Legislature(2023 - 2024)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
05/03/2023 03:30 PM Senate EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s) | |
| SB132 | |
| SB136 | |
| SB120 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 136 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 132 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 120 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
SB 136-TEACHER CERTIFICATE; TEACHER PREP PROGRAM
3:41:52 PM
CHAIR TOBIN reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 136 "An Act relating to teacher
certificates and teacher preparation programs; and providing for
an effective date."
She asked Senator Olson to introduce the legislation.
3:42:23 PM
SENATOR DONNY OLSON, District T, Alaska State Legislature,
Juneau, Alaska, sponsor of SB 136, introduced the bill by
paraphrasing the first paragraph of the sponsor statement. The
full sponsor statement read as follows:
SB 136 amends Alaska Statute 14.20.020 to add a new
subsection (m) requiring the State Board of Education
and Early Development to establish standards for
approving alternative teacher preparation programs to
operate in Alaska.
The standards will set forth criteria for approving
alternative teacher preparation programs that are
comparable to those offered by a higher education
institution. The standards will ensure that to be
approved, the program must be comparable to nationally
recognized pedagogy standards, such as the Interstate
Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC)
pedagogy standards or those of another organization
approved by the Commissioner of Education.
Furthermore, the standards for approving an
alternative teacher preparation program will also
ensure a program has a proven track record over a
period of at least five years in multiple states.
Alaska's teacher shortage crisis is well documented
and has been exacerbated in recent years. As of April
21, 2023, the Alaska Teacher Placement website listed
315 job openings for elementary, middle, and high
school teachers. The number of openings at the
beginning of the school year was significantly higher,
causing school districts to explore options such as
long-term substitutes, recruiting teachers from
foreign countries, and issuing emergency certificates.
This legislation aims to mitigate the teacher shortage
by adding another option for individuals with
bachelor's degrees and professional experience to
become certified teachers after showing proficiency in
pedagogy and academic subject matter.
Commonly known as alternative teacher certification
programs, Alaska has identified the need for these
programs to be a part of addressing the State's
teacher recruitment and retention crisis. In April
2021, the Governor's Teacher Retention and Recruitment
Working Group issued its Action Plan. The Plan's
fourth Essential Area, Enhancing Recruitment Efforts
and Opportunities, included a series of recommendation
for bringing new teachers into the classroom. Among
those recommendations was the following found on page
8 of the report:
5. Consider models of Alternative Certification
Pathways and determine which ones to adopt.
• Support non-traditional applicants gaining
pedagogical knowledge using external options such
as this online program currently used by 15
states (https://www.americanboard.org/).
• Develop a pathway for Alternative Certification
for those with a BS or BA who want to teach.
• Create a non-traditional route outside the
university system.
• Ensure this certification is competency based,
with an evaluation method to test.
• Allow forgiveness of some required courses.
• Ensure pathway has an appropriate level of
rigor.
This legislation implements that recommendation.
3:43:23 PM
ALMERIA ALCANTRA, Staff, Senator Donny Olson, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, presented the sectional analysis
for SB 136. It read as follows:
Section 1: Amends Alaska Statute 14.20.020(b), to
specify an individual must receive a baccalaureate
degree from an institution of higher education
accredited nationally or by a recognized regional
accrediting association.
Section 2: Amends Alaska Statute 14.20.020(c), to
ensure the regulations must allow the Board to issue a
teacher's certificate to a person who has successfully
completed a teacher preparation program approved under
(m) of the bill which is new language.
Section 3: Adds new language that directs the Board to
establish standards for the approval of teacher
preparation programs and specifies:
• The standards be comparable to teacher prep
programs through national organizations
recognized by the Council for Higher Education
Accreditation, or an organization approved by the
Commissioner; AND
• The Board approve a teacher preparation program
offered by an organization that has operated for
at least five years and operates in at least five
states.
Section 4: Amends the eligibility of a subject matter
expert limited teacher certificate, a person shall be
currently enrolled in an approved:
• Post-baccalaureate teacher program at a
nationally or regionally accredited institution;
OR
• A teacher preparation program approved under this
legislation.
Section 5: This act takes effect July 1, 2023.
3:45:14 PM
MS. ALCANTRA highlighted that SB 136 came from the 2021
Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) Action Plan
for Teacher Retention and Recruitment. She said one of the
recommendations was about looking for alternate pathways to
become a certified teacher.
3:45:51 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked for additional information on the nationally
recognized programs that were referenced.
MS. ALCANTRA deferred the question to the DEED representative
and Melanie Olmstead with the American Board for Certification
of Teacher Excellence.
3:46:14 PM
CHAIR TOBIN transitioned to invited testimony on SB 136.
3:46:36 PM
MELANIE OLMSTEAD, Executive Director, American Board for
Certification of Teacher Excellence ("American Board"),
Indianapolis, Indiana, stated that the organization was founded
in 2001 under George W. Bush to address the impending teacher
shortage and to ensure that students have teachers with real
world experience. The American Board currently operates in 14
states, and Idaho is among the most successful. She reported
that a third-party study showed the 4,000 American Board trained
teachers in Idaho had a 97 percent retention rate after three
years, which is much better than the national average.
MS. OLMSTEAD stated that while several organizations meet the
pedagogy standards to qualify for the application process
outlined in SB 136, the American Board believes it is best
suited to serve Alaska by quickly and affordably getting
certified teachers into local schools. Because the American
Board focuses on training local people to become teachers, it is
particularly well suited to serve rural schools. She shared that
the average American Board teacher is about 40 years old and has
a bachelor's degree, at a minimum, but often they are subject
matter experts with advanced degrees.
3:50:41 PM
CHAIR TOBIN mentioned the Alaska Reads Act that requires new
educators to receive at least six credit hours of culturally
responsive education. She asked whether the American Board
offers that type of training and how they would make that
training Alaska informed.
3:51:09 PM
MS. OLMSTEAD replied that they don't offer that training, but it
isn't unique for a state to have state-specific training
requirements. In those instances, the American Board makes it
clear to the new teachers that they are responsible for
fulfilling the state-specific requirement for licensure and that
the course must come from an approved university.
3:52:10 PM
SENATOR BJORKMAN asked how long it takes to achieve licensure
through the American Board.
MS. OLMSTEAD replied that on-average it takes seven to eight
months, but it can take up to a year. It is heavily dependent on
what the new teacher candidate has done prior to entering the
program. Many of the people who use the program are long-time
substitute teachers so they are able to move through the program
and demonstrate competency quickly because they are comfortable
with the art and science of teaching which covers classroom
management, instruction design, and teacher leadership. By
contrast, someone who has been working in the field of pharmacy,
for example, may be comfortable with their knowledge of
chemistry, but they might still need time to study pedagogy.
SENATOR BJORKMAN asked if she was saying that the American Board
was comfortable certifying teachers who have experience as a
substitute teacher in exchange for what would be a year or more
of university training.
MS. OLMSTEAD clarified that the American Board does not certify
someone based solely on the fact that they had been a substitute
teacher. Those teacher candidates would still have to go through
the entire course and demonstrate their proficiency in both
pedagogy and their subject area. People move through this
process at various speeds but nobody earns a certificate from
the American Board until their proficiency is proven through
their certification exams.
SENATOR BJORKMAN asked how proficiency is assessed.
3:55:02 PM
MS. OLMSTEAD answered that the American Board has a proprietary
exam specific to the subject areas of elementary education,
professional education, US and world history, mathematics,
biology, chemistry, physics, and general science. They also have
a proprietary exam specific to pedagogy. She said third-parties
have found these exams to be equal to and sometimes more
rigorous than Praxis exams, so that is the benchmark for
demonstrating proficiency.
SENATOR BJORKMAN pointed out that Praxis exams test teachers'
knowledge in subject areas, but they do not test pedagogy or the
ability to manage a classroom. He asked how the American Board
assesses a candidate's ability to practice the trade of
teaching.
3:56:20 PM
MS. OLMSTEAD countered that the Praxis does offer a pedagogy
exam and the American Board offers a similar exam called the
professional teaching knowledge (PTK) pedagogy exam. Both exams
were developed to ensure that candidates are familiar and
comfortable with best practices. This is more than knowing how
to design a lesson plan; the candidates must be able to
administer a pop quiz, take the results, and adjust their
instruction to better serve their students. This is assessed
through appropriately designed pedagogy exams.
CHAIR TOBIN asked her to explain pedagogy.
MS. OLMSTEAD stated that pedagogy is the art and science of
teaching which includes classroom management, effective
instructional design and delivery, assessment, and teacher
leadership. It's more than knowing the subject area such as
math; it's whether the candidate knows how to teach the subject.
CHAIR TOBIN invited Kelly Manning and Sondra Meredith to the
witness table to answer questions from the committee.
3:58:41 PM
KELLY MANNING, Deputy Director, Division of Innovation and
Education Excellence, Department of Education and Early
Development (DEED), Juneau, Alaska, introduced herself.
3:58:52 PM
SONDRA MEREDITH, Program Administrator of Teacher Certification,
Division of Innovation and Education Excellence Department of
Education and Early Development (DEED), Juneau, Alaska,
introduced herself.
CHAIR TOBIN asked for an explanation of the difference between
national and regional certification, as described in SB 136.
3:59:10 PM
MS. MEREDITH answered that private universities that focus on
specialized areas such as religion typically rely on national
accreditation, whereas public institutions typically use
regional accreditation.
CHAIR TOBIN asked whether nationally accredited universities,
schools, or programs can be for-profit.
MS. MEREDITH answered that she would follow up with an answer.
4:00:20 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked what the current process is to become a
certified teacher in Alaska.
MS. MEREDITH answered that there are several approaches. Someone
who just graduated high school could enroll in a bachelor's
program. There are also programs, such as elementary education,
that have teacher preparation embedded. Someone who enrolled in
a bachelor's program could go on to complete a master's degree
or post-baccalaureate program in the art of teaching. These
programs traditionally include a student teaching component
where the person works with a teacher mentor or coach. Another
approach that's available in Alaska statutes allows someone with
a bachelor's or master's degree to start teaching while they are
working to complete the teacher preparation component through a
university. Regardless of the approach, she said all individuals
must take a test of basic competency in the particular content
area.
4:02:41 PM
CHAIR TOBIN asked how long it would take someone who just
graduated from high school to become an educator.
MS. MEREDITH answered that somebody could complete the
requirements in the four years it takes to achieve a bachelor's
degree. Somebody who already holds a bachelor's degree could
complete the Master's in the Art of Teaching (MAT) program at
the University of Alaska Southeast in one year. This is an
intensive program that requires the individual to do the course
work while student teaching in a classroom with an experienced
educator.
CHAIR TOBIN mentioned an earlier presentation relating to the
teacher retention taskforce. She asked about teacher retention
rates for local, grow-your-own programs versus out-of-state
preparation programs that have been fast tracked to provide
teachers for Alaska, and how SB 136 might fit in that mix.
4:03:59 PM
MS. MEREDITH responded that the presentation she referenced
talked about a study that showed that students in nontraditional
programs that did not provide the intensive training from a
practicing teacher through a student teaching model tend to
leave teaching more quickly than individuals who have that rich
experience.
CHAIR TOBIN requested a review of the fiscal note.
4:05:12 PM
MS. MANNING reviewed the Department of Education and Early
Development (DEED) fiscal note for SB 136, OMB component 1240.
She spoke to the analysis that read:
This bill directs the State Board of Education and
Early Development (Board) to adopt teacher preparation
standards for the approval of teacher preparation
programs in Alaska. The bill directs the Board to
develop standards that are comparable to the standards
used by national organizations recognized by the
Council for Higher Education Accreditation and that
allow for organizations other than universities to
gain state approval for the preparation of teachers in
Alaska.
In order to manage approval of teacher preparation
programs based on the newly developed standards, the
Department of Education and Early Development would
need to hire a part-time Education Specialist 2, Range
21, at a Step C/D, for a total of $60.5 to review
programs for approval and monitor approved programs,
plus $10.6 for departmental chargebacks. This position
would also be responsible for supporting the standards
development process, reviewing and approving
applications for approval, monitoring programs
annually, and creating and managing a website to house
information about the standards and approval process.
Additionally, annual costs of $4.0 is needed for
travel to monitor and provide technical assistance and
support to school districts and partners.
Additionally, this fiscal note contains the following
one-time expenses: 1) $84.0 for 20 committee members
and one staff member to travel twice for in-person
convenings($2.0 per participant/convening); 2) $46.6
for services, including $30.0 to hire a facilitator to
oversee the development of standards, $40.0 for
committee member stipends ($2.0 per participant), and
$6.0 for legal fees to implement the necessary
regulation changes; and, 3) $5.0 for commodities to
cover supplies and equipment for the new staff member.
4:08:06 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked how the standards the Board of Education
would establish under SB 136 would differ from programs
accredited by national or regional accrediting organizations.
4:08:38 PM
MS. MEREDITH explained that, through regulation, the state board
expects all programs to go through national accreditation by the
Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).
Universities typically use this type of accreditation
organization. In Alaska, the universities bear the cost. She
said alternative programs wouldn't necessarily to through a
national organization for accreditation. The standards would
probably be similar but there would be an opportunity for the
state to impose specific requirements, perhaps related to
reading or cultural responsiveness.
4:10:55 PM
SENATOR KIEHL questioned the reason for establishing stricter
standards than those for national accreditation.
MS. MEREDITH replied that the primary reason is to be able to
modify standards to allow for alternate pathways that don't go
through the national accreditation process but can be approved
by the state.
SENATOR KIEHL asked for more information about the part-time
position identified in the surprisingly small fiscal note.
4:12:39 PM
MS. MANNING explained that the person in that position would
help establish the specifics for monitoring and the structure
for assessing the program to ensure it is meeting the standards.
She said the long-term costs are unknown because that work
hasn't been done. It would depend on the number of programs that
apply for state approval.
4:14:03 PM
SENATOR KIEHL asked how many programs, in addition to the one
that testified, might apply once the standards are established.
MS. MEREDITH offered her understanding that the bill would
potentially open state approval so national accreditation
wouldn't necessarily be required. Accreditation could be either
regional or national or both, depending on how the state board
writes the regulations. Programs that currently use the CAEP
accreditation process may decide to use the state process, and
programs such as Teach for America may want to apply to be
state-approved in Alaska. There currently are four in-state
programs and several from outside the state may become
candidates if SB 136 were to pass.
SENATOR KIEHL asked why the bill relies on undesignated general
funds (UGF) when the university currently pays for CAEP
accreditation and other programs are receipt supported.
4:16:08 PM
MS. MANNING responded that the person hired for the part-time
position could explore both those options.
4:16:42 PM
CHAIR TOBIN summarized her understanding that teacher
preparation programs that are regionally accredited are
primarily through the university system, and if SB 136 were to
pass, general funds would be used to support direct competition
for that system.
MS. MANNING confirmed that if a fee isn't charged, that would be
different from universities that pay for regional accreditation.
CHAIR TOBIN asked Ms. Alcantra whether she had any closing
comments.
4:17:48 PM
MS. ALCANTRA thanked committee for hearing the bill, emphasizing
the benefit of providing more flexibility for Alaskans to become
teachers.
4:18:48 PM
CHAIR TOBIN held SB 136 in committee.