department of education

Professional Standards Board

14 DE Admin. Code 1579

FINAL

REGULATORY IMPLEMENTING ORDER

1579 Standard Certificate Teacher of Students With Visual Impairments

I. Summary of the Evidence and Information Submitted

The Professional Standards Board, acting in cooperation and consultation with the Department of Education, seeks the consent of the State Board of Education to adopt 14 DE Admin. Code 1579 Standard Certificate Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments. A section of regulation 1562 Standard Certificate Teacher Exceptional Children Special Education Secondary addressed certification requirements for Teacher of the Visually Impaired. Working with the Division of Visual Impairment, it was determined that a separate regulation was appropriate. This regulation sets forth the requirements for a Standard Certificate Teacher of Students with Visually Impairments.

Notice of the proposed amendment of the regulation was published in the News Journal and the Delaware State News on April 27, 2006 in the form hereto attached as Exhibit “A”. The notice invited written comments. Comments received initiated a change in the proposed title to make it more ‘people-first’ and a reference to an existing statute was added to make the regulation compliant.

II. Findings of Facts

The Professional Standards Board and the State Board of Education find that it is appropriate to adopt this regulation to comply with changes in statute.

III. Decision to Adopt the Regulation

For the foregoing reasons, the Professional Standards Board and the State Board of Education conclude that it is appropriate to adopt the regulation. Therefore, pursuant to 14 Del.C. §1205(b), the regulation attached hereto as Exhibit “B” is hereby adopted. Pursuant to the provision of 14 Del.C. §122(e), the regulation hereby adopted shall be in effect for a period of five years from the effective date of this order as set forth in Section V. below.

IV. Text and Citation

The text of the regulation adopted shall be in the form attached hereto as Exhibit “B”, and said regulation shall be cited as 14 DE Admin. Code 1579 of the Administrative Code of Regulations of the Department of Education.

V. Effective Date of Order

The effective date of this Order shall be ten (10) days from the date this Order is published in the Delaware Register of Regulations.

APPROVED BY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS BOARD THE 2ND DAY OF NOVEMBER, 2006

FOR IMPLEMENTATION BY THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION:

Valerie A. Woodruff, Secretary of Education

IT IS SO ORDERED THIS 21ST DAY OF DECEMBER, 2006

STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION

1579 Standard Certificate Teacher of [Students with Visual Impairments the Visually Impaired, Birth to Age 21]

This regulation shall apply to the requirements for a Standard Certificate, pursuant to 14 Del.C. §1220(a), for Teacher of [Students with Visual Impairments the Visually Impaired, Birth to Age 21]. This regulation does not apply to Orientation and Mobility Specialists who are certified by the Academy of Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals.

The following words and terms, when used in this regulation, shall have the following meaning unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

“Certification” means the issuance of a certificate, which may occur regardless of a recipient's assignment or employment status.

“Department” means the Delaware Department of Education.

“Educator” means a person licensed and certified by the State under 14 Del.C. §1202 to engage in the practice of instruction, administration or other related professional support services in Delaware public schools, including charter schools, pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated by the Standards Board approved by the State Board. The term ‘educator’ does not include substitute teachers.

“Examination of Content Knowledge” means a standardized test which measures knowledge in a specific content area, such as PRAXIS™ II.

“Fifteen (15) Credits or Their Equivalent in Professional Development” means college credits or an equivalent number of hours, with one (1) credit equating to fifteen (15) hours taken either as part of a degree program or [in addition to apart from] it, from a regionally accredited college or university or a professional development provider approved by the employing school district or charter school.

“Immorality” means conduct which is inconsistent with the rules and principles of morality expected of an educator and may reasonably be found to impair an educator’s effectiveness by reason of his or her unfitness;

“License” means a credential which authorizes the holder to engage in the practice for which the license is issued.

“Major or Its Equivalent” means a minimum of thirty (30) semester hours of course work in a particular content area.

“NASDTEC” means The National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification. The organization represents professional standards boards, commissions and departments of education in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Dependent Schools, the U.S. Territories, New Zealand, and British Columbia, which are responsible for the preparation, licensure, and discipline of educational personnel.

“NCATE” means The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, a national accrediting body for schools, colleges, and departments of education authorized by the U.S. Department of Education.

“Standard Certificate” means a credential issued to certify that an educator has the prescribed knowledge, skill, or education to practice in a particular area, teach a particular subject, or teach a category of students.

“Standards Board” means the Professional Standards Board established pursuant to 14 Del.C. §1201.

“State Board” means the State Board of Education of the State pursuant to 14 Del.C. §104.

“Valid and Current License or Certificate from Another State” means a current full or permanent certificate or license issued by another state. It does not include temporary, emergency or expired certificates or licenses issued from another state.

In accordance with 14 Del.C. §1220(a), the Department shall issue a Standard Certificate as a Teacher of [Students with Visual Impairments the Visually Impaired, Birth to Age 21] the Visually Impaired, Birth to Age 21, to an applicant who holds a valid Delaware Initial, Continuing, or Advanced License, or Standard or Professional Status Certificate issued by the Department prior to August 31, 2003, who has met [the requirements set forth below and in Del.C. §206(d) the following requirements]:

3.1 Acquired the prescribed knowledge, skill or education to practice in a particular area, to teach a particular subject or to instruct a particular category of students by:

3.1.1 Obtaining National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification in the area, subject, or category for which a Standard Certificate is requested; or

3.1.2 Graduating from an NCATE specialty organization recognized educator preparation program or from a state approved educator preparation program, where the state approval body employed the appropriate NASDTEC or NCATE specialty organization standards, offered by a regionally accredited college or university, with a major or its equivalent in educating Visually Impaired Students; or

3.1.3 Satisfactorily completing the Alternative Routes for Licensure and Certification Program, the Special Institute for Licensure and Certification, or such other alternative educator preparation programs as the Secretary may approve; or

3.1.4 Holding a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university in any content area and for applicants applying after June 30, 2006 for their first Standard Certificate, satisfactorily completing a minimum of fifteen (15) credits or their equivalent in professional development related to their area of certification, of which at least six (6) credits or their equivalent must focus on pedagogy, selected by the applicant with the approval of the employing school district or charter school which is submitted to the Department; and

3.1.[54.1] A minimum of fifteen (15) graduate or undergraduate credits from a regionally accredited college or university, taken either as part of a degree program or [apart from in addition to] it, to include:

3.1.[54.1].1 Anatomy and Physiology of the Eye;

3.1.[54.1].2 Braille and Nemeth Code, [preferably including instruction in Braille];

3.1.[54.1].3 Orientation/Mobility for the Teacher of the Visually Impaired;

3.1.[54.1].4 Education for the Visually Impaired;

3.1.[54.1].5 Assistive Technology; or

3.1.[54.1].6 Diagnosis/assessment/IEP Development.

3.2 For applicants applying after December 31, 2005, where a Praxis™ II examination in the area of the Standard Certificate requested is applicable and available, achieved a passing score as established by the Standards Board, in consultation with the Department and with the concurrence of the State Board, on the examination; or

3.3 Met the requirements for licensure and holding a valid and current license or certificate from another state as a Teacher of the Visually Impaired;

3.3.1 The Department shall not act on an application for certification if the applicant is under official investigation by any state or local authority with the power to issue educator licenses or certifications, where the alleged conduct involves allegations of immorality, misconduct in office, incompetence, willful neglect of duty, disloyalty or falsification of credentials, until the applicant provides evidence of the investigation’s resolution; or

3.4 Met the requirements for a Meritorious New Teacher Candidate Designation adopted pursuant to 14 Del.C §1203.

Educators may hold certificates in more than one area.

An applicant for a Standard Certificate shall submit:

5.1 Official transcripts; and

5.2 Official scores on the Praxis II examination if applicable and available; or

5.3 Evidence of passage of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certificate, if applicable; or

5.4 An official copy of the out of state license or certification, if applicable.

5.5 If applied for simultaneously with application for an Initial License, the applicant shall provide all required documentation for that application in addition to the documentation cited above.

If an applicant holds a valid Initial, Continuing, or Advanced Delaware License; or a Limited Standard, Standard or Professional Status Certificate issued prior to August 31, 2003 and is requesting additional Standard Certificates, only that documentation necessary to demonstrate acquisition of the prescribed knowledge, skill or education required for the additional Standard Certificate requested is required.

This regulation shall apply to all requests for issuance of a Standard Certificate, except as specifically addressed herein. Educators holding a Professional Status Certificate or a Standard Certificate issued on or before August 31, 2003 shall be issued a Continuing License upon the expiration of their current Professional Status Certificate or Standard Certificate. The Standard Certificate for each area in which they held a Professional Status Certificate or a Standard Certificate shall be listed on the Continuing License or the Advanced License. The Department shall also recognize a Limited Standard Certificate issued prior to August 31, 2003, provided that the educator successfully completes the requirements set forth in the prescription letter received with the Limited Standard Certificate. Requirements must be completed by the expiration date of the Limited Standard Certificate, but in no case later than December 31, 2008.

A Standard Certificate is valid regardless of the assignment or employment status of the holder of a certificate or certificates, and is not subject to renewal. It shall be revoked in the event the educator’s Initial, Continuing, or Advanced License or Limited Standard, Standard, or Professional Status Certificate is revoked in accordance with 14 DE Admin. Code 1514. An educator whose license or certificate is revoked is entitled to a full and fair hearing before the Professional Standards Board. Hearings shall be conducted in accordance with the Standards Board’s Hearing Procedures and Rules.

The Secretary of Education may, upon the written request of the superintendent of a local school district or charter school administrator or other employing authority, review credentials submitted in application for a Standard Certificate on an individual basis and grant a Standard Certificate to an applicant who otherwise does not meet the requirements for a Standard Certificate, but whose effectiveness is documented by the local school district or charter school administrator or other employing authority.