RELATES TO: KRS Chapter 13B, 156.101, 161.020, 161.028,
161.030, 161.048, 161.100, 161.1221
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS 161.028(1)(a)
authorizes the Education Professional Standards Board to establish standards
and requirements for obtaining and maintaining a teaching certificate. KRS 161.030(5) requires that all new teachers and out-of-state teachers with less
than two (2) years of successful teaching experience who are seeking initial
certification in Kentucky shall serve a one (1) year internship. This
administrative regulation establishes the requirements for the Kentucky Teacher
Internship Program.
Section 1.
Definitions.
(1) "Half-time basis" means
teaching fifteen (15) hours per week in the teacher intern's area of
certification.
(2) "Instructional
day" means a day that:
(a) The teacher intern
is performing regular teaching responsibilities in an instructional setting, or
is completing professional development for compensation from the district or
employing school; and
(b) Is not
part of annual leave, sick leave, or other authorized or unauthorized leave
time.
(3) "Resource
teacher" means the classroom teacher that serves on a beginning teacher
committee.
(4) "Teacher intern"
means any new teacher or out-of-state teacher with less than two (2) years of
successful teaching experience, preschool through grade twelve (12), who has
obtained a provisional certificate and is seeking initial certification in
Kentucky.
(5) "Teaching standards"
means the standards set forth in
16 KAR 1:010.
Section 2. Basis for Professional Judgment by
the Beginning Teacher Committee.
(1) A teacher
intern and the beginning teacher committee shall follow the requirements
established in this administrative regulation.
(2) The beginning teacher committee shall
determine the progress and improvement of the teacher intern, pursuant to
KRS 161.030, by:
(a) A systematic observation of
classroom performance;
(b) An
ongoing review of documented evidence developed by the teacher intern of
progress toward demonstration of the applicable teaching standards;
and
(c) A review of the teacher
intern's response to the suggestions and recommendations made by the beginning
teacher committee during its meetings with the teacher intern throughout the
internship.
(3)
Throughout the internship, the teacher intern and the beginning teacher
committee shall utilize the teaching standards established by the Education
Professional Standards Board in
16 KAR 1:010.
(4) The assessment shall be organized
according to three (3) cycles of the internship designed to provide teacher
interns the opportunity to demonstrate performance of the teaching standards
established in
16 KAR 1:010.
Section
3. Beginning Teacher Committee Membership Appointment.
(1)
(a)
Each beginning teacher committee shall be composed of three (3) persons who
have been appointed pursuant to KRS 161.030(6).
(b) School districts shall maintain a pool of
resource teachers and principals who have successfully completed the beginning
teacher committee training in order to assure eligibility for appointment to
beginning teacher committees.
(c)
The beginning teacher committee training may be approved for up to six (6)
hours of professional development credit for resource teachers and Effective
Instructional Leadership Act (EILA) credit for administrators pursuant to KRS 156.101.
(2) The
employing school district shall recommend principals and resource teachers for
appointments by the Education Professional Standards Board to beginning teacher
committees.
(3) If the teacher
intern is teaching at a nationally or regionally accredited nonpublic school
without a principal, the accrediting organization's guidelines for designating
the school head or school leader shall be used by the employing school in
making the recommendation for appointment of the principal member. If no
guidelines exist, the school shall provide a written rationale for the
appointment to the Education Professional Standards Board.
(4) Representatives of the teacher training
institutions shall consult the Education Professional Standards Board with
respect to the school districts and the geographical area to be served by
teacher educator members on beginning teacher committees. All teacher educators
shall have completed the beginning teacher committee training in order to
assure eligibility for appointment to beginning teacher committees.
(5) The teacher training institution shall
appoint a teacher educator no later than thirty (30) calendar days after being
notified by the district or nonpublic school of the need for a teacher
educator.
(6) If the superintendent
or designated nonpublic school head or leader determines that a teacher
educator is unsuitable for appointment, the superintendent or designated
nonpublic school head or leader shall submit a written request for removal to
the Education Professional Standards Board. The request shall contain the
following:
(a) The facts and circumstances
that form the basis for removal for cause; and
(b) The name of a qualified replacement
submitted after consultation with the principal of the employing school and the
Kentucky Teacher Internship Program university and district coordinators for
that school district.
Section 4. Requirements for Time in the
Internship and Classroom Assignment.
(1) The
one (1) year internship shall be completed during one (1) of the following:
(a) No less than 140 instructional days of
employment in a certified position in the teacher intern's area of
certification for which the teacher intern receives compensation during one (1)
school year; or
(b) Two (2)
semesters totaling at least 140 instructional days of employment in a certified
position in the teacher intern's area of certification for which the teacher
intern receives compensation in two (2) consecutive school years.
(2) The internship shall be
established for each teacher intern whose initial employment begins at any time
during the school term except if the date of employment does not allow for
completion of at least seventy (70) instructional days of employment during the
school year.
(a) If the period of employment
is less than seventy (70) instructional days in a school year, the local school
district shall declare an emergency as provided in KRS 161.100, authorizing the
superintendent to request an emergency teaching certificate.
(b) The employing school district shall be
responsible for providing assistance and supervision to the new teacher during
the period of employment under an emergency certificate.
(3)
(a) The
school district or nonpublic school shall submit to the Education Professional
Standards Board a confirmation of employment within thirty (30) calendar days
from the teacher intern's first instructional day.
(b) A one (1) year internship certificate
shall be issued in accordance with the provisions of
16 KAR 2:010 and
16 KAR 4:050.
(c) If the district or
employing school fails to report verification of enrollment in the internship
by the applicable timeline established in paragraph (a) of this subsection, and
there is insufficient time remaining for the teacher intern to complete the
number of days required under subsection (1) of this section, the district or
employing school shall declare an emergency as provided in KRS 161.100, and the
teacher intern shall enroll in the internship in the next semester of
employment when at least seventy (70) instructional days are
available.
(d) Failure to confirm
employment or declare an emergency in accordance with paragraph (a), (b), or
(c) of this subsection shall:
1. Be a
violation of KRS 161.020; and
2.
Result in the number of days the teacher intern taught without a valid
certificate being included in the out of field report submitted to the
Commissioner of the Department of Education in accordance with KRS 161.1221.
(4) A
teacher intern may participate in the internship if the intern is teaching in
the intern's area of certification on at least a half-time basis. A school
district or nonpublic school offering employment to a new teacher for part-time
services which do not conform to the definition of half-time basis shall
request a waiver from the Education Professional Standards Board staff for the
new teacher to participate in the Kentucky Teacher Internship Program. The
waiver request shall detail how the part-time employment offered by the
district or nonpublic school is commensurate with the half-time basis
requirement of this administrative regulation.
(5)
(a) An
intern shall be prohibited from discontinuing an internship unless a written
resignation of the position detailing the facts surrounding the resignation is
received and approved by:
1. The
superintendent or designated nonpublic school head or leader; and
2. The Education Professional Standards Board
staff.
(b) A teacher
intern who discontinues the internship without the approval of the Education
Professional Standards Board staff shall be recorded as unsuccessfully
completing the internship for that school year.
(6) The internship shall be established in a
classroom which corresponds to the certificate of the teacher intern. An
internship shall not be established in a classroom designated as an alternative
school, classroom, or program unless the district superintendent or designated
nonpublic school head or leader submits a written request for a waiver to the
staff of the Education Professional Standards Board. The request shall include
the following:
(a) The type of students that
attend the alternative school, classroom, or program;
(b) The student selection and placement
process;
(c) The level of support
for students and faculty provided by the district or nonpublic
school;
(d) The degree of
administrative support within the school, classroom, or program;
(e) The location and facility that houses the
school, classroom, or program;
(f)
The instructional resources available to the faculty;
(g) The curriculum used by the school,
classroom, or program;
(h) The
manner in which the school, classroom, or program collaborates with other
schools within the district;
(i)
The current faculty and staff positions assigned to the school, classroom, or
program;
(j) A brief description of
how a teacher intern placed in the alternative school, classroom, or program
could demonstrate that the teacher intern has met all of the applicable
standards;
(k) Contact information
for an individual who could provide additional information about the request;
and
(l) A signed affidavit by the
superintendent, the superintendent's designee, or the designated nonpublic
school head or leader confirming the information.
(7) The Education Professional Standards
Board staff shall grant the waiver if there is a determination that the request
and accompanying documentation sufficiently demonstrate that:
(a) The level of support and services
provided to the teacher intern assigned to an alternative school, classroom, or
program is equivalent to that provided to a teacher intern placed in a
nonalternative setting; and
(b) The
teacher intern assigned to the alternative school, classroom, or program shall
be provided the opportunity to successfully demonstrate all teaching
standards.
(8) If the
waiver is granted, it shall remain in effect for the duration of the
internship.
Section 5.
Designation and Duties of Chair; Responsibilities of Resource Teacher, Teacher
Intern, and Teacher Educator; Requirements for Timing and Content of Beginning
Teacher Committee Meetings.
(1) The principal
member of the three (3) person beginning teacher committee shall serve as chair
and shall be responsible for convening the committee and coordinating its
efforts. The chair shall be responsible for the timely submission of all
documents and reports of the beginning teacher committee to the Education
Professional Standards Board as required by this administrative regulation. In
addition, the chair shall:
(a)
1. Make three (3) official observation visits
to the teacher intern's classroom with each observation lasting one (1) hour in
duration or one (1) class period; or
2. Make two (2) one (1) hour or one (1) class
period observation visits followed by an observation of the teacher intern's
one (1) hour or one (1) class period videotaped classroom lesson;
(b) Conduct a lesson plan review
prior to each of the three (3) observations and a post-observation conference
after each observation;
(c) Report
progress observed and concerns to the committee at the scheduled committee
meetings;
(d) Track and verify the
time that the resource teacher spends with the teacher intern both in and out
of class; and
(e) Ensure that all
program policies and procedures are followed.
(2) The resource teacher shall be a mentor to
the teacher intern and assess the teacher intern's progress in the internship.
(a) The resource teacher, upon appointment,
shall begin to assist the teacher intern.
(b) The resource teacher shall spend the
required amount of hours working with the teacher intern in the classroom
setting as specified in
KRS 161.030(7).
1. As
a portion of the hours, the resource teacher shall conduct:
a. Three (3) official observations with each
observation lasting one (1) hour in duration or one (1) class period;
or
b. Two (2) observations lasting
one (1) hour in duration or one (1) class period followed by an observation of
the teacher intern's one (1) hour or one (1) class period videotaped classroom
lesson.
2. The
observations shall be preceded by lesson plan review and shall be concluded
with a post-observation conference.
(c) Pursuant to the resource teacher
requirements established in
KRS 161.030(7), a resource teacher shall complete
out-of-class time identified in
KRS 161.030 in consultation with the teacher
intern to:
1. Assist the teacher intern in the
development of the professional growth plan;
2. Assist the teacher intern in areas
identified in the professional growth plan;
3. Assist the teacher intern with
instructional activities such as planning, management techniques, assessment,
and parent conferences;
4. Assist
the teacher intern in arranging to attend seminars, conferences, or lectures
offering educational assistance commensurate with the teacher intern's
professional growth plan;
5.
Continually assess the teacher intern's progress in the internship in relation
to each of the applicable teaching standards;
6. Provide the opportunity for the teacher
intern to receive mentoring in a collaborative setting if the collaboration
meets the needs of the teacher intern as defined in the professional growth
plan. Mentoring in a collaborative setting shall be documented.
(d) The resource teacher shall
divide the consultation time required in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this
subsection into appropriate increments that provide support for the teacher
intern throughout the internship. The resource teacher shall not spend this
required consultation time with the teacher intern at required in-school or
district-wide meetings, or any other activity for which the resource teacher
receives compensation from the district or employing school, to include a
professional development activity.
(3) The teacher intern shall:
(a) Complete all requirements of the Kentucky
Teacher Internship Program as established in KRS 161.030 and this
administrative regulation, including compliance with the applicable teaching
standards;
(b) Attend the
orientation and post-observation conferences with individual committee members,
and all beginning teacher committee meetings;
(c) Participate with the resource teacher in
consultation time to be spent outside of an instructional setting in the amount
of time specified in KRS 161.030;
(d) Cooperate with the resource teacher in
completing the instructional observations;
(e) Complete a professional growth
plan;
(f) Prepare for three (3)
official one (1) hour observations by each committee member during the
internship, including submitting a written lesson plan to the observer in a
timely fashion prior to each visit. Each observation shall be one (1) hour in
duration or one (1) class period;
(g) Develop documentary evidence of progress
toward demonstration of the applicable standards for presentation and review at
committee meetings; and
(h) Review
all documents completed by the beginning teacher committee and affix a
signature if required.
(4) The teacher educator shall:
(a)
1. Make
three (3) official observations of the teacher intern with each observation
lasting one (1) hour in duration or one (1) class period; or
2. Make two (2) observations of one (1) hour
in duration or one (1) class period, followed by an observation of the teacher
intern's one (1) hour or one (1) class period videotaped classroom
lesson;
(b) Conduct a
lesson plan review prior to each of the three (3) observations and a
post-observation conference after each observation; and
(c) Report progress observed and concerns to
the committee at the scheduled committee meetings.
(5) Observations and committee meetings shall
be scheduled in accordance with the following:
(a) The orientation meeting shall be held
prior to the conduct of any formal classroom observations of the teacher
intern;
(b) The classroom
observations by all committee members shall occur prior to the corresponding
committee meeting;
(c) The Cycle 1
classroom observations and committee meeting shall be held between one (1) and
sixty (60) instructional days following the orientation meeting;
(d) The Cycle 2 classroom observations and
committee meeting shall be held between sixty-one (61) and 110 instructional
days following the orientation meeting; and
(e) The Cycle 3 taping and reviews of the
video or classroom observations and committee meeting shall be held between 111
instructional days after the orientation meeting and by the closing day of the
school year.
(6)
Committees formed during the spring semester shall establish a meeting schedule
that observes the time sequences established in subsection (5) of this section
for the full-year teacher interns but which shall span the spring and fall
semesters of two (2) consecutive school years.
(7)
(a)
Classroom observations conducted by committee members shall be:
1. Of at least one (1) hour or one (1) class
period in duration; and
2. In the
classroom or at the work station of the teacher intern.
(b) Additional classroom observations may be
conducted at the option of the committee.
(c) All classroom observations shall be
scheduled in advance in order to provide adequate time for preparation by the
teacher intern.
(8) All
members of the committee shall attend all four (4) meetings of the
committee.
(9) At the orientation
meeting of the beginning teacher committee, the following items shall be
addressed:
(a) Expectations on the part of the
teacher intern and each committee member;
(b) Procedures and materials for classroom
observations;
(c) Use of classroom
observation data in designing the teacher intern's professional growth
plan;
(d) Requirements for the
teacher intern for compiling documentary evidence of progress toward
demonstration of the applicable teaching standards;
(e) General schedule for the events to take
place during the internship program; and
(f) Work of the resource teacher with the
teacher intern.
(10)
(a) The primary purpose of the Cycle 1 and
Cycle 2 committee meetings shall be to provide the teacher intern with
information based on classroom observations, review of the teacher intern's
documented evidence of progress toward demonstration of the applicable teaching
standards, and reports of the resource teacher that shall support the growth of
the teacher intern.
(b) The
committee shall provide the teacher intern at the cycle committee meetings with
the teacher intern's progress in the internship in relation to the applicable
teaching standards.
(11)
The professional growth plan shall be initiated at the Cycle 1 committee
meeting.
(12) The Cycle 2 committee
meeting shall include a review of expectations for the performance of the
teacher intern, taking into account the reflections of the teacher intern and
the committee members, and incorporating these expectations and reflections
into the professional growth plan.
(13) The Cycle 3 committee meeting shall
include a professional judgment by the committee members on the satisfactory
completion of the one (1) year internship. This judgment shall be based upon
the teacher intern's ability to meet the requirements of the Kentucky Teacher
Internship Program.
(14) If all
committee members believe that more time would allow for improved demonstration
of the teaching standards, a fourth cycle may be conducted.
(15) Cycle 4 may include additional
observations or a review of the teaching standards.
(16) Cycle 4 shall fall within the timelines
of Cycle 3 and shall include a committee meeting. Upon completion of Cycle 4,
the Cycle 4 results shall replace the Cycle 3 results.
Section 6. Decision by the Beginning Teacher
Committee, Reporting, and Certification Actions.
(1)
(a) The
decision of the beginning teacher committee as to satisfactory completion of
the internship for all teacher interns shall be reported by the chair to the
local school superintendent or other employer and to the Education Professional
Standards Board no later than two (2) weeks following the final committee
meeting.
(b) If a teacher intern's
performance is judged by the majority of the committee to be unsuccessful, the
school district or employing school shall submit all documentation to the
Education Professional Standards Board by the deadline established in paragraph
(a) of this subsection.
(c) All
materials submitted shall become the property of the Education Professional
Standards Board and shall not be returned to the teacher intern.
(2) Failure to meet the deadlines
established in subsection (1) of this section may warrant action against the
District Superintendent's or employing school head or leader's
certification.
(3) If a teacher
intern's performance is judged by the committee to be unsatisfactory, the
teacher intern shall have the opportunity to repeat the internship during one
(1) additional school year. If the teacher intern does not successfully
complete the internship, the teacher intern shall requalify for admission to
the remaining one (1) year of internship by meeting the requirements in effect
at the time of reapplication for certification.
(4)
(a) If
the teacher intern is unable to complete the internship within one (1) school
year in accordance with the requirements of Section 5 of this administrative
regulation, an interim report shall be submitted to the Education Professional
Standards Board within ten (10) calendar days of the date the internship
ceases.
(b) Under extraordinary
circumstances and with the approval of the Education Professional Standards
Board, the teacher intern may continue the internship during a subsequent
school year if employed in a public or nonpublic accredited school.
Extraordinary circumstances shall include:
1.
Medical condition;
2. Temporary
disability; or
3. Military
deployment.
(c) The
provisions of Section 4(1)(a) or (b) of this administrative regulation shall
not apply if the Education Professional Standards Board approves the request
for an exception based on extraordinary circumstances in this
situation.
Section
7. Payments to Committee Members.
(1) The Education Professional Standards
Board shall contract with the local school district, or make other appropriate
arrangements, for the direct service of a resource teacher to each teacher
intern.
(2) A resource teacher
shall:
(a) Not serve as a resource teacher for
more than two (2) teacher interns concurrently; and
(b) Be paid a stipend in accordance with
subsection (3) of this section.
(3)
(a)
Contingent upon funding, the Education Professional Standards Board shall
provide a stipend to each resource teacher as compensation for out-of-class
time spent with the teacher intern.
(b) The stipend shall be prorated if the
required number of hours are not performed and documented pursuant to the
requirements of Section 5(2) of this administrative regulation.
(c) The stipend shall be disbursed in
accordance with KRS 161.030(6)(f) on a biannual basis corresponding to the
semester in which the mentoring occurred or on an annual basis for full-year
interns with payment being disbursed at the end of the one (1) year
internship.
Section
8. Appeals.
(1)
(a) If a Beginning Teacher Committee finds
that a teacher intern was unsuccessful, the Education Professional Standards
Board shall notify the teacher intern by certified mail to the last known
address of the teacher intern on file with the Education Professional Standards
Board. Service of the notice shall be complete on the day the teacher intern
receives the notice or on the day the Education Professional Standards Board
receives the returned notice. The teacher intern may inspect the documentation
submitted by the beginning teacher committee to the Education Professional
Standards Board.
(b) To appeal the
decision, the teacher intern shall file a written notice of appeal along with
any additional documentation the teacher intern would like the appeals
committee to consider within thirty (30) calendar days of the date service was
complete.
(c) If a written notice
of appeal is not received within the timeline established in paragraph (b) of
this subsection, the Beginning Teacher Committee's decision shall be
final.
(2)
(a) Appeals by teacher interns shall be
reviewed by a committee of four (4) persons. The appeals committee shall
include:
1. One (1) teacher;
2. One (1) principal;
3. One (1) teacher educator; and
4. The Executive Director of the Education
Professional Standards Board, or his or her designee.
(b) An appeals committee member shall not
take part in a decision in which the member has an interest or is
biased.
(3)
(a) The appeals committee shall review the
written appeal by the teacher intern, any documentation submitted by the
teacher intern, all beginning teacher committee reports, any additional
documentation that accompanied the final report, and any written responses from
the members of the beginning teacher committee.
(b) The appeals committee shall review all of
the documentation listed in paragraph (a) of this subsection to determine if
the evidence supports the findings of the beginning teacher committee and base
its recommendation upon the following requirements:
1. Evidence of the teacher intern's ability
to meet the requirements of
16 KAR 1:010;
2. Documentation of the instructional setting
and outside normal working hours spent by the resource teacher in assisting the
teacher intern as specified in KRS 161.030(7);
3. Assignment of beginning teacher committee
members in accordance with Section 3 of this administrative
regulation;
4. Compliance with the
requirements for the timing, content, reporting, and signing of teacher intern
performance records, meeting and observation forms, and resource teacher time
sheets; and
5. Agreement between
teacher intern performance records, professional growth plans, beginning
teacher committee meeting reports, the assessment, and the final decision of
the committee.
(4) The appeals committee shall make a
recommendation to the Education Professional Standards Board on the appeal
within sixty (60) calendar days following the receipt of the appeal, unless
good cause exists for additional time.
(5) The Education Professional Standards
Board shall issue a final decision in each appeal reviewed by the appeals
committee. When making its final decision, the Education Professional Standards
Board shall consider only the appeals committee recommendation and the records
reviewed by the appeals committee.
(6) If the Education Professional Standards
Board determines that there is sufficient credible evidence that the beginning
teacher committee has committed some procedural violation during the internship
that makes it impossible to determine if the teacher intern has in fact been
unsuccessful, the Education Professional Standards Board may nullify the
internship and allow the teacher intern to repeat the internship without
penalty.
(7) After reviewing the
appeals committee recommendation, the Education Professional Standards Board
shall issue a final order stating whether the teacher internship was
successful, not successful, or nullified.
(8) The Education Professional Standards
Board shall send its decision by certified mail to the address of the teacher
intern on file with the EPSB. Service shall be effective when the teacher
intern receives the notice or when the Education Professional Standards Board
receives the notice of return.
(9)
If the teacher intern is not satisfied with the decision of the Education
Professional Standards Board based on the recommendation of the appeals
committee, the teacher intern may request a formal hearing under the provisions
of KRS Chapter 13B. The request shall be filed in writing with the Executive
Director of the Education Professional Standards Board within fifteen (15)
calendar days of the date the board's decision is served on the teacher
intern.
Section 9. A
teacher intern who has not successfully completed the internship and has
exhausted the two (2) year provision for participation in the Kentucky Teacher
Internship Program shall not be eligible for a Kentucky teaching certificate
under this administrative regulation.