Reserve Officer Training Corps classes because student course credit is not within the jurisdiction of the SBEC. Student course credit decisions are determined by the SBOE or TEA, not the SBEC.

§231.93. Athletics; Cheerleading; Drill Team; Marching Band.

The adopted amendment in §231.93(b) deletes the provision pertaining to student course credit for Athletics, Cheerleading, Drill Team, and Marching Band classes because student course credit is not within the jurisdiction of the SBEC. The adopted amendment in §231.93(a) also provides technical formatting clean-up.

Subchapter E. Grades 9-12 Assignments

HB 3 Legacy Master Teacher Updates

Adopted amendments in the following divisions and sections in Subchapter E implement HB 3, which requires all master teacher certificates be designated as "legacy" certificates and recognized for assignment purposes: Division 1: §231.127(9) and §231.129(9); Division 4: §231.191(4), §231.193(4), and §231.195(4); Division 5: §231.201(9), §231.203(9), §231.205(7), §231.207(9), §231.209(9), §231.211(7), §231.213(7), §231.215(12), §231.217(12), §231.219(4); Division 9: §231.271(c)(3); Division 10: §231.283(a)(6) and §231.287(a)(4); Division 15: §231.392(10), §231.394(a)(4), §231.395(a)(4), and §231.397(a)(4); Division 17: §231.423(a)(8) and §231.425(a)(5); Division 18: §231.445(a)(8); Division 21: §231.503(a)(7); Division 22: §231.525(a)(2); Division 24: §231.565(a)(8), §231.569(a)(1), §231.573(a)(1), §231.575(a)(1), §231.577(a)(3), §231.579(a)(1), and §231.581(a)(1).

Aligning with SBOE and Necessary Updates

To reflect courses approved by the SBOE and make other necessary updates, the changes adopted in the specified divisions below identify the appropriate certificates and/or training requirements for placement into various assignments.

Division 1. English Language Arts and Reading, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.123. English I and II for Speakers of Other Languages, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.123(a) and (b) adds a new SBOE-approved course, English Language Development and Acquisition (ELDA) for Grades 9-12. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

§231.125. English as a Second Language, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.125 deletes the course English Language Development and Acquisition (ELDA) for Grades 9-12 to prevent duplication of the language added by the adopted amendment to §231.123(a). The adopted amendment to §231.125 streamlines the rules to provide clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

Division 2. Languages Other Than English, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.151. Languages Other Than English, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.151 adds Levels I-VII for Languages Other than English; Classical Languages, Levels I-VII; Discovering Languages and Cultures; Seminars in Languages Other Than English; Seminar in Classical Languages; and Advanced Language for Career Exploration; and deletes Exploratory Languages and Cultural and Linguistic Topics for Grades 9-12 to align with the current list of SBOE-approved LOTE courses. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

§231.153. American Sign Language, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.153(a) adds Levels I-IV for American Sign Language for Grades 9-12 to specify the specific SBOE-approved courses. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

Division 3. Social Studies, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.177. Ethnic Studies: Mexican American Studies, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.177 changes the section title to read, "Ethnic Studies, Grades 9-12," and adds the SBOE-approved course, Ethnic Studies: African American Studies, Grades 9-12, to the list of course offerings in the Ethnic Studies section and includes the list of credentials appropriate to serve in this assignment. These adopted changes provide for both ethnic studies courses, Mexican American Studies and African American Studies, to be taught by the same list of certificates appropriate to teach the courses.

Division 8. Technology Applications, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

Division 8 was repealed, with current courses and appropriate certificates relocated to other sections in this chapter for clarity to the field.

Division 9. Career Development, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.271. Career Development, Grades 9-12.

Section 231.271(a) is reorganized to add new paragraph (1) to reflect current certificates for teaching career development for Grades 9-12 and adds new paragraph (2) that provides holders of special education certificates an opportunity to teach career development courses, provided they complete the additional specified, TEA-approved career and technical education (CTE) training prior to teaching these courses. The adopted amendment ensures that students who receive special education services have opportunities to enroll in these courses taught by teachers who are highly trained to provide appropriate supports. The adopted amendment also provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

Section 231.271(b) is reorganized to add new paragraph (1) to reflect current certificates for project-based research courses for Grades 9-12 and adds new paragraphs (2) and (3) that provide technology certificates to teach project-based research courses. The adopted amendment removes a reference to vocational or CTE certificates. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

Adopted new paragraphs (11)-(14) in §231.271(c) add new certificates to teach the Applied Mathematics for Technical Professionals course for Grades 9-12. The adopted addition of "legacy" to paragraph (3) and the adopted amendment provide clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

Division 10. Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.289. Agriculture Equipment Design and Fabrication; Agricultural Structures Design and Fabrication; Agricultural Mechanics and Metal Technologies; Agricultural Power Systems; Oil and Gas Production, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.289 deletes from the section title, "Oil and Gas Production," and deletes the SBOE-approved courses Oil and Gas Production I and Oil and Gas Production II from the list of course offerings, as they would be duplicative because they have been reorganized to other sections of this chapter. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

Division 11. Architecture and Construction, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.305. Architectural Design, Grades 9-12.

Adopted new §231.305(b)(9) and (10) provide the appropriate certificates to teach architectural design courses for Grades 9-12. The additional certification areas increase district flexibility in course offerings for students by expanding the list of certified educators with the knowledge and skills to successfully provide the necessary instruction and also ensure that holders of any home economics and homemaking certificates can teach the full course sequence under the architectural design program of study. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

Division 12. Arts, Audio Video Technology, and Communications, Grades 9-12 Assignments.

§231.331. Professional Communications, Grades 9-12.

Adopted new §231.331(13) and (14) add two technology applications certificates to teach the professional communications courses for Grades 9-12. The additional technology applications certification areas allow certificate holders the opportunity to teach the entire sequence of courses in the program of study and increase district flexibility in course offerings for students by expanding the list of certified educators with the knowledge and skills to successfully provide the necessary instruction. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

§231.333. Principles of Arts, Audio/Video Technology, and Communications, Grades 9-12.

Adopted new §231.333(12) and (13) provide the appropriate certificates to teach the Principles of Arts, Audio/Video Technology, and Communications courses for Grades 9-12. The additional certification areas increase district flexibility in course offerings for students by expanding the list of certified educators with the knowledge and skills to successfully provide the necessary instruction and also ensure that holders of Family and Consumer Sciences, Home Economics, and Homemaking certificates can teach the full course sequence under the fashion design program of study. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

§231.335. Animation, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.335(a) adds two SBOE-approved courses, Digital Art and Animation and 3-D Modeling and Animation, for Grades 9-12, which the SBOE has moved to CTE. The adopted amendment implements HB 963, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019, that required the SBOE to conduct a review of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for CTE and technology application courses for Grades 9-12 and to consolidate courses and eliminate duplicative courses, which resulted in moving these former technology application courses to CTE. The adopted amendment also provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

§231.337. Audio/Video Production; Graphic Design and Illustration, Grades 9-12.

The adopted amendment in §231.337(a) adds three SBOE-approved courses, Web Game Development, Digital Design and Media Production, and Digital Communications in the 21st Century, for Grades 9-12, which the SBOE has moved to CTE for Grades 9-12. The adopted amendment implements HB 963, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019, that required the SBOE to conduct a review of the TEKS for CTE and technology application courses for Grades 9-12 and to consolidate courses and eliminate duplicative courses, which resulted in moving these former technology application courses to CTE. The adopted amendment also provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments. The list of certificates appropriate to teach these courses remains the same.

§231.339. Photography, Grades 9-12.

Adopted new §231.339(a)(7) and (8) and §231.339(b)(7) and (8) adds technology applications certificates to teach the photography courses for Grades 9-12. The additional technology applications certification areas allow certificate holders the opportunity to teach the entire sequence of courses in the program of study and increase district flexibility in course offerings for students by expanding the list of certified educators with the knowledge and skills to successfully provide the necessary instruction. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.

Section 231.339(a)(7)-(9) is renumbered to §231.339(a)(9)-(11) for technical formatting purposes.

§231.341. Printing and Imaging Technology, Grades 9-12.

Adopted new §231.341(a)(4)-(8) and (b)(4)-(8) provides the appropriate certificates to teach the printing and imaging technology courses for Grades 9-12. The additional certification areas of Technology Applications, Technology Education, Industrial Arts, and Industrial Technology allows certificate holders the opportunity to teach the entire sequence of courses in the program of study and increases district flexibility in course offerings for students by expanding the list of certified educators with the knowledge and skills to successfully provide the necessary instruction. The adopted amendment provides clarity for district personnel to place educators with the appropriate credentials into classroom assignments.