93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
HB7053

 

Introduced 02/09/04, by David E. Miller - John A. Fritchey

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
105 ILCS 5/21-1a   from Ch. 122, par. 21-1a

    Amends the Teacher Certification Article of the School Code. Provides that a teacher from another state or territory of the United States who has successfully achieved National Board certification must not be required to take an examination in order to receive a Master Certificate.


LRB093 16060 NHT 41686 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB7053 LRB093 16060 NHT 41686 b

1     AN ACT concerning education.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
5 21-1a as follows:
 
6     (105 ILCS 5/21-1a)  (from Ch. 122, par. 21-1a)
7     Sec. 21-1a. Tests required for certification and teacher
8 preparation.
9     (a) After July 1, 1988, in addition to all other
10 requirements, early childhood, elementary, special, high
11 school, school service personnel, or, except as provided in
12 Section 34-6, administrative certificates shall be issued to
13 persons who have satisfactorily passed a test of basic skills
14 and subject matter knowledge. The tests of basic skills and
15 subject matter knowledge shall be the tests which from time to
16 time are designated by the State Board of Education in
17 consultation with the State Teacher Certification Board and may
18 be tests prepared by an educational testing organization or
19 tests designed by the State Board of Education in consultation
20 with the State Teacher Certification Board. The areas to be
21 covered by the test of basic skills shall include the basic
22 skills of reading, writing, grammar and mathematics. The test
23 of subject matter knowledge shall assess content knowledge in
24 the specific subject field. The tests shall be designed to be
25 racially neutral to assure that no person in taking the tests
26 is thereby discriminated against on the basis of race, color,
27 national origin or other factors unrelated to the person's
28 ability to perform as a certificated employee. The score
29 required to pass the tests of basic skills and subject matter
30 knowledge shall be fixed by the State Board of Education in
31 consultation with the State Teacher Certification Board. The
32 tests shall be held not fewer than 3 times a year at such time

 

 

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1 and place as may be designated by the State Board of Education
2 in consultation with the State Teacher Certification Board.
3     (b) Except as provided in Section 34-6, the provisions of
4 subsection (a) of this Section shall apply equally in any
5 school district subject to Article 34, provided that the State
6 Board of Education shall determine which certificates issued
7 under Sections 34-8.1 and 34-83 prior to July 1, 1988 are
8 comparable to any early childhood certificate, elementary
9 school certificate, special certificate, high school
10 certificate, school service personnel certificate or
11 administrative certificate issued under this Article as of July
12 1, 1988.
13     (c) A person who holds an early childhood, elementary,
14 special, high school or school service personnel certificate
15 issued under this Article on or at any time before July 1,
16 1988, including a person who has been issued any such
17 certificate pursuant to Section 21-11.1 or in exchange for a
18 comparable certificate theretofore issued under Section 34-8.1
19 or Section 34-83, shall not be required to take or pass the
20 tests in order to thereafter have such certificate renewed.
21     (d) The State Board of Education in consultation with the
22 State Teacher Certification Board shall conduct a pilot
23 administration of the tests by administering the test to
24 students completing teacher education programs in the 1986-87
25 school year for the purpose of determining the effect and
26 impact of testing candidates for certification.
27     Beginning with the 2002-2003 academic year, a student may
28 not enroll in a teacher preparation program at a recognized
29 teacher training institution until he or she has passed the
30 basic skills test.
31     Beginning with the 2004-2005 academic year, a preservice
32 education teacher may not student teach until he or she has
33 passed the subject matter test in the discipline in which he or
34 she will student teach.
35     (e) The rules and regulations developed to implement the
36 required test of basic skills and subject matter knowledge

 

 

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1 shall include the requirements of subsections (a), (b), and (c)
2 and shall include specific regulations to govern test
3 selection; test validation and determination of a passing
4 score; administration of the tests; frequency of
5 administration; applicant fees; frequency of applicants'
6 taking the tests; the years for which a score is valid; and,
7 waiving certain additional tests for additional certificates
8 to individuals who have satisfactorily passed the test of basic
9 skills and subject matter knowledge as required in subsection
10 (a). The State Board of Education shall provide, by rule,
11 specific policies that assure uniformity in the difficulty
12 level of each form of the basic skills test and each subject
13 matter knowledge test from test-to-test and year-to-year. The
14 State Board of Education shall also set a passing score for the
15 tests.
16     (f) The State Teacher Certification Board may issue a
17 nonrenewable temporary certificate between July 1, 1988 and
18 August 31, 1988 to individuals who have taken the tests of
19 basic skills and subject matter knowledge prescribed by this
20 Section but have not received such test scores by August 31,
21 1988. Such temporary certificates shall expire on December 31,
22 1988.
23     (g) Beginning February 15, 2000, the State Board of
24 Education, in consultation with the State Teacher
25 Certification Board, shall implement and administer a new
26 system of certification for teachers in the State of Illinois.
27 The State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
28 Teacher Certification Board, shall design and implement a
29 system of examinations and various other criteria which shall
30 be required prior to the issuance of Initial Teaching
31 Certificates and Standard Teaching Certificates. These
32 examinations and indicators shall be based on national and
33 State professional teaching standards, as determined by the
34 State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
35 Teacher Certification Board. A teacher from another state or
36 territory of the United States who has successfully achieved

 

 

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1 National Board certification through the National Board for
2 Professional Teaching Standards must not be required to take an
3 examination under this Section in order to receive a Master
4 Certificate. The State Board of Education may adopt any and all
5 regulations necessary to implement and administer this
6 Section.
7     (h) The State Board of Education shall report to the
8 Illinois General Assembly and the Governor with
9 recommendations for further changes and improvements to the
10 teacher certification system no later than July 1, 1999 and on
11 an annual basis until July 1, 2001.
12 (Source: P.A. 91-102, eff. 7-12-99; 92-734, eff. 7-25-02.)