Certification-Only Program

The certification-only program may be offered by state-approved providers with an approved teacher education program in grades PK-3, 1-5, 4-8, 6-12, all-level K-12 (art, dance, foreign language, health and physical education, and music), early interventionist birth to five years, general-special education mild-moderate: an integrated to merged approach for grades 1-5, grades 4-8, and grades 6-12.

The program is not offered in Hearing Impaired, Visually Impaired or Significant Disabilities certification areas.

Teacher candidates pursuing certification-only programs are required to have a resident certificate prior to completing a one-year residency. However, if the individual is hired as a teacher by a Louisiana school system while enrolled in the program, a Practitioner License 2 is issued in the area of certification being pursued. Upon completion of the program, the individual is eligible for a standard Professional Level license.

Both of these certificates allow teacher candidates to complete a yearlong residency under the tutelage of an expert Mentor.

Clinical experiences are required in classroom settings prior to completing a yearlong residency year. The clinical experiences prior to the residency year must include a minimum of 9 credit hours or 135 contact hours of training.

Additionally, candidates must complete a yearlong residency. The one-year residency must take place in a public or approved non-public school in a classroom in the certification area. The residency must include a combination of the following experiences:

a. instructional goal-setting and planning, including IEP and IAP review and implementation;

b. classroom teaching;

c. analysis of student assessment results, including formative and summative assessment data, student work samples, and observations of student class discussions;

d. parent-teacher conferences and communication; and

e. interactions and collaboration with other teachers.

The teacher candidate must be supervised in all residency experiences by a team comprised of a school-based mentor teacher, the residency school site principal or designee, and a program faculty member. The school-based mentor must hold a level one or higher Louisiana teaching certificate, have at least two years of successful teaching experience, successfully complete a BESE approved mentor teacher training program, and pass the Louisiana teacher mentor teacher assessment series.

The teacher candidate must be mentored at least 15 percent, or five hours per week, of the school's instructional time by the school-based mentor. The mentorship must include intensive individual supports, including co-teaching, collaborative planning, and observation, and feedback sessions.

The supervision must include, at minimum, two formal observations of teaching practice per semester, which shall include feedback on performance and analysis of formative and summative student achievement results and candidate performance data. Observations may be conducted by any member of the supervision team.

In addition to completing clinical experiences, candidates must engage in coursework that addresses the teaching of reading and literacy. For example, nine credit hours or 135 contact hours are required for certification in PK-3, 1-5, and general-special education mild/moderate 1-5. Six credit hours or 90 contact hours are required for certification in middle grades 4-8 and general-special education mild/moderate 4-8. Three credit hours or 45 contact hours are required for certification in secondary 6-12, all-level K-12, and general-special education mild/moderate 6-12 programs.