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91_HB1670sam001
LRB9103489NTsbam01
1 AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1670
2 AMENDMENT NO. . Amend House Bill 1670 by replacing
3 the title with the following:
4 "AN ACT to amend the School Code by changing Section
5 21-5b."; and
6 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
7 following:
8 "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
9 Section 21-5b as follows:
10 (105 ILCS 5/21-5b)
11 Sec. 21-5b. Alternative certification. The State Board
12 of Education, in consultation with the State Teacher
13 Certification Board, shall establish and implement an
14 alternative certification program under which persons who
15 meet the requirements of and successfully complete the
16 program established by this Section shall be issued an
17 alternative teaching certificate for teaching in the schools
18 situated in a school district that is located in a city
19 having a population in excess of 500,000 inhabitants. The
20 program shall be limited to not more than 260 new
21 participants during each year that the program is in effect.
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1 In establishing an alternative certification program under
2 this Section, the State Board of Education shall designate
3 the City of Chicago as the area in the State where the
4 program shall be made available. In addition, The State
5 Board of Education, in cooperation with a partnership formed
6 with a university that offers 4-year baccalaureate and
7 masters degree programs and that is a recognized institution
8 as defined in Section 21-21 and one or more not-for-profit
9 organizations in the State which support excellence in
10 teaching, shall within 30 days after submission by the
11 partnership approve a course of study developed by the
12 partnership that persons in the program must successfully
13 complete in order to satisfy one criterion for issuance of an
14 alternative certificate under this Section. The Alternative
15 Teacher Certification program course of study must include
16 the current content and skills contained in the university's
17 current courses for State certification which have been
18 approved by the State Board of Education, in consultation
19 with the State Teacher Certification Board, as the
20 requirement for State teacher certification.
21 The alternative certification program established under
22 this Section shall be known as the Alternative Teacher
23 Certification program. The Alternative Teacher Certification
24 Program shall be offered by the submitting partnership and
25 may be offered in conjunction with one or more not-for-profit
26 organizations in the State which support excellence in
27 teaching. The program shall be comprised of the following 3
28 phases: (a) the first phase is the course of study offered on
29 an intensive basis in education theory, instructional
30 methods, and practice teaching; (b) the second phase is the
31 person's assignment to a full-time teaching position for one
32 school year; and (c) the third phase is a comprehensive
33 assessment of the person's teaching performance by school
34 officials and the partnership participants and a
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1 recommendation by the partner institution of higher education
2 to the State Board of Education that the person be issued a
3 standard alternative teaching certificate. Successful
4 completion of the Alternative Teacher Certification program
5 shall be deemed to satisfy any other practice or student
6 teaching and subject matter requirements established by law.
7 A provisional alternative teaching certificate, valid for
8 one year of teaching in the common schools and not renewable,
9 shall be issued under this Section 21-5b to persons who at
10 the time of applying for the provisional alternative teaching
11 certificate under this Section:
12 (1) have graduated from an accredited college or
13 university with a bachelor's degree;
14 (1.5) have been employed for a period of at least 5
15 years in an area requiring application of the
16 individual's education;
17 (2) have successfully completed the first phase of
18 the Alternative Teacher Certification program as provided
19 in this Section; and
20 (3) have passed the tests of basic skills and
21 subject matter knowledge required by Section 21-1a.
22 A person possessing a provisional alternative certificate
23 under this Section shall be treated as a regularly certified
24 teacher for purposes of compensation, benefits, and other
25 terms and conditions of employment afforded teachers in the
26 school who are members of a bargaining unit represented by an
27 exclusive bargaining representative, if any.
28 A standard alternative teaching certificate, valid for 4
29 years for teaching in the schools situated in a school
30 district that is located in a city having a population in
31 excess of 500,000 inhabitants and renewable as provided in
32 Section 21-14, shall be issued under this Section 21-5b to
33 persons who first complete the requirements for the
34 provisional alternative teaching certificate and who at the
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1 time of applying for a standard alternative teaching
2 certificate under this Section have successfully completed
3 the second and third phases of the Alternative Teacher
4 Certification program as provided in this Section.
5 This alternative certification program shall be
6 implemented so that the first provisional alternative
7 teaching certificates issued under this Section are effective
8 upon the commencement of the 1997-1998 academic year and the
9 first standard alternative teaching certificates issued under
10 this Section are effective upon the commencement of the
11 1998-1999 academic year.
12 The State Board of Education, in cooperation with the
13 partnership establishing the Alternative Teacher
14 Certification program, shall adopt rules and regulations that
15 are consistent with this Section and that the State Board of
16 Education deems necessary to establish and implement the
17 program.
18 (Source: P.A. 89-708, eff. 2-14-97.)".
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