Board Authority.  The Professional Educator Standards Board (PESB) is a statutorily created 12-member board whose purpose is to establish policies and requirements for the preparation and certification of educators.

Among other activities, the PESB is authorized to:  (1) establish policies and practices for the approval of programs of courses, requirements, and other activities leading to teacher certification; (2) establish policies and practices for the approval of the character of work required to graduate from a teacher preparation program; and (3) adopt knowledge, skill, and performance standards for effective teaching.

Standards for Teacher Knowledge, Skills, and Performance.  The knowledge, skill, and performance standards for effective teaching adopted by the PESB must be evidence-based, measurable, meaningful, and documented in high quality research as being associated with improved student learning.  In addition, the PESB must, to the extent possible, incorporate social-emotional learning standards and cultural competency standards into these standards.

A PESB rule requires that PESB-approved teacher preparation programs ensure that candidates demonstrate the most recently published model teaching standards published by the Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC).  The 10 InTASC standards, published in 2013, relate to the learner, content, instructional practice, and professional responsibility.

Residency Teacher Certification.  The residency teacher certificate is an initial or first-tier certificate.  Candidates for this certificate must possess a baccalaureate degree; take an assessment in the basic skills of reading, writing, and mathematics; pass a content knowledge assessment; and graduate from a teacher preparation program.

Performance Assessment.  Before a PESB-approved teacher preparation program may recommend a candidate for residency teacher certification, the candidate must take and pass the evidence-based assessment of teaching effectiveness adopted by the PESB, which is the Educative Teacher Performance Assessment (known as the edTPA).

The edTPA is focused on three tasks:  planning, instruction, and assessment.  Candidates prepare a portfolio of materials, including teaching videos, that demonstrate their:  readiness to teach through lesson plans designed to support their students' strengths and needs; ability to engage students in ambitious learning; and facility for analyzing whether students are learning and adjusting instruction to become more effective.  The submitted portfolios are scored by trained educators.  For most of the 27 teaching fields, the passing score is 40.

Repeal of Performance Assessment.  Requirements related to the edTPA, including the requirement that candidates for residency teacher certification pass the edTPA, are repealed.  The PESB may not adopt rules requiring that candidates for residency teacher certification take or pass a uniform, statewide evaluation of teaching effectiveness, other than the evaluation described below.

Standards for Teacher Knowledge, Skills, and Performance.  Before recommending a candidate for residency teacher certification, the PESB-approved teacher preparation programs must ensure that the candidate demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and competencies required by the PESB, including the most recent teaching standards published by a 30 year old consortium of state and national education organizations dedicated to the reform of the preparation, licensing, and ongoing professional development of teachers.

Residency Teacher Certification.  Immediately upon the effective date of the bill and until September 1, 2022, the PESB-approved teacher preparation programs must recommend for residency teacher certification any candidate who has met all program requirements except for completion of the edTPA.

Beginning September 1, 2022, the PESB-approved teacher preparation programs must implement a procedure for evaluating and recommending candidates for residency teacher certification that is consistent with the model procedure developed by the PESB, described below. The procedures, and any updates to the procedures, must be submitted to the PESB for posting on its website.

Model Procedure and Other Resources.  The PESB must develop and periodically update a model procedure for evaluating and recommending candidates for residency teacher certification. The model procedure must include a tool or rubric to evaluate whether, and to what extent, candidates for residency teacher certification demonstrate required knowledge, skills, and competencies. The PESB must also develop and periodically update best practices guidance and other resources to assist programs with consistent implementation of the model procedure. The PESB must consult with programs and candidates while developing and updating the model procedure, best practices guidance, and resources.

Data and Reports.  The PESB-approved teacher preparation programs must annually report data on evaluating and recommending candidates, in a manner required by the PESB.  Annually by December 1, the PESB must summarize the data and report it to the Governor and the Legislature.