Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 11, August 30, 2024
(1)
Rationale. The main goal of these standards is to promote quality
educator preparation programs that will lead to the development of scientific
literacy among all Grade 6-12 students in Alabama. The standards include
process and application skills and correlate the Alabama Course of
Study: Science, the National Science Education Standards from the
National Research Council, and the teacher preparation standards of the
National Science Teachers Association. The standards build upon the Alabama
Core Teaching Standards.
(2)
Program Curriculum. In addition to meeting Rules
290-3-3-.03(6)(a)1. -4.,
290-3-3-.03(6)(e)1.(i) -(iii)
and 2.(i)-(iii),
290-3-3-.04,
290-3-3-.05,
and
290-3-3-.14,
and
290-3-3-.27,
the biology program shall require an academic major of at least 30 semester
hours of credit with at least 18 semester hours of upper-division credit.
Additional information is provided in the definition for academic major in Rule
290-3-3-.01(2).
(a)
Competency Requirements for All
Science Teachers. Candidates in biology demonstrate knowledge of:
1. Multiple ways to organize perceptions of
the world and how systems organize the studies and knowledge of
science.
2. Nature of scientific
evidence and the use of models for explanation.
3. Measurement as a way of knowing and
organizing observations of constancy and change.
4. Development of natural systems and factors
that result in change over time or equilibrium.
5. Interrelationships of form, function, and
behaviors in living and nonliving systems.
(b)
Core Competencies in
Biology. Candidates in biology demonstrate knowledge of:
1. Life processes in living systems including
organization of matter and energy.
2. Similarities and differences among
animals, plants, fungi, microorganisms, and viruses.
3. Principles and practices of biological
classification.
4. Theory and
principles of biological change over time.
5. Ecological systems including the
interrelationships and dependencies of organisms with each other and their
environments.
6. Population
dynamics and the impact of population on its environment.
7. General concepts of genetics and
heredity.
8. Organization and
functions of cells and multi-cellular systems.
9. Behavior of organisms and their
relationships to social systems.
10. Regulation of biological systems
including homeostatic mechanisms.
11. Fundamental processes of modeling and
investigating in the biological sciences.
12. Applications of biology in environmental
quality and in personal and community health.
(c)
Advanced Competencies in
Biology. Candidates in biology demonstrate knowledge of:
1. Bioenergetics including major biochemical
pathways.
2. Biochemical
interactions of organisms and their environments.
3. Molecular genetics and heredity and
mechanisms of genetic modification.
4. Molecular basis for evolutionary theory
and classification.
5. Causes,
characteristics, and avoidance of viral, bacterial, and parasitic
diseases.
6. Issues related to
living systems such as genetic modification, uses of biotechnology, cloning,
and pollution from farming.
7.
Historical development and perspectives in biology including contributions of
significant figures and underrepresented groups, and the development theories
in biology.
8. How to design,
conduct, and report research in biology.
9. Applications of biology and biotechnology
in society, business, industry, and health fields.
(d)
Supporting Competencies for
Biology. Candidates in biology demonstrate knowledge of:
1. Chemistry, Earth and space science, and
physics.
2. Probability and
statistics.
Previous Rule.16 was renumbered.29 per certification
published August 31, 2021; effective October 15,
2021.
