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State’s teacher licensure system in need of overhaul, report notes

What qualifications should it take to be a teacher in Minnesota, and who should govern the licenses?

The House Education Innovation Policy Committee on Tuesday reviewed a March 2016 report by the Office of the Legislative Auditor regarding teacher licensure in Minnesota, a system that is seen as complex and in need of reform.

“This has been an issue that has perplexed this committee for years, and to get some clarity is important,” said Rep. Dean Urdahl (R-Grove City), a retired educator.

Teachers are now licensed for a subject area and a grade level. Candidates receive a different type of license to the extent that they meet requirements such as testing and in-class experience or preparation. There’s also an exception process for those who aren’t fully licensed.

The Board of Teaching and Department of Education share responsibility regarding rulemaking and oversight of the licensure system as a whole.

Changes create challenges, confusion

State statutes can be adjusted annually, making it hard for teachers to stay informed and agencies to enforce. Teachers transferring from another state often find it difficult to acquire a license, citing the need to repeat requirements in areas which they are already qualified (and sometimes have lengthy tenures).

To add to the issue, laws are often complex, outdated or ambiguous leaving a lot of room for interpretation.

House Photography file photo

“We found significant problems from top to bottom, and all on levels,” said Deputy Legislative Auditor Judy Randall. “There has been a lot of updates, which have led to further complications.”

Over the years, excess and duplicate responsibilities bred confusion and a lack of transparency between the agencies, and their subdivisions. With no direct governing leader, agencies both took responsibility for success, as well as passed around the blame. Admittedly, clearly defined roles became lacking, creating a culture of “finger-pointing.”

“We talked to anyone who would talk to us, and reached out to even more,” Randall said. “The common theme was the (licensure) structure is confusing, complicated and you get passed back and forth.”

And if a teacher manages to jump through the hoops necessary to successfully apply for a license, the communication clarifying any reasons behind a denied application was rarely, if ever clear; it’s like trying to correct complicated homework with no answer key.

WATCH Office of the Legislative Auditor delivers report on teacher licensure to House Education Innovation Policy Committee

It’s not that legislators aren’t trying. It’s that under the current system even when legislative change is made, oftentimes hands are tied when implementing it.

“For a number of years we have pointed out the challenges we have faced in making some of these changes work,” said Erin Doan, executive director of the Board of Teaching. “We have faced challenges rewriting rules because we have so many conflicting statutes. It’s very hard to write a rule that doesn’t conflict somewhere. The rulemaking process is full of twists and turns; it’s certainly not as clean as we would like it to be.”

One system with accountable outcomes

The report looked at other state teaching licensure systems and found the majority of them function under one agency. It recommends Minnesota do the same and provided proposals to make that happen.

“The current structure is not working well, for anyone; compared to other states it is really an anomaly,” said Randall. “It needs to be consolidated somewhere.”

Under the first, and highest recommended proposal, teacher-licensure activities would be consolidated into the Board of Teaching who would make all licensure determinations, and issue licenses.

Similar to its current duties, an increased staff would now review all applicants’ questions, applications, credentials, and issue the appropriate licenses. The process would become streamlined and the state’s education commissioner would have a seat on the board to add an increased perspective and maintain transparency. Disadvantages to the option include the need for increased staffing and potential changes to the appeal process.

House Education Innovation Policy Committee 1/17/17

“We think that oversight comes best from those in the profession,” said Randall. “This would streamline the process for the candidates and make it clear what is expected.”

WATCH Full video of House Education Innovation Policy Committee meeting

A less favored approach is essentially the opposite, with the Education Department absorbing licensure responsibilities. However, this option would seemingly require an already large department to take on numerous new responsibilities (some of which it may not be best suited for). A third and final option would be to leave the program as is for another year.

Other recommendations include clarifying existing statutes to reduce conflict and ambiguity, and restructuring the licensure system itself to one with tiered levels rather than the standards-based one that is currently used (and is more open for interpretation).

Qualifications regarding master’s degrees and other extracurricular skills would also need to be considered. Charter schools would be governed under the same tiered system, but could see exceptions.

“Flexibility could be built in for unique situations, but we recommend limiting the number,” said Randall. “We don’t want the system to become overrun like it was before.”

Studying solutions

Throughout 2016, the Legislative Study Group on Educator Licensure was formed to further study the conundrums and offer further possible solutions.

Its recommendations include the consolidation of all teacher-licensure activities into a “one-stop shop” to determine individual eligibility, process applications, issue/revoke licenses and communicate with candidates; support the continued structure of the Board of School Administrators remaining independent of teacher licensing; support the adoptions of a tiered-licensure system, including career and technical education instructors within the tiered system; and support the adoption of clarifying statutes.

“We need to keep teachers as the main subject when establishing a new system,” said Rep. Sondra Erickson (R-Princeton), who co-chaired the group and chairs the House Education Innovation Policy Committee. “We want consistency, transparency, and to identify affordable pathways for teachers to get into the career.”

A task force report regarding career and technical education instructors’ licensing qualifications is expected in the coming weeks.


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