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| 1 | AN ACT in relation to teacher certification.
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| 2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | |||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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| 4 | Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
Section | |||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | 21-5c as follows:
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| 6 | (105 ILCS 5/21-5c)
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| 7 | Sec. 21-5c. Alternative route to teacher certification. | |||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | The State Board
of Education, in consultation with the State | |||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | Teacher Certification Board, shall
establish and implement an | |||||||||||||||||||
| 10 | alternative route to teacher certification program
under which | |||||||||||||||||||
| 11 | persons who meet the requirements of and successfully complete | |||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | the
program established by this Section shall be issued an | |||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | initial teaching
certificate for teaching in schools in this | |||||||||||||||||||
| 14 | State.
The State Board of Education shall
approve a course of | |||||||||||||||||||
| 15 | study
that persons in the program must successfully complete in | |||||||||||||||||||
| 16 | order to
satisfy one criterion for issuance of a certificate | |||||||||||||||||||
| 17 | under this Section. The
Alternative Route to Teacher | |||||||||||||||||||
| 18 | Certification program course of study must include
the current | |||||||||||||||||||
| 19 | content and skills contained in a university's current courses
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| 20 | for State certification which have been approved by the State | |||||||||||||||||||
| 21 | Board of
Education, in consultation with the State Teacher | |||||||||||||||||||
| 22 | Certification Board, as the
requirement for State teacher | |||||||||||||||||||
| 23 | certification.
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| 24 | The program established under this Section shall be
known | |||||||||||||||||||
| 25 | as the Alternative Route to Teacher Certification program. The | |||||||||||||||||||
| 26 | program
may be offered in conjunction with one or more | |||||||||||||||||||
| 27 | not-for-profit
organizations in this
the State. The program | |||||||||||||||||||
| 28 | shall be comprised of the
following 3
phases: (a) a
course of | |||||||||||||||||||
| 29 | study offered on an intensive basis in education theory,
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| 30 | instructional methods, and
practice teaching; (b) the person's | |||||||||||||||||||
| 31 | assignment to a full-time
teaching position for one school | |||||||||||||||||||
| 32 | year, including the designation of a
mentor teacher to advise | |||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 | and assist the person with that
teaching assignment; and (c) a | ||||||
| 2 | comprehensive assessment of the person's
teaching performance | ||||||
| 3 | by school officials and program participants
and a | ||||||
| 4 | recommendation by the institution of higher education to the
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| 5 | State Board of Education that the person be issued an initial
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| 6 | teaching certificate. Successful completion of the Alternative | ||||||
| 7 | Route to
Teacher
Certification program shall be deemed to | ||||||
| 8 | satisfy any other
practice or student teaching and subject | ||||||
| 9 | matter requirements established by
law.
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| 10 | A provisional alternative teaching certificate, valid for | ||||||
| 11 | one year of
teaching
in the common schools and not renewable, | ||||||
| 12 | shall be issued under this Section
21-5c to persons who at the | ||||||
| 13 | time of applying for the provisional alternative
teaching | ||||||
| 14 | certificate under this Section:
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| 15 | (1) have graduated from an accredited college or | ||||||
| 16 | university with a
bachelor's degree;
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| 17 | (2) have been employed for a period of at least 5 years | ||||||
| 18 | in an area
requiring application of the individual's | ||||||
| 19 | education;
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| 20 | (3) have successfully completed the first phase of the | ||||||
| 21 | Alternative Teacher
Certification program as provided in | ||||||
| 22 | this Section; and
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| 23 | (4) have passed the tests of basic skills and subject | ||||||
| 24 | matter knowledge
required by Section 21-1a.
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| 25 | An initial teaching certificate, valid for teaching
in the | ||||||
| 26 | common schools,
shall be
issued under Section 21-3 or 21-5 to | ||||||
| 27 | persons who first complete the
requirements
for the provisional | ||||||
| 28 | alternative teaching certificate
and who at the time of | ||||||
| 29 | applying for an initial teaching certificate
have successfully | ||||||
| 30 | completed the second and third phases of
the Alternative Route | ||||||
| 31 | to Teacher Certification program as provided in this
Section.
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| 32 | A person possessing a provisional alternative certificate | ||||||
| 33 | or an initial
teaching certificate earned under this Section
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| 34 | shall be treated as a regularly certified teacher for purposes | ||||||
| 35 | of compensation,
benefits, and other terms and conditions of | ||||||
| 36 | employment afforded teachers in the
school who are members of a | ||||||
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| 1 | bargaining unit represented by an exclusive
bargaining | ||||||
| 2 | representative, if any.
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| 3 | The State Board of Education may adopt rules
and | ||||||
| 4 | regulations that are consistent with this Section and that the | ||||||
| 5 | State Board
deems necessary to establish and implement the | ||||||
| 6 | program.
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| 7 | (Source: P.A. 90-548, eff. 1-1-98.)
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