Northside teaching staff nearing 100 percent highly qualified
NISD Communications Department
April 30, 2008
Northside ISD administrators are working to make sure every single classroom teacher is “highly qualified,” as required by the federal education law, No Child Left Behind (NCLB).
NCLB requires that all teachers of core subjects in all public schools hold a bachelor’s degree and state certification in the subject area they are teaching. Core subjects for NCLB include reading/language arts, math, civics and government, economics, geography, science, history, fine arts (music, art, dance and theater), and international languages.
In Texas, districts must report the number of highly qualified teachers to the Texas Education Agency at the beginning of each school year. In Northside, a small number of teachers do not meet the federal highly qualified requirements, though all teachers are certified to teach under state law.
Currently, six high school teachers out of a teaching staff of 6,272 (about 0.1 percent) are not considered highly qualified. These six teachers are special education teachers who don’t meet the federal requirements because NCLB requires that a teacher be certified for the subject he or she teaches, not at the grade level in which students are functioning.
For example, a high school special education teacher who instructs students in a math class specifically designed for students functioning at an elementary level must be certified in both special education and secondary math.
Northside administrators are working to make sure all teachers meet NCLB requirements either through campus schedule changes or by earning additional certifications. All corrective measures being taken by districts must also be reported to TEA.
The parent of any student who is in a classroom with a teacher who does not meet the highly qualified requirements has been notified in a letter by mail.
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