Frequently Asked Questions: This page contains answers to common questions of students and parents.

1. What are the particulars of 'Highly Qualified?'

What are the particulars of 'Highly Qualified?'

FACT SHEET ON HIGHLY QUALIFIED OPTIONS
FOR TENNESSEE TEACHERS

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND (NCLB) ACT

NCLB Highly Qualified Requirements:
* All core academic teachers must be highly qualified by the end of school year 
2005-2006.
 Teachers of core academic subjects newly hired after the first day of school in the 
2002-03 school year to teach in a program supported by Title I funds (school-wide or 
targeted assistance), must meet the requirements upon employment.

 All other teachers of core academic subjects (new hires in non-Title I schools/
programs and all existing teachers), must meet the requirements by the end of the 
2005-06 school year.


*NCLB Core academic subject areas include English, reading or language arts, 
mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, 
history, and geography.

* A highly qualified teacher must meet all three of the following conditions:
 Bachelor's Degree; and
Teacher's License (no requirements waived); and
 Demonstrate competency for grade/subject area(s) being taught.

* Elementary (K-6)
Subject knowledge in reading, writing, math, and other areas of basic elementary 
curriculum.

 Middle (7-8) and High School (9-12)
 Content knowledge in each core academic subject assigned to teach.

Options for Meeting NCLB Highly Qualified Requirements:
*The Tennessee-defined teacher quality requirements are outlined in detail in the 
Tennessee Plan for Implementing the Teacher and Paraprofessional Quality 
Provisions of the NCLB Act of 2001. A copy of the state plan is available online at http:/
/www.tennessee.gov/education/nclb. Teachers should read this plan prior to 
selecting any option to meet the federal requirements of NCLB.

o Academic Major: The major must be in the academic content area.
o Coursework Equivalent: Twenty-four (24) semester hours in the academic 
content area (excluding methodology courses).
o Graduate Degree: The graduate degree must be in the academic content area.
o National Board Certification (NBC): NBC must be at the grade level being taught 
(K-6) or in the academic content area (7-12).
o Test: The applicable NTE or Praxis tests are listed in Appendix A of the State 
Plan.
o Framework for Evaluation & Professional Growth: Revised classroom 
observation component under development.
o Teacher Effect Data: The teacher vs state gain comparison level must be Not 
Detectably Different (NDD) from the mean or Above the mean for the state.
o Professional Matrix: Teachers must accumulate 100 points on the Matrix to 
achieve highly qualified status.

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