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"Highly Qualified Teacher"—NCLB

One of the key goals of the federal legislation is that all students be taught by "highly qualified teachers." Each state was required to develop a statewide plan for achieving this goal, and each local district must ensure that all elementary, middle, and high school teachers who are assigned to teach core academic subjects meet the NCLB requirements. In compliance with the federal law and state board directives, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing has issued an advisory on new regulations for credential requirements. See links below.

The U.S. Department of Education has indicated that Title II, Part A, funds may be used to pay the costs associated with having teachers ". . . attend one-day or short-term workshops or conferences if they are part of, and integral to, professional development activities that meet the other requirements of the law, and if the participation in such a professional development activity is used to reinforce or lay the groundwork as part of a larger, systemic, professional development plan."

Teachers may meet HQT requirments by attending the CSTA California Science Education Conference. See http://www.cascience.org/csta/conf_home09.asp for more information.

• Highly Qualified Teacher Guide
• HQT Frequently Asked Questions
• Information from the Commission on Teacher Credentialing

For complete information, visit the CDE website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/nclb/sr/tq/.