Licensure Reciprocity: Delaware
Expanding the Pool of Teachers Policy
Analysis of Delaware's policies
In Delaware, teachers with current, comparable out-of-state certificates are eligible for a continuing license. The state does not mandate additional coursework or impose recency requirements; rather, Delaware requires that all out-of-state teachers (both traditional and alternate routes) have at least three years of "successful" experience. Teachers may demonstrate successful experience by submitting two satisfactory evaluations from the other jurisdiction that Delaware finds are equivalent to the summative evaluations required of a Delaware teacher.
However, Delaware allows a waiver for its licensing tests to any out-of-state teacher who has passed a test in a previous state, regardless of whether he or she has met its passing scores.
Delaware is a participant in the NASDTEC Interstate Agreement, which outlines which other states' certificates will be accepted by the receiving state. This agreement is not a collection of two-way reciprocal acceptances, nor is it a guarantee that all certificates will be accepted by the receiving state, and it is therefore not included in this analysis.
Recommendations for Delaware
Require evidence of effective teaching when determining eligibility for full certification.
Delaware is commended for articulating that successful teaching experience may be demonstrated by two satisfactory evaluations if comparable to its own evaluation system, which requires measures of student growth to be the preponderant criterion (see "Evaluation of Effectiveness" analysis). The state is urged to strengthen this policy and require that evidence of teacher effectiveness be considered for all candidates who come from states that similarly make student growth the most significant factor of a teacher evaluation.
To uphold standards, require that out-of-state teachers without proof of effectiveness meet testing requirements.
Although it is reasonable to allow out-of-state teachers with proven records of effectiveness to earn Delaware certification without meeting the state's testing requirements, Delaware should strengthen its policy and insist that those without proof of effectiveness meet its requirements. This is especially important when it comes to out-of-state teachers from states without an evaluation system comparable to Delaware's and who have passed content tests that do not rise to the level of Delaware's standard, such as an elementary content test that requires a passing score on each content core subject (see "Elementary Teacher Preparation" analysis and recommendations).
State response to our analysis
Delaware recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis. The state added that the idea of a provisional license is currently under consideration within the Teacher and Leader Effectiveness Unit (TLEU).
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Delaware
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Delivering Well Prepared Teachers
- Admission into Teacher Preparation
- Elementary Teacher Preparation
- Elementary Teacher Preparation in Reading Instruction
- Elementary Teacher Preparation in Mathematics
- Early Childhood
- Middle School Teacher Preparation
- Secondary Teacher Preparation
- Secondary Teacher Preparation in Science and Social Studies
- Special Education Teacher Preparation
- Special Education Preparation in Reading
- Assessing Professional Knowledge
- Student Teaching
- Teacher Preparation Program Accountability
Expanding the Pool of Teachers
Identifying Effective Teachers
- State Data Systems
- Evaluation of Effectiveness
- Frequency of Evaluations
- Tenure
- Licensure Advancement
- Equitable Distribution
Retaining Effective Teachers
Exiting Ineffective Teachers
Pensions
Research rationale
Evidence of effectiveness is far more important than transcript review.
In an attempt to ensure that teachers have the appropriate
professional and subject-matter knowledge base when granting certification,
states often review a teacher's college transcript, no matter how many years
earlier a bachelor's degree was earned. A state certification specialist
reviews the college transcript, looking for course titles that appear to match
state requirements. If the right matches are not found, a teacher may be
required to complete additional coursework before receiving standard licensure.
This practice holds true even for experienced teachers who are trying to
transfer from another state, regardless of experience or success level. The
application of these often complex state rules results in unnecessary obstacles
to hiring talented and experienced teachers. Little evidence indicates that
reviewing a person's undergraduate coursework improves the quality of the
teaching force or ensures that teachers have adequate knowledge.
New evaluation systems coming on line across the country
which prioritize effectiveness and evidence of student learning offer an opportunity to bypass counterproductive efforts like transcript review
and get to the heart of the matter: is
the out of state teacher seeking licensure in a new state an effective
teacher?
Testing requirements
should be upheld, not waived.
While many states impose burdensome coursework requirements,
they often fail to impose minimum standards on licensure tests. Instead, they
offer waivers to veteran teachers transferring from other states, thereby
failing to impose minimal standards of professional and subject-matter
knowledge. In upholding licensure standards for out-of-state teachers, the
state should be flexible in its processes but vigilant in its verification of
adequate knowledge. Too many states have policies and practices that reverse
these priorities, focusing diligently on comparison of transcripts to state
documents while demonstrating little oversight of teachers' knowledge. If a
state can verify that a teacher has taught successfully and has the required
subject-matter and professional knowledge, its only concern should be ensuring
that the teacher is familiar with the state's student learning standards.
States licensing
out-of-state teachers should not differentiate between experienced teachers
prepared in alternate routes and those prepared in traditional programs.
It is understandable that states are wary of accepting
alternate route teachers from other states, since programs vary widely in
quality. However, the same wide variety in quality can be found in traditional
programs. If a teacher comes from another state with a standard license and can
pass the state's licensure tests, whether the preparation was traditional or
alternative should be irrelevant.
Licensure Reciprocity: Supporting Research
Many
professions have gone further than teaching in encouraging interstate mobility.
The requirements for attorneys, for example, are complicated, but often offer
certain kinds of flexibility, such as allowing them to answer a small set of
additional questions. See the Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admissions
Requirements 2014, published by the National Conference of Bar Examiners
and the American Bar Association, available at https://www.ncbex.org/assets/media_files/Comp-Guide/CompGuide.pdf.
On
the similarity in effectiveness between graduates of traditional and
alternative programs, see J.
Constantine, D. Player, T. Silva, K. Hallgren, M. Grider, J. Deke, and E. Warner, An Evaluation of Teachers Trained Through Different Routes to Certification, Final Report. February 2009, U.S.
Department of Education, NCEE 2009-4043. D. Boyd, P. Grossman, H. Lankford, S. Loeb, and J. Wyckoff, "How Changes in Entry Requirements Alter the Teacher Workforce and Affect Student Achievement." NBER Working Paper No. 11844, December 2005. T. Kane, J. Rockoff, and D.
Staiger. "What Does Certification Tell Us About Teacher Effectiveness? Evidence from New York City." NBER Working Paper No.12155, April 2006. G. Henry, C. Thompson, K. Bastian, C. Fortner, D. Kershaw, K. Purtell, R. Zulli, A. Mabe, and A. Chapman, "Impacts of Teacher Preparation on Student Test Scores in North Carolina: Teacher Portals". The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Carolina Institute for Public Policy, 2010, 34p. Z. Xu, J.
Hannaway, and C. Taylor, "Making a Difference? The Effects of Teach for America in High School." The Urban Institute/Calder, Working Paper 17, April 2007.D. Boyd, P. Grossman, K. Hammerness. H. Lankford, S. Loeb, M. Ronfeldt, and J. Wyckoff, "Recruiting Effective Math Teachers: How Do Math Immersion Teachers Compare?: Evidence from New York City." NBER Working Paper No.16017, May 2010;
as well as "How Changes in Entry Requirements Alter the Teacher Workforce and Affect Student Achievement," by D. Boyd, P. Grossman, H. Lankford, S. Loeb, and J. Wyckoff, NBER Working Paper No.11844, December 2005; and "The Effects of Teach For America on Students: Findings from a National Evaluation," by P. Decker, D. Mayer, and S. Glazerman, Mathematica Policy
Research Inc., 2004.