Teaching Profession News in Brief

Licensing in Tennessee to Follow Performance

By Stephen Sawchuk — August 27, 2013 1 min read
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Tennessee teachers won’t be able to renew their licenses in a few years unless they meet a minimum performance standard, according to rules approved by the state school board last week.

The change means that students’ standardized-test scores will count toward recertification for a subset of teachers—putting yet more stakes on the exams, which are already used in part for school accountability; teacher evaluation, tenure-granting, and pay; and teacher-preparation report cards.

The policy appears to be among the first instances of a state linking student scores to licensure. Most states require an advanced degree or completion of a set number of coursework credits or professional-development hours.

Board members were divided about the move, and the final 6-3 vote delays implementation of the rules from 2014 to 2015. The draft rules had listed 2014 as the year of implementation.

A version of this article appeared in the August 28, 2013 edition of Education Week as Licensing in Tennessee To Follow Performance

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