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| [ Senate Amendment 001 ] |
91_SB0282
LRB9101647NTsb
1 AN ACT to amend the School Code by changing Section
2 21-5c.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
6 Section 21-5c as follows:
7 (105 ILCS 5/21-5c)
8 Sec. 21-5c. Alternative route to teacher certification.
9 The State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
10 Teacher Certification Board, shall establish and implement an
11 alternative route to teacher certification program under
12 which persons who meet the requirements of and successfully
13 complete the program established by this Section shall be
14 issued an initial teaching certificate for teaching in
15 schools in this State. The State Board of Education shall
16 approve a course of study that persons in the program must
17 successfully complete in order to satisfy one criterion for
18 issuance of a certificate under this Section. The Teachers
19 for Illinois Alternative Route to Teacher Certification
20 program course of study must include the current content and
21 skills contained in a university's current courses for State
22 certification which have been approved by the State Board of
23 Education, in consultation with the State Teacher
24 Certification Board, as the requirement for State teacher
25 certification.
26 The program established under this Section shall be known
27 as the Teachers for Illinois Alternative Route to Teacher
28 Certification program. The program may be offered in
29 conjunction with one or more not-for-profit organizations in
30 the State. The program shall be comprised of the following 4
31 3 phases: (a) field work experience with students before
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1 being assigned to a classroom as an intern; (b) professional
2 education coursework that is comparable to traditional
3 approved teacher education programs and completed during a
4 minimum of 2 summers and one academic year; (c) a minimum one
5 year, full-time teaching internship with a reduced salary
6 from the school district, with the district paying the costs
7 of mentoring and tuition to the teacher preparation
8 institution during the academic year; and (d) a course of
9 study offered on an intensive basis in education theory,
10 instructional methods, and practice teaching; (b) the
11 person's assignment to a full-time teaching position for one
12 school year, including the designation of a mentor teacher to
13 advise and assist the person with that teaching assignment;
14 and (c) a comprehensive performance-based assessment of the
15 person's teaching performance by school officials and program
16 participants and a recommendation by the institution of
17 higher education to the State Board of Education that the
18 person be issued an initial teaching certificate. Coursework
19 may be applied towards a master's degree program in
20 education. Successful completion of the Teachers for
21 Illinois Alternative Route to Teacher Certification program
22 shall be deemed to satisfy any other practice or student
23 teaching and subject matter requirements established by law.
24 A provisional alternative teaching certificate, valid for
25 one year of teaching in the common schools and not renewable,
26 shall be issued under this Section 21-5c to persons who at
27 the time of applying for the provisional alternative teaching
28 certificate under this Section:
29 (1) have graduated from an accredited college or
30 university with a bachelor's degree;
31 (2) have been employed for a period of at least 5
32 years of professional work experience in an area
33 requiring application of the individual's education;
34 (3) have successfully completed the first phase of
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1 the Teachers for Illinois Alternative Teacher
2 Certification program as provided in this Section; and
3 (4) have passed the tests of basic skills and
4 subject matter knowledge required by Section 21-1a.
5 An initial teaching certificate, valid for teaching in
6 the common schools, shall be issued under Section 21-3 or
7 21-5 to persons who first complete the requirements for the
8 provisional alternative teaching certificate and who at the
9 time of applying for an initial teaching certificate have
10 successfully completed the second, and third, and fourth
11 phases of the Teachers for Illinois Alternative Route to
12 Teacher Certification program as provided in this Section.
13 A person possessing a provisional alternative certificate
14 or an initial teaching certificate earned under this Section
15 shall be treated as a regularly certified teacher for
16 purposes of compensation, benefits, and other terms and
17 conditions of employment afforded teachers in the school who
18 are members of a bargaining unit represented by an exclusive
19 bargaining representative, if any.
20 The State Board of Education may adopt rules and
21 regulations that are consistent with this Section and that
22 the State Board deems necessary to establish and implement
23 the program.
24 (Source: P.A. 90-548, eff. 1-1-98.)