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 FAQ

 Frequently Asked Questions: This page contains answers to common questions of students and parents.
  1. What are the particulars of 'Highly Qualified?'
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What are the particulars of 'Highly Qualified?'

FACT SHEET ON HIGHLY QUALIFIED OPTIONS
FOR TENNESSEE TEACHERS
 
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND (NCLB) ACT
 
NCLB Highly Qualified Requirements:
*        All “core academic” teachers must be “highly qualified” by the end of school year 
2005-2006.
     Teachers of core academic subjects newly hired after the first day of school in the 
2002-03 school year to teach in a program supported by Title I funds (school-wide or 
targeted assistance), must meet the requirements upon employment.
 
     All other teachers of core academic subjects (new hires in non-Title I schools/
programs and all existing teachers), must meet the requirements by the end of the 
2005-06 school year.
 
 
*        “NCLB Core academic” subject areas include English, reading or language arts, 
mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, 
history, and geography.
 
*        A “highly qualified” teacher must meet all three of the following conditions:
     Bachelor’s Degree; and
     Teacher’s License (no requirements waived); and
     Demonstrate competency for grade/subject area(s) being taught.
 
*        Elementary (K-6)
     Subject knowledge in reading, writing, math, and other areas of basic elementary 
curriculum.
 
*        Middle (7-8) and High School (9-12)
     Content knowledge in each core academic subject assigned to teach.
 
Options for Meeting NCLB Highly Qualified Requirements:
*        The Tennessee-defined teacher quality requirements are outlined in detail in the 
Tennessee Plan for Implementing the Teacher and Paraprofessional Quality 
Provisions of the NCLB Act of 2001.  A copy of the state plan is available online at http:/
/www.tennessee.gov/education/mnclb.  Teachers should read this plan prior to 
selecting any option to meet the federal requirements of NCLB.
 
o       Academic Major:  The major must be in the academic content area.
o       Coursework Equivalent:  Twenty-four (24) semester hours in the academic 
content area (excluding methodology courses).
o       Graduate Degree:  The graduate degree must be in the academic content area.
o       National Board Certification (NBC):  NBC must be at the grade level being taught 
(K-6) or in the academic content area (7-12).
o       Test:  The applicable NTE or Praxis tests are listed in Appendix A of the State 
Plan.
o       Framework for Evaluation & Professional Growth:  Revised classroom 
observation component under development.
o       Teacher Effect Data:  The teacher vs state gain comparison level must be Not 
Detectably Different (NDD) from the mean or Above the mean for the state.
o       Professional Matrix:  Teachers must accumulate 100 points on the Matrix to 
achieve highly qualified status.
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