Public Act 094-0208
 
HB0384 Enrolled LRB094 06901 RAS 37013 b

    AN ACT concerning education.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
21-1a as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/21-1a)  (from Ch. 122, par. 21-1a)
    Sec. 21-1a. Tests required for certification and teacher
preparation.
    (a) After July 1, 1988, in addition to all other
requirements, early childhood, elementary, special, high
school, school service personnel, or, except as provided in
Section 34-6, administrative certificates shall be issued to
persons who have satisfactorily passed a test of basic skills
and subject matter knowledge. A person who holds a valid and
comparable out-of-state certificate, however, is not required
to take a test of basic skills and is not required to take a
test of subject matter knowledge, provided that the person has
successfully passed a test of subject matter knowledge in
another state or territory of the United States that is
directly related in content to the specific subject area of
certification. The tests of basic skills and subject matter
knowledge shall be the tests which from time to time are
designated by the State Board of Education in consultation with
the State Teacher Certification Board and may be tests prepared
by an educational testing organization or tests designed by the
State Board of Education in consultation with the State Teacher
Certification Board. The areas to be covered by the test of
basic skills shall include the basic skills of reading,
writing, grammar and mathematics. The test of subject matter
knowledge shall assess content knowledge in the specific
subject field. The tests shall be designed to be racially
neutral to assure that no person in taking the tests is thereby
discriminated against on the basis of race, color, national
origin or other factors unrelated to the person's ability to
perform as a certificated employee. The score required to pass
the tests of basic skills and subject matter knowledge shall be
fixed by the State Board of Education in consultation with the
State Teacher Certification Board. The tests shall be held not
fewer than 3 times a year at such time and place as may be
designated by the State Board of Education in consultation with
the State Teacher Certification Board.
    (b) Except as provided in Section 34-6, the provisions of
subsection (a) of this Section shall apply equally in any
school district subject to Article 34, provided that the State
Board of Education shall determine which certificates issued
under Sections 34-8.1 and 34-83 prior to July 1, 1988 are
comparable to any early childhood certificate, elementary
school certificate, special certificate, high school
certificate, school service personnel certificate or
administrative certificate issued under this Article as of July
1, 1988.
    (c) A person who holds an early childhood, elementary,
special, high school or school service personnel certificate
issued under this Article on or at any time before July 1,
1988, including a person who has been issued any such
certificate pursuant to Section 21-11.1 or in exchange for a
comparable certificate theretofore issued under Section 34-8.1
or Section 34-83, shall not be required to take or pass the
tests in order to thereafter have such certificate renewed.
    (d) The State Board of Education in consultation with the
State Teacher Certification Board shall conduct a pilot
administration of the tests by administering the test to
students completing teacher education programs in the 1986-87
school year for the purpose of determining the effect and
impact of testing candidates for certification.
    Beginning with the 2002-2003 academic year, a student may
not enroll in a teacher preparation program at a recognized
teacher training institution until he or she has passed the
basic skills test.
    Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act of
the 94th General Assembly, prior to completing an approved
teacher preparation program, a preservice education candidate
must satisfactorily pass the test of subject matter knowledge
in the discipline in which he or she will be certified to
teach. The teacher preparation program may require passage of
the test of subject matter knowledge at any time during the
program, including prior to student teaching. Beginning with
the 2004-2005 academic year, a preservice education teacher may
not student teach until he or she has passed the subject matter
test in the discipline in which he or she will student teach.
    (e) The rules and regulations developed to implement the
required test of basic skills and subject matter knowledge
shall include the requirements of subsections (a), (b), and (c)
and shall include specific regulations to govern test
selection; test validation and determination of a passing
score; administration of the tests; frequency of
administration; applicant fees; frequency of applicants'
taking the tests; the years for which a score is valid; and,
waiving certain additional tests for additional certificates
to individuals who have satisfactorily passed the test of basic
skills and subject matter knowledge as required in subsection
(a). The State Board of Education shall provide, by rule,
specific policies that assure uniformity in the difficulty
level of each form of the basic skills test and each subject
matter knowledge test from test-to-test and year-to-year. The
State Board of Education shall also set a passing score for the
tests.
    (f) The State Teacher Certification Board may issue a
nonrenewable temporary certificate between July 1, 1988 and
August 31, 1988 to individuals who have taken the tests of
basic skills and subject matter knowledge prescribed by this
Section but have not received such test scores by August 31,
1988. Such temporary certificates shall expire on December 31,
1988.
    (g) Beginning February 15, 2000, the State Board of
Education, in consultation with the State Teacher
Certification Board, shall implement and administer a new
system of certification for teachers in the State of Illinois.
The State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
Teacher Certification Board, shall design and implement a
system of examinations and various other criteria which shall
be required prior to the issuance of Initial Teaching
Certificates and Standard Teaching Certificates. These
examinations and indicators shall be based on national and
State professional teaching standards, as determined by the
State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
Teacher Certification Board. The State Board of Education may
adopt any and all regulations necessary to implement and
administer this Section.
    (h) The State Board of Education shall report to the
Illinois General Assembly and the Governor with
recommendations for further changes and improvements to the
teacher certification system no later than July 1, 1999 and on
an annual basis until July 1, 2001.
(Source: P.A. 92-734, eff. 7-25-02; 93-679, eff. 6-30-04.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.