Review Updates on Educator Licensure Brian Devine Director

Review & Updates on Educator Licensure Brian Devine, Director Office of Educator Licensure (OEL) MASPA – October 26, 2018

OEL Office Updates v. Current processing time for an academic license is 2+ weeks (likely less for some applications like Vocational or a secondary Provisional field) v. YTD, have reviewed over 65, 000 applications and issued over 21, 000 licenses and endorsements v. Through 10/19, have responded to 37, 955 of the 39, 625 inquiries to the Call Center (96% response rate). Average wait time is just 101 seconds and we have not had an average wait time that exceeds on minute since September 17 th. v. June 2019, next major license renewal cycle – anticipate close to 27, 000 renewals Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 2

Licenses Issued 2018 (YTD) 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 Provisional 3, 480 4, 245 4, 624 4, 760 4, 629 4, 666 Initial 9, 376 10, 671 10, 413 10, 113 12, 869 13, 897 Professional 5, 011 6, 080 5, 996 5, 691 7, 610 6, 128 Temporary 388 421 398 413 473 398 Extension 822 967 830 792 925 1, 030 Vocational 338 380 408 368 437 384 Endorsements 9, 376 12, 355 19, 096 15, 639 13, 639 2, 860 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 3

Licensure Initiatives v Set and achieve/maintain high standards – processing time of 2 weeks or less (October-June) and 4 -6 weeks (July-September); 95% response rate in the Call Center; 96% on accuracy of evaluations; expedites completed in 24 -48 hours. v Launching of MELS – a series of videos posted on You. Tube that provide specific licensure advice on a particular topic. Currently 11 are posted and all relate to teacher licensure. Anticipate that in total, more than 40 will be posted and range from teacher, to administrator to renewal to vocational to SEI, etc. https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=wct. Z 6 d. BB 4 Q 8 v Developing policies and procedures related to the new Subject Matter Knowledge requirements (SMKs). v New waiver process – for “SPED” licenses, require participation in SG&S or approved program. v Can accept a non-MTEL test – when there is no MTEL – for example, ASL (California) and Autism (Michigan) v A call for new members of the Panel Review. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 4

Review of some of June 2017 Regulation Changes v. Moved all of the SMKs out of the regulations and into guidelines. v. Temporary license – valid for 1 year of employment vs. one calendar year; must have a bachelor’s degree and “any” three years of experience is ok, does not have to be under the Initial (or equivalent license). v. Preliminary was changed to Provisional & validity period (see slide 7). v. New distribution of PDPs – 15 in content, pedagogy, SEI/ESL/Bilingual & special education/different learning styles (see slide 14). v. Initial Extension – can obtain it at any point in the 4 th year of employment. v. PRPIL – open to all teacher licenses including elementary, moderate disabilities, library. v“Reciprocity”: v PAL required if less than one year of experience; v Foreign Teacher Panel (FTP) for out-of-country candidates; v 3 out of the last 7 years of employment no longer required. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 5

License specific changes in June of ‘ 17 v. Creation of the Digital Literacy/Computer Science license & Instructional Technology will be a specialist license on 7/1/19. v. Core Supervisor/Director – initial license with 3 years experience rather than 18 graduate credits. v. New names – Social Science, School Counselor, Early Childhood, Earth & Space Science. v. New grade levels: o No more 5 -8 for science but for General Science (as of 7/1/19) o Principal/Assistant Principal – Pre. K-8 & 5 -12 rather than Pre. K-6, 5 -8 and 8 -12 o 5 -12 for English, History & Social Science v. Supervisor of Attendance – no longer issued by DESE, guidance regarding conditions of employment. v. ECH & Moderate – teaching of math, reading & English language arts no longer required. 6 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Validity of a Provisional License v. As of July 1, 2019, going forward, someone with multiple licenses can’t be employed more than five years under that Provisional license. v Scenarios: 1. Possess multiple Provisional licenses and employed prior to 7/1/19 2. Possess multiple Provisional licenses and not employed prior to 7/1/19 3. Possess one Provisional license and employed prior to 7/1/19 4. Possess one Provisional license and not employed prior to 7/1/19 5. Possession of a Provisional license and employed prior to 7/1/19 and obtains an additional Provisional license on/after 7/1/19 6. Possession of a Provisional license but not employed prior to 7/1/19 and obtains an additional Provisional license on/after 7/1/19 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 7

Structured Guidance & Supports • Overview : A new path for licensure candidates to meet the competency review for licensure. • Currently available for Moderate, Severe, Deaf & Hard-of-Hearing (both ASL/TC and Aural/Oral), Visually Impaired & DLCS • Reminder: Competency Review: o The process for determining whether the subject matter knowledge requirements for a license have been met in a field for which there is no subject matter knowledge test, using Department guidelines. o Relevant for candidates seeking to earn a Provisional (formerly Preliminary) license in a field where there is no MTEL or seeking to earn an additional Initial or Professional license o Coursework, seminars/workshops & mentored employment traditionally can satisfy a competency – 10 hours Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 8

What is Structured Guidance & Supports? • A new path for licensure candidates to meet the competency review requirement conducted in accordance with DESE Guidelines. • The SG&S process is a performance-based assessment for a teacher licensure candidate that includes: o High-quality professional support growth opportunities that are sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused in order to have a positive impact on classroom instruction; o Intensive supervision that consists of structured guidance and regular ongoing support; o An assessment of the candidate’s knowledge and skills against a performance rubric, aligned to and fulfilling the subject matter knowledge requirements of that license. • Occurs over a 150 -hour field experience process, supervised by a licensed educator and administrator. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 9

SG&S Roles • Teacher Candidate: The individual who is seeking the license. • Supervising Educator o Holds license being sought or special education administrator license o 3+ years of experience o Summative rating of Proficient/Exemplary • Supervising Administrator o superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, special education administrator, or educator preparation faculty member Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 10

SG&S Format • Initial Meeting o Discuss the logistics and expectations of the SG&S process. • Formative Meeting o Discuss progress towards demonstration of the subject matter knowledge requirements, including targeted feedback for the candidate. • Summative Meeting o Discuss the candidate’s readiness for licensure and determine final ratings. o Note, SG&S is an all or nothing path, individual competencies can’t be verified via SG&S. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 11

Rubric and Required Forms • Preparation, implementation and evaluation of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) Needs Improvement Proficient Develops accurate IEPs that reflect student learning needs and services through some data analysis and collaboration with stakeholders; partially documents and evaluates IEP services Develops internally consistent IEPs that reflect student learning needs and services through data analysis and collaboration with stakeholders; documents, and evaluates IEP services. • Initial/Formative/Summative Meetings and Dates • For each performance rubric indicator: o Ratings against a performance rubric § Candidates must meet at least a Proficient threshold across all indicators for the specific license and receive an overall “Met Requirements. ” Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 12

Revised Waiver Process - New Requirement in IDEA • Each person who is employed as a special education teacher in the State has either obtained full State certification; or o Is participating in an alternate route to certification where he/she: § Receives high-quality professional development that is sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused in order to have a positive and lasting impact on classroom instruction, before and while teaching; § Participates in a program of intensive supervision that consists of structured guidance and regular ongoing support for teachers or a teacher mentoring program; Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 13

Licensure Waivers for Special Educators • Starting with the 2018 -19 SY, applications for waivers for special education licenses will require an assurance that either a) the waiver candidate is enrolled in an approved MA preparation program or b) the Structured Guidance & Supports process. • Applicable for: o Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities o Teacher of Students with Severe Disabilities o Teacher of the Visually Impaired o Teacher of the Deaf (ASL) o Teacher of the Deaf (oral/aural) Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 14

License Renewal • New distribution of PDPs: 150 required for the primary area: o 15 PDPs in content o 15 PDPs in pedagogy o 15 PDPs in SEI/ESL/Bilingual o 15 PDPs in special education/diverse learning styles • Changes are effective immediately. • Provides educators greater flexibility in obtaining PD that can improve their practice and/or is connected to their environment. • Additional area – 30 PDPs with at least 15 in content. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 15

License Renewal • SEI is not required to renew all Professional licenses • SEI/ESL/Bilingual PDPs are required to renew a professional license regardless of core vs. non-core. • Those that were in a cohort and did not obtain the SEI Endorsement will be unable to renew since they are restricted. • If they were incorrectly identified as being in a cohort – upload a signed letter from the district and educator follows up with a call to the Call Center. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 16

License Renewal • Educator Plan can be used in lieu of the IPDP. • Educators can synchronize the renewal date of multiple professional licenses. • Can use the Educator Licensure Status Drop Box to help manage upcoming renewals, who has SEI, licensure statuses, etc. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 17

THANK YOU Brian Devine, Director Office of Educator Licensure 781. 338. 3124 www. doe. mass. edu/licensure bdevine@doe. mass. edu 75 Pleasant Street, Malden, MA 02148