BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Gloria Romero, Chair
2009-2010 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 1374
AUTHOR: Brownley
AMENDED: March 8, 2010
FISCAL COMM: No HEARING DATE: May 5, 2010
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Beth Graybill
SUBJECT : Teacher Credentialing: Adult education.
SUMMARY
This bill recasts and streamlines requirements for the
preliminary and clear Designated Subjects Adult Education
teaching credentials and clarifies that the changes imposed
by this bill do not apply to individuals who have already
earned those credentials.
BACKGROUND
Existing law authorizes the Commission on Teacher
Credentialing (CTC) to issue credentials for teaching adult
education classes and vocational education classes. The
Designated Subjects Adult Education (DSAE) teaching
credential authorizes an individual to teach the subject(s)
named on the credential in courses organized primarily for
adults and in adult education programs administered by
elementary and secondary school districts. (Education Code
44225 and 44260.2)
Existing law establishes the period of validity for "clear"
teaching and services credentials as the life of the holder
provided the holder submits an application and renewal fee
every five years and meets all professional fitness (i.e.
passes the criminal background check). (EC 44251)
Existing law establishes the following requirements for the
Designated Subjects Adult Education (DSAE) teaching
credential: (EC 44260.2)
Five years or the equivalent of appropriate experience
or education in the subject named on the credential;
Possession of a high school diploma or passage of an
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equivalency examination designated by the CTC;
The completion of two semester units or passage of an
examination on the principles and provisions of the
United States Constitution; and
Passage of the state basic skills requirement (applies
only to DSAE credential holders authorized to teach
academic subjects).
Existing law requires candidates who wish to renew the DSAE
to meet the following requirements: (EC 44260.3)
A valid DSAE teaching credential;
Two years of successful teaching as authorized by the
credential;
Completion of a program of personalized preparation as
approved by the CTC;
The study of health education, as specified.
Existing law specifies that the minimum requirements for the
clear designated subjects adult education teaching credential
shall include the use of computers in an instructional
setting and the study of health education. (EC 44260.8)
ANALYSIS
This bill :
1) Establishes a two-tiered credential structure for the
DSAE that parallels other teaching and service
credentials issued by the CTC.
2) Establishes the preliminary DSAE credential as a
three-year credential and specifies different
requirements for the credential on the basis of the
subjects to be taught:
a) For nonacademic subjects:
i) Three years of adequate,
successful, and recent experience in the
subject to be named on the credential; and,
ii) Possession of a high
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school diploma or passage of an equivalency
examination designated by the CTC.
b) For academic subjects:
i) A baccalaureate or higher degree
from an accredited institution of higher
education that includes a minimum of 20
semester units, or the equivalent quarter
units, of coursework in the subject named on
the credential; and
ii) Passage of the state
basic skills requirement (i.e. passage of the
California Basic Educational Skills Test, or
CBEST)
3) Clarifies that DSAE candidates must satisfy the
requirements for teacher fitness, which includes
fingerprinting and passing a criminal background check.
4) Moves the U.S. Constitution requirement to the Clear
credential and consolidates the requirements for
renewing and clearing the DSAE credential into a single
"clear" DSAE credential:
a) A valid three-year preliminary DSAE
teaching credential;
b) Two years of successful teaching that is
authorized by the preliminary DSAE credential;
c) Completion of a program of personalized
preparation approved by CTC;
d) Completion of two semester units or passage
of an examination on the principles and provisions
of the U.S. Constitution; and
e) Completion of a program of study in health
education and computer technology.
5) Clarifies that a credential, permit, certificate, or
other document issued by the CTC remains in force in
accordance with the laws and regulations under which it
was issued and is exempt from new laws and regulations
unless the code is specifically amended to the contrary.
6) Makes conforming changes by repealing a code section
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that contains duplicative language.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . SB 52 (Scott, Chapter 520, 2007),
required the CTC to align career technical education
(CTE) teaching credentials to the sectors identified in
the state's Career Technical Education Model Curriculum
Standards and to convene an advisory committee to review
the requirements for those credentials and make
recommendations for consolidating requirements for
full-time and part-time CTE teachers. Subsequent
legislation, SB 1104 (Scott, Chapter 576, 2008),
implemented the Commission's recommendations for
streamlining the requirements for the preliminary and
clear Designated Subjects Career Technical Education
(DSCTE) credentials. During that time, the CTC convened
a separate advisory committee to review requirements for
adult education teaching credentials and to make
recommendations for streamlining the DSAE requirements.
The reforms proposed in this AB 1374 reflect the
recommendations of the DSAE advisory committee and will
establish continuity between the two types of designated
subjects credentials.
2) Adult Education . Adult schools are administered by
school districts and funded through "apportionment
funds" (average daily attendance) and supplemented by
federal Workforce Investment Act funds. Adult education
schools provide a variety of learning opportunities and
services including: adult literacy/high school diploma,
English as a second language, citizenship, adults with
disabilities, career technical education and
apprenticeships, parenting, family, and consumer
awareness. A large percentage of those attending adult
education programs are English learners, immigrants
pursuing citizenship, and high school dropouts who want
to earn their high school diploma or pass the General
Equivalency Diploma examination (GED) and learn job
skills.
The CTC issues two types of DSAE credentials: 1) those
that authorize individuals to provide adult basic
education or instruction in academic subjects (those
that help adult students earn a high school diploma,
pass the GED, develop English language skills, or
acquire basic skills in academic subjects), and 2) those
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that authorize instruction in non academic subjects such
as nutrition, parent education, and some short-term
career technical education classes. Currently, the
validity period for preliminary adult education teaching
credentials is five years.
3) Streamlining . By reducing the experience requirement
for the preliminary DSAE from five years to three years
and by moving the U.S. Constitution requirement into the
clear credential, this bill will streamline the process
by which candidates may become adult education teachers.
The consolidation of the renewal and clear requirements
will create a two-tiered credential structure for DSAE
that parallels the structure of other credentials,
including the DSCTE and multiple and single subject
teaching credentials. This bill makes technical changes
that conform the basic skills, health education,
technology, and professional fitness requirements for
the DSAE to recent reforms established for the DSCTE
credential.
4) Grandfathering . Historically, the CTC does not
require current credential holders to meet new
requirements that may be established for their
credential. By practice, new requirements are applied
prospectively to candidates who enter a preparation
program after the effective date of the new changes. By
specifying that existing credential holders are exempt
from the new requirements, this bill will codify this
practice and "grandfather" in current credential holders
who earned their credential under existing rules.
SUPPORT
California Commission on Teacher Credentialing
California Council for Adult Education
OPPOSITION
None received.