Compilation of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia
Department 505 - PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS COMMISSION
Chapter 505-3 - EDUCATOR PREPARATION RULES
Rule 505-3-.25 - Geography Education Program

Universal Citation: GA Rules and Regs r 505-3-.25

Current through Rules and Regulations filed through September 23, 2024

(1) Purpose. This rule states field-specific content standards for approving programs that prepare individuals to teach Geography in grades 6-12, and supplements requirements in GaPSC Rule 505-3-.01 REQUIREMENTS AND STANDARDS FOR APPROVING EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROVIDERS AND EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAMS and in GaPSC Rule 505-3-.03 FOUNDATIONS OF READING, LITERACY, AND LANGUAGE.

(2) Requirements.

(a) A GaPSC-approved educator preparation provider shall offer a preparation program described in program planning forms, catalogs, and syllabi addressing the following standards adapted from the National Council for the Social Studies (2018):
1. Content Knowledge. Candidates demonstrate knowledge of social studies disciplines. Candidates are knowledgeable of disciplinary concepts, facts, and tools; structures of inquiry; and forms of representation.

2. Application of Content Through Planning. Candidates plan learning sequences that leverage social studies knowledge and literacies, technology, and theory and research to support the civic competence of learners as indicated by the following:
(i) Candidates plan learning sequences that demonstrate social studies knowledge aligned with the College, Career and Civic Life (C3) Framework, state-required content standards, and theory and research.

(ii) Candidates plan learning sequences that engage learners with disciplinary concepts, facts, and tools from the social studies disciplines to facilitate social studies literacies for civic life.

(iii) Candidates plan learning sequences that engage learners in disciplinary inquiry to develop social studies literacies for civic life.

(iv) Candidates plan learning sequences where learners create disciplinary forms of representation that convey social studies knowledge and civic competence.

(v) Candidates plan learning sequences that use technology to foster civic competence.

3. Design and Implementation of Instruction and Assessment. Candidates design and implement instruction and authentic assessments, informed by data literacy and learner self-assessment, that promote civic competence.
(i) Candidates design and implement a range of authentic assessments that measure learners' mastery of disciplinary knowledge, inquiry, and forms of representation for civic competence and demonstrate alignment with state-required content standards.

(ii) Candidates design and implement learning experiences that engage learners in disciplinary knowledge, inquiry, and forms of representation for civic competence and demonstrate alignment with state- required content standards.

(iii) Candidates use theory and research to implement a variety of instructional practices and authentic assessments featuring disciplinary knowledge, inquiry, and forms of representation for civic competence.

(iv) Candidates exhibit data literacy by using assessment data to guide instructional decision-making and reflect on student learning outcomes related to disciplinary knowledge, inquiry, and forms of representation for civic competence.

(v) Candidates engage learners in self-assessment practices that support individualized learning outcomes related to disciplinary knowledge, inquiry, and forms of representation for civic competence.

4. Social Studies Learners and Learning. Candidates use knowledge of learners to plan and implement relevant and responsive pedagogy, create collaborative and interdisciplinary learning environments, and prepare learners to be informed advocates for a society that promotes the well-being of all.
(i) Candidates use knowledge of learners' socio-cultural assets, learning demands, and individual identities to plan and implement relevant and responsive pedagogy that ensures learning opportunities for all students in social studies.

(ii) Candidates facilitate collaborative, interdisciplinary learning environments in which learners use disciplinary facts, concepts, and tools, engage in disciplinary inquiry, and create disciplinary forms of representation.

(iii) Candidates engage learners in ethical reasoning to deliberate social, political, and economic issues, communicate conclusions, and take informed action toward achieving a more inclusive and equitable society that promotes the well-being of all.

5. Professional Responsibility and Informed Action. Candidates reflect and expand upon their social studies knowledge, inquiry skills, and civic dispositions to advance social justice and promote human rights through informed action in schools and/or communities.
(i) Candidates use theory and research to continually improve their social studies knowledge, inquiry skills, and civic dispositions, and adapt practice to meet the needs of each learner.

(ii) Candidates explore, interrogate, and reflect upon their own cultural frames to attend to issues of fairness, acceptance, access, power, human rights, and social justice within their schools and/or communities.

(iii) Candidates take informed action in schools and/or communities and serve as advocates for learners, the teaching profession, and/or social studies.

(b) The program shall prepare candidates who meet the Secondary (6-12) standards for the teaching of reading as specified in GaPSC Rule 505-3-.03 FOUNDATIONS OF READING, LITERACY, AND LANGUAGE (paragraph (3) (e)).

(3) Specialty Field. The program shall require a major or equivalent in geography that meets the specialty area standard listed below:

(a) Geography. Candidates seeking certification in the field of geography are expected to possess the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to organize and provide instruction at the appropriate school level for the study of geography, and should hold a major or an equivalent in the field. The equivalent of a major is defined for secondary (6-12) fields as a minimum of twenty-one (21) semester hours of content coursework that addresses the program content standards for the field.

O.C.G.A. § 20-2-200.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Georgia may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.