Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
Degrees, programs, and credits shall be determined acceptable
for educator certification purposes based on the following:
(1) Accredited institutions. Degrees and
credits awarded by an institution of higher learning accredited by one (1) of
the accrediting associations listed below shall be acceptable for educator
certification purposes, as documented on the institution's official transcript.
(a) Regional accrediting associations. The
regional accrediting associations are as follows:
1. The Southern Association of Colleges and
Schools;
2. The Middle States
Association of Colleges and Schools;
3. The New England Association of Schools and
Colleges;
4. The North Central
Association of Colleges and Schools;
5. The Northwest Commission on Colleges and
Universities; and,
6. The Western
Association of Schools and Colleges.
(b) Accrediting agencies approved by the
United States Department of Education.
(2) Non-accredited approved institutions. A
non-accredited approved institution of higher learning shall be identified as
having a quality program resulting in a bachelor's or higher degree by one (1)
of the following criteria:
(a) The institution
is accepted for certification purposes by the state department of education
where the institution is located;
(b) The institution was exempt from licensure
in 2001 and has maintained qualifying criteria pursuant to Section
1005.06, F.S. (2001);
(c) The institution is a newly created
Florida public college or university that offers a bachelor's or higher degree
program;
(d) The institution is
located outside the United States and awards a degree that is the equivalent to
a bachelor's or higher degree awarded by an accredited institution in the
United States. Isolated credit will be acceptable for certification purposes
provided the credit is the equivalent of college credit earned in the United
States; or
(e) The degree from the
institution was accepted by an accredited institution either in transfer or as
a basis for admission into the graduate program which resulted in the conferral
of a higher degree.
Documentation of degrees and credits from institutions within
the United States or its territories shall be an official transcript.
Documentation of degrees and credits from institutions outside the United
States shall be an original credential evaluation report prepared by an
accredited institution as specified in paragraph (1)(a) or (b) of this rule, or
by a credential evaluation agency approved by the Department as specified in
subsection (6) of this rule. An original credential evaluation report must
include a summary of the equivalent United States postsecondary degree level
and academic program awarded and, upon request, must also include a detailed
breakdown of all courses into descriptive titles with equivalent United States
postsecondary semester hours and grades.
(3) Highest acceptable degree level of
training.
(a) The highest degree which has
been awarded by an accredited or approved institution as described in
subsections (1) and (2), of this rule, shall be recognized for certification.
The degree level shall be determined by the criteria listed below.
1. Bachelor's degree. An earned bachelor's
degree, such as the bachelor of arts, bachelor of science, or bachelor of
education degree which normally required four (4) years of higher education; or
a foreign degree that required sixteen (16) years of combined pre-university
and university education; or a foreign degree that has been evaluated by a
credential evaluation agency approved by the Department as specified in
subsection (6) of this rule or an accredited or approved institution as the
equivalent to a bachelor's degree from an institution as described in
subsections (1) and (2) of this rule shall be recognized as the bachelor's
degree level of training.
2.
Master's degree. An earned master's degree or an earned advanced bachelor's
degree of a professional nature, such as library science, in combination with
an earned four-year bachelor's degree; or a post-bachelor's foreign degree that
required at least five (5) years of higher education; or a foreign
post-bachelor's degree that has been evaluated by a credential evaluation
agency approved by the Department as specified in subsection (6) of this rule
or an accredited or approved institution as the equivalent to a master's degree
from an institution as described in subsections (1) and (2) of this rule shall
be recognized as the master's degree level of training.
3. Specialist in education degree. An earned
sixth-year post-master's level degree in education, such as specialist in
education degree shall be recognized as the specialist's degree level of
training.
4. Doctor's degree. An
earned academic or professional doctor's degree, or an earned Bachelor of Laws
(LLB) or higher law degree granted by an institution of higher learning in the
United States, or a foreign doctor's degree that required at least seven (7)
years of higher education, or a foreign doctor's degree that has been evaluated
by a credential evaluation agency approved by the Department as specified in
subsection (6) of this rule or an accredited or approved institution as the
equivalent to a doctor's degree from an institution as described in subsections
(1) and (2) of this rule shall be recognized as the doctor's degree level of
training.
(b) A
certificate, diploma, or other award shall not be recognized as an earned
degree.
(4) Accreditation
and acceptance of teacher education programs for specific certification
purposes.
(a) Teacher education programs
approved by the Florida Department of Education. A teacher education program
approved by the Florida Department of Education shall fulfill the general and
professional preparation requirements and the specialization requirements in
the major subject of the approved program, as documented by the program
completion statement on the institution's official transcript. The teacher
education program shall have been approved at the time the program was
completed.
(b) Inservice components
in a Florida District Inservice Plan. A core of inservice components prescribed
for a specific endorsement and approved by the district school board in the
master inservice plan shall satisfy the specialization requirements for the
designated endorsement. Successful completion of the components in the approved
master inservice plan shall be verified by the Florida district
superintendent.
(c) Teacher
education programs in states other than Florida. A teacher education program at
the bachelor's or higher degree level shall fulfill the general and
professional preparation requirements and the specialization requirements for a
certification subject area in accordance with the following provisions:
1. The teacher education program shall have
been granted by an accredited or a Department approved institution; and,
2. The major subject of the
approved program shall be in a subject in which Florida offers certification;
and,
3. The instructional level of
the major subject of the approved program shall be comparable to or broader
than the instructional level at which Florida offers certification in the
subject; and,
4. The program
curriculum shall have included preservice field experiences and an internship
or practicum appropriate to the certification subject area in a prekindergarten
through grade 12 setting under the supervision of qualified educators; and,
5. When a master's or higher
degree is required for Florida certification in a subject, the program must
have been completed at the same or higher degree level.
Documentation of teacher education programs from institutions
within the United States or its territories shall be an official transcript.
Documentation of teacher education programs from institutions outside the
United States shall be an original credential evaluation report prepared by an
accredited institution as specified in paragraph (1)(a) or (b) of this rule or
by a credential evaluation agency approved by the Department as specified in
subsection (6) of this rule. An original credential evaluation report must
include a summary of the equivalent United States postsecondary degree level
and academic program awarded and, upon request, must also include a detailed
breakdown of all courses into descriptive titles with equivalent United States
postsecondary semester hours and grades.
(5) American Council on Education college
course credits. College course credits recommended by the American Council on
Education (ACE) shall be acceptable for educator certification purposes as
documented on an official ACE transcript.
(6) The Department shall approve an education
credential evaluation agency that holds current membership in good standing
with a nationally recognized association of credential evaluation services that
have published standards for the evaluation of foreign credentials, admission
standards for membership, an enforced code of ethics or good practice, and
affiliations to national or international higher education associations, such
as the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or the
Association of International Credential Evaluators (AICE); or an agency that
provides evidence of its compliance with all of the following:
(a) Employs evaluation staff that have
recent, substantive experience in the United States evaluating foreign
credentials covering all levels of education and verifies that staff receive
on-going training and professional development in credential evaluation methods
and procedures.
(b) Provides
verification that the agency has developed and employs reliable procedures for
accurately identifying the authenticity of foreign educational credentials and
establishing the recognition or accreditation of academic
institutions.
(c) Makes available
to the public, clear and precise requirements for an evaluation, including
required documentation, schedule of fees, and an estimate of the time typically
required to complete an evaluation.
(d) Uses a current library of professionally
accepted resources and reference materials pertinent to the evaluation of
foreign credentials that includes standard references in the field and
identifies bibliographic listing.
(e) Uses reliable services for accurately
translating educational credentials from their original languages into
English.
(f) Prepares evaluation
reports based on documentation necessary to perform an accurate evaluation and
specifically identifies documentation used to prepare the evaluation report,
including the type of each authenticated document, the name and location of the
institution, the name of the program, diploma, degree, major field of study,
year(s) of completion, and the equivalency to earned accredited postsecondary
college credit in the United States.
(g) Provides a list of three or more
references with contact information for the agency's affiliation with national
or international higher education associations, such as state departments of
education, professional education organizations, or accredited postsecondary
institutions.
(7)
Applicants who earned a Master's or higher degree as specified in subparagraphs
(3)(a)2.-4. of this rule from an accredited or approved institution per
subsections (1) and (2) of this rule have met the mastery of general knowledge
requirement per Section
1012.56, F.S. Documentation of
degree conferral must be submitted to the department in accordance with
paragraph (2)(e) of this rule.
(8)
Applicants who earned a Master's or higher degree as specified in subparagraphs
(3)(a)2.-4. of this rule from an accredited institution as defined in
subsection (1) of this rule, will satisfy mastery of subject area knowledge per
Section 1012.56(5),
F.S., where the following conditions are met:
(a) The certification subject area as set
forth in chapter 6A-4, requires a baccalaureate degree; and
(b) The Master's or higher degree is
conferred in a subject area that is identified on the document entitled Mastery
of Subject Area Knowledge by Master's or Higher Degrees, Document No. CT136.
This document, effective August 2023, (
http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-15714)
is incorporated by reference in this rule and may be obtained at
https://www.fldoe.org/teaching/certification/.
(c) Documentation of degree conferral must be
submitted to the Department in accordance with paragraph (2)(e) of this
rule.
Rulemaking Authority
1001.02,
1012.55,
1012.56 FS. Law Implemented
1001.02,
1012.55,
1012.56
FS.
New 4-20-64, Amended 3-26-66, 4-8-68, 7-7-68, 4-11-70,
1-17-72, Repromulgated 12-5-74, Amended 6-22-76, 11-9-76, 10-12-77, 7-1-79,
1-3-82, 4-30-85, Formerly 6A-4.03, Amended 12-25-86, 9-12-89, 4-15-91,
11-25-97, 10-15-01, 3-22-05, 1-1-14, 6-23-16, 3-15-22,
8-22-23.
