Mo. lawmakers approve teacher alternative

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Professionals looking for a career change soon could have a new route to become a teacher in Missouri.

The House gave final approval Wednesday to legislation authorizing a new alternative teacher certification process that could take less time and less money than the current path.

The bill is among the first to go to Gov. Matt Blunt this year.

Supporters say Missouri faces a teacher shortage that has not been filled either with traditional college teaching graduates or through the state's existing alternative certification process, which requires second-career teachers to take college courses on classroom skills.

The legislation would let people with expertise in a particular subject -- but without college teaching degrees -- enter the classroom after completing a program run by the American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence.

"What it does mean for a professional who is considering teaching is that there is now a cost-effective and time-effective means for them to get the training needed to be a quality teacher while they continue to work in their current career," said sponsoring Sen. Luann Ridgeway, R-Smithville.

The bill passed the House by an 85-63 vote, just barely above the 82-vote majority needed in the chamber.

It passed the Senate in February by a 25-5 vote, but only after Sen. Joan Bray halted her filibuster on the understanding that supporters would amend the bill in the House to strengthen the testing and supervision requirements for second-career teachers.

Ridgeway said she upheld her bargain by proposing Bray's desired changes to a House committee. But representatives didn't make the changes and instead passed the bill exactly as it had come out of the Senate.

Bray was outraged.

"People in this building cannot be trusted. That's disgusting," said Bray, D-St. Louis.

She described the legislation as "watering down the profession of teachers" by sending "a message that teaching is easy and you don't have to do much preparation."

The Missouri National Education Association, a leading teachers' union, also has expressed concerns about the bill.

The state Board of Education had not supported efforts to allow certification through the American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence when similar legislation first was proposed several years ago, said Rusty Rosenkoetter, the department's certification coordinator.

But as the program become better established, and as the Missouri legislation appeared likely to pass it, the state Board of Education voted last week to authorize the certification route through its own rule-making procedures, she said. The legislation would guarantee those rules go forward.

The American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence is a nonprofit group founded in 2001 with a grant from the U.S. Department of Education. Group president Dave Saba has said it offers a rigorous program that includes standardized tests and custom-planned coursework for each individual.

In addition to the group's own requirements, the Missouri legislation would require people going through the program to complete 60 hours of work in a classroom. It also would prohibit people from teaching early childhood, elementary and special education if their only certification was from the American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence.

Seven states currently recognize teacher certifications from the nonprofit group. They are Florida, Idaho, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Utah, Saba said.

Ridgeway said she expects about 100 Missourians to initially make use of the alternative certification process. The costs would be paid by the individuals.

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Teacher bill is SB1066.

On the Net:

Legislature: http://www.moga.mo.gov