Licensure Reciprocity: Vermont

Analysis of Vermont's policies

Vermont does not support licensure reciprocity for certified teachers from other states.

Regrettably, Vermont waives its licensing test requirements for teachers who have three years of teaching experience within the last seven years.

Teachers with valid, professional out-of-state certificates may be eligible for comparable licensure in Vermont. The state routinely reviews the college transcripts of licensed out-of-state teachers, an exercise that often leads the state to require additional coursework before it will offer a license. States that reach a determination about an applicant's licensure status on the basis of the course titles listed on the applicant's transcript may end up mistakenly equating the amount of required coursework with the teacher's qualification.

Vermont is also a participant in the NASDTEC Interstate Agreement; however, the latest iteration of this agreement no longer purports to be a reciprocity agreement among states and thus is no longer included in this analysis.

Citation

Regulations Governing the Licensing of Educators and the Preparation of Educational Professionals, Rules 5247, 5322, 5323

Recommendations for Vermont

To uphold standards, require that teachers coming from other states meet testing requirements.
Vermont takes considerable risk by granting a waiver for its licensing tests to certain out-of-state teachers with three years of experience. The state should not waive any of its teacher tests unless an applicant can provide evidence of a passing score under its own standards. The negative impact on student learning stemming from a teacher's inadequate subject-matter knowledge is not mitigated by the teacher's having recent experience.

Offer a standard license to certified out-of-state teachers, absent unnecessary requirements.
Vermont should consider discontinuing its requirement for the submission of transcripts, as transcript reviews are not a particularly meaningful or efficient exercise. Transcript analysis is likely to result in additional coursework requirements, even for traditionally prepared teachers; alternate route teachers, on the other hand, may have to virtually begin anew, repeating some, most or all of a teacher preparation program in Vermont.

Accord the same license to out-of-state alternate route teachers as would be accorded to traditionally prepared teachers.
Regardless of whether a teacher was prepared through a traditional or alternate route, all certified out-of-state teachers should receive equal treatment. State policies that discriminate against teachers who were prepared in an alternate route are not supported by evidence. In fact, a substantial body of research has failed to discern differences in effectiveness between alternate and traditional route teachers.

State response to our analysis

Vermont was helpful in providing NCTQ with facts that enhanced this analysis.