Teacher of English as a Second Language (ESL) Licensure Handbook (for Initial License) Policies and Procedures

Transcription

1 Department of Applied Linguistics University of Massachusetts Boston Teacher of English as a Second Language (ESL) Licensure Handbook (for Initial License) Policies and Procedures Academic Year

2 PURPOSE OF THIS HANDBOOK This handbook has been prepared solely for students who are enrolled in the Applied Linguistics Master s graduate program and who also seek to obtain ESL Initial Licensure. 1 The purpose of the handbook is to provide you with information regarding the policies, processes, forms, deadlines and other helpful information specific to obtaining ESL licensure. Please note that the Applied Linguistics ESL licensure required course of study is a Massachusetts Department of Education (MA DOE) approved program. Read the different licensure handbook sections and carefully note the established processes that must be followed as you progress through the various professional components of your Applied Linguistics academic program. This handbook should be used in conjunction with the UMass Catalog and other pertinent materials distributed by the Graduate College of Education, the Office of Licensure and Field Experience, and the Department of Applied Linguistics. 1 Keep in mind that Preliminary ESL licensure can be obtained once a student completes a BA and passes both MTEL exams (Communication and Literacy, and ESL). Students apply directly with the DOE for this first (Preliminary) license. The Applied Linguistics licensure program of study allows students to apply for their next license--initial License (second license). In five years time, teachers with initial licensure will be expected to apply for Professional License (third and last license) but this process is carried out under the auspices of their individual school districts and is not the responsibility of universities. 2

3 INTRODUCTION Master s degree-seeking students in the Department of Applied Linguistics have the option to complete the requirements for the Teacher of English as a Second Language License (ESL) PK-12. In fact, licensure services are a courtesy that is offered only to matriculated Applied Linguistics students. Furthermore, students enrolled in the ESL licensure track cannot graduate with their master s degree in Applied Linguistics until after they have completed all licensure course requirements, including the student teaching practicum. All master s degree-seeking students have access to licensure advising and are strongly encouraged upon entering the program to schedule an initial meeting with the Licensure Coordinator (please see last page of this document for Apling Licensure Coordinator name and contact information). During this student-initiated first meeting, the Apling License Coordinator will introduce the student to the DOEapproved course of study (refer to page 5 for the list of courses). This initial meeting is very important to help you determine if you need ESL licensure and what steps to take in order to obtain licensure. Prior to meeting with the Licensure Coordinator students must read this handbook. (Please note: students interested in obtaining ESL licensure are expected to become familiar with DOE Professional Standards for teachers. The link for the professional standards is Who needs an ESL License? The Massachusetts License in ESL is required for individuals who are seeking a teaching job in the Massachusetts Public Schools in ESL or Bilingual classrooms. The Educator Preparation Division in the Massachusetts Department of Education works with other states to share information on educator preparation and licensure and to develop licensure reciprocity agreements to facilitate teacher and administrator movement into Massachusetts. 3

4 The following states have signed the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification (NASDTEC), contract with Massachusetts for interstate licensure reciprocity. Alabama Kansas North Dakota Alaska Kentucky Ohio Arizona Louisiana Oklahoma Arkansas Maine Oregon California Maryland Pennsylvania Colorado Michigan Rhode Island Connecticut Mississippi South Carolina Delaware Montana Tennessee District of Columbia Nebraska Texas Florida Nevada Utah Georgia New Hampshire Vermont Guam New Jersey Virginia Hawaii New Mexico Washington Idaho New York West Virginia Illinois North Carolina Wyoming Indiana 4

5 ADMISSION TO THE ESL LICENSURE PROGRAM The same admissions requirements set to enter the Master s program apply for admission into the licensure program. Licensure assistance is offered as a courtesy only to Master s degree-seeking Applied Linguistics graduate students. It is strongly recommended that you decide during your first semester in the program whether you want to work towards an ESL license or not in order to plan ahead and avoid misunderstandings and last minute problems such as missing requirements. Licensure Requirements at a Glance Students working toward their licensure need to do the following: 1. Complete the required ESL coursework (see list on page 6) 2. Complete the 75 hour prepracticum fieldwork and submit one or more reflection papers (see p. 7 for details) 3. Pass the required Massachusetts Test for Educator Licensure (MTEL) exams (see p. 8): a. If you are interested in ESL Prek-6 licensure, you are expected to pass the following MTEL exams: 1) Literacy and Communication 2) ESL subject area b. If you interested in ESL 5-12 licensure (either middle school or high school), you are expected to pass the following MTEL exams: 1) Literacy and Communication 2) ESL subject area 4. Complete a supervised student teaching practicum or internship (supervised semester of teaching in one s own classroom) during the last semester of study. The student teaching practicum or internship consists of one semester of full-time supervised teaching in a public school in Massachusetts in the grade level, and area in which the student is seeking licensure. (The DOE requires a minimum of 300+ hours but students typically exceed the minimum in one semester s time.) As of 2004, student teaching-practicum WAIVERS ARE NO LONGER PERMITTED by the MA DOE regardless of student years of ESL teaching experience. ALL LICENSURE STUDENTS MUST COMPLETE A STUDENT- TEACHING PRACTICUM OR INTERNSHIP. The student teaching practicum/internship must be completed AFTER all coursework has been successfully completed. The student teaching practicum and the internship constitute similar experiences. Apling students who are currently teachers have the option of carrying out their practica or internship in their own ESL classroom as long as they are teaching in the grade level(s) in which they are seeking ESL Initial Licensure. 5

6 Licensure Requirements in Detail 1. ESL Required Coursework All students seeking initial license in ESL need to complete the required coursework as it is listed below. Required Coursework for Initial Teacher License: ESL Grades: PreK-6 and 5-12 All students seeking initial ESL licensure need to complete the required coursework listed below. If care is taken in selecting courses licensure requirements can be fulfilled by taking just one more course than is required for the MA, plus the semester long 3 credit practicum. All 5 core courses correspond to the MA track, and Apling 618 Methods and Approaches is required of students in the MA ESL track and the Initial Licensure track. Care must be taken in the selection of electives. The specific electives noted below are required by the MDOE. 1. Apling 601 Linguistics 2. Apling 603 Cross Cultural Perspectives 3. Apling 605 Theories and Principles in Language Teaching* 4. One of the following bilingual, multicultural education courses: a. Apling 614 Foundations of Bilingual/Multicultural Education b. Apling 615 Methods and Materials in Bilingual Education* c. Apling 616 Curriculum Development in Bilingual Education* 5. Apling 618 Teaching ESL: Methods and Approaches* 6. Apling 621 Psycholinguistics 7. Apling 623 Sociolinguistics 8. One of the following linguistics courses: a. Apling 627 Phonetics and Phonemics b. Apling 629 Structure of the English language c. Apling 625 Second Language Acquisition 9. One of the following literacy courses: a. Apling L673 Teaching Reading in the Bilingual/ESL Classroom* b. Apling 635 Literacy and Culture* 10. Apling L669 Writing Theories in Second Language Instruction* 11. Apling 670 Testing in the Bilingual/ESL Classroom* 12. Apling 698 Practicum or Internship Courses with an asterisk (*) have an optional pre-practicum fieldwork component Courses in bold print signal Applied Linguistics Master s degree course requirements In some instances, students who have taken similar courses at other institutions can transfer graduate credits towards their licensure coursework requirements. An official transcript, a photocopied course description from the official school catalog or syllabus, and a student written rationale for substituting the required course with another are required. All credit transfers are subject to approval by the Apling Licensure Coordinator. Please note that courses taken in other institutions that are 6

7 used towards licensure requirements may not necessarily be transferred towards the Masters degree in Applied Linguistics. (Early on, students need to clearly distinguish between requirements for the Master s degree in Applied Linguistics and requirements for MA DOE ESL Licensure.) 2. Pre-Practicum Field Work The Pre-Practicum consists of 75 hours of field observation in an educational setting. You have the option of completing the 75 hours in one classroom setting or to divide the hours up among various classrooms. You are expected to write one reflection paper per classroom observed. These hours must be documented and submitted with the application for student teaching. Please note that the following APLING courses include a Pre-Practicum component: APLING 605 Theories and Principles of Language Teaching APLING 615 Methods and Materials in Bilingual Education APLING 616 Curriculum Development in Bilingual Education APLING 618 Teaching ESL: Methods and Approaches APLING 635 Literacy and Culture APLING L669 Writing Theories in Second Language Instruction APLINGL L673 Teaching Reading in the Bilingual/ESL Classroom APLING 670 Testing in the Bilingual/ESL Classroom If you opt to conduct pre-practicum observations in various classrooms, you should work with the professor who is teaching the course to supervise your field work. Work done in a course with a field experience component may be used towards fulfilling the pre-practicum requirements. One copy of your three-to-five page reflection paper synthesizing your pre-practicum experiences must accompany the application for student teaching and one copy should be submitted to the Apling Licensure Coordinator for your Apling file. The Graduate College of Education and the Applied Linguistics Department are committed to ensuring that all of our ESL Licensure candidates are truly able to teach diverse groups of children. Therefore, you are encouraged to diversify your choice of pre-practica field sites. It is expected that you will be able to document field experience in urban settings as well as suburban settings. Your field experience should provide you with an opportunity to work with students from diverse ethnic, racial, social, and linguistic backgrounds as well as students with disabilities. All candidates must document at least one diverse pre-practica setting as part of their application for the student teaching practicum. Note Following the Graduate College of Education Handbook ( ) the Pre- Practicum Field Experience may be waived for in-service teachers who are currently teaching in the public schools, and/or for teaching licensure candidates that have a minimum of 1 year teaching experience. However: If the Pre-Practicum has been waived based on prior experience, a minimum of one reflection paper is still required. In order to have the pre-practicum waived the teaching experience must be documented on official letterhead and signed by one s principal or supervisor. 7

8 3. Massachusetts Test for Educator Licensure (MTEL) The Massachusetts Department of Education requires all candidates for initial license in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to pass the state-approved Massachusetts Test for Educator Licensure. This test consists of two parts: the first tests the candidate's communication and literacy skills through a reading and writing test; the second tests the candidate's competency in the subject matter specific to the licensure area sought (ESL). In order to enter into student teaching, all candidates must pass all parts of the MTEL: the Communications and Literacy and the Subject Matter (ESL) sections. You may apply for student teaching and begin the process to get a placement, but you will not be able to actually begin the practicum until you have submitted passing scores for all tests. (Keep in mind Preliminary ESL licensure can be obtained once a student completes a BA and passes both MTEL exams [Communication and Literacy and ESL]. Students apply directly with the DOE for this first [Preliminary] license. The Applied Linguistics licensure program of study allows students to apply for their next license-- INITIAL License [second license]. In five years time, teachers with initial licensure will be expected to apply for Professional License [third and last license] but this process is carried out under the auspices of their individual school districts and is not the responsibility of universities.) For further information about the MTEL, please call the Department of Education at (781) or visit their website at: The Massachusetts Department of Education has contracted with National Evaluation Systems (NES) in Amherst, MA, to administer these tests. Interested students may contact NES to obtain information regarding upcoming MTEL administrations and registration materials at (413) or via the MTEL web site: Registration Bulletins may also be available in the Office of Licensure and Field Experience at the UMass Graduate College of Education MTEL test preparation sessions may be available for the Literacy and Communication MTEL test through the UMB GCOE. In order to find out if, and when, sessions may be available, please contact the GCOE Licensure Office or visit their website. MTEL Test Information Booklet available at Test Registration and Information National Evaluation Systems (N.E.S.): (413) Practicum (Student Teaching/Intership) The Practicum consists of one semester (14 wks) of full-time supervised student teaching in a public school in the Boston area, in the grade level (PK-6, 5-12), and area (ESL) in which the student is seeking licensure (a minimum of 300+ hours). Please keep in mind that the supervising teacher/mentor teacher must be licensed in ESL. The supervising teacher/mentor must either have been working on an ESL Initial License for three or more years or a Professional license, and must hold that 8

9 license for teaching at the grade level for which the student teacher/intern is seeking initial licensure. (Please note that the Practicum required by the Massachusetts Department of Education is different from the Practicum that is required for the Master s in Applied Linguistics. Students who are NOT interested in ESL Licensure should contact the MA Practicum/Field Experience Coordinator [please see last page of this document for MA Field Experience Coordinator name and contact information] to discuss the requirements of the MA Practicum.) Prior teaching in ESL in other countries, in states other than MA, and in some cases in private schools does not qualify for Pre-Practicum experience. As of 2004, the MA DOE no longer permits students to waive their student-teaching practicum requirement. If the Applied Linguistics practicum student is currently employed as an ESL teacher in the grade level in which he/she seeks licensure, the student will be allowed to complete an internship practicum in his/her own classroom. Please note that student-teaching practica are done during the last semester of your study and only after you have completed all required ESL licensure coursework. However, students with only one remaining course may take the course while completing student-teaching. In addition, during student teaching, students are also required to fulfill the requirements of the APLING 698 (3 credits) seminar that supports your teaching experience. 9

10 Applying for Student-Teaching Please be advised that student-teaching applications are accepted only twice per year. Applications must be submitted to the Applied Linguistics Licensure Coordinator. Students are reminded to keep copies of all documents in their personal files. Applications for the fall semester are due on the first Friday of March and applications for the spring semester are due on the first Friday of October. Please double-check due dates for applications as March 1 and October 1 have also been listed on the website for the GCOE. To be safe, use the March 1 and October 1 deadlines. Although the Apling licensure coordinator sends out application reminders to students, ultimately, the student is responsible for meeting due dates. When you submit your application for student-teaching you must bring the following paperwork: 1. A completed application for student-teaching. Applications are available online at the Applied Linguistics website and at the Graduate College of Education website at ). 2. A current UMass transcript. All required ESL courses must be completed before student teaching begins. Highlight all courses required for certification as listed in your student handbook. Be sure to list any courses approved as substitutes. 3. A list of courses in which you are currently enrolled. 4. a. Documentation of 75 hours of field observation to submit with the application, or a waiver in the form of letter validating completion of experience through current or past qualifying teaching position. b. A 3-5 page reflection paper synthesizing your Pre-Practicum experiences. (Note: If the Pre-Practicum has been waived based on prior experience, the reflection paper is still required). 5. Proof of passing the MTEL Communications & Literacy section and the ESL subject area exams. 6. Your ELAR page containing the following three sections: a. personal information, b. education, and c. activity history. 10

11 APPENDIX 11

12 BEFORE THE PRACTICUM Are you ready for student teaching? Have you: completed all the required ESL coursework? passed the Communication & Literacy MTEL test and the ESL subject matter test? met with the Apling Licensure Coordinator to approve licensure application packet? attached one copy of your Pre-Practicum Reflection Paper to your application and submitted a second copy to the Apling Licensure Coordinator? submitted a recent transcript to the Licensure Coordinator? registered for APLING 698 Practicum? submitted student teaching/internship application to the Applied Linguistics Coordinator? submitted your ELAR page that includes personal information, education, and activity history? How to apply with the DOE on-line In order to complete your application for Licensure through the Applied Linguistics Graduate Program, you must go to the DOE website and apply online ( - Click under Licensure - Click on ELAR (Educator Licensure and Recruitment) - Click on Create New ELAR Account - Provide your information and you will be given a login name and a password which you can use to access your information After you have registered with the DOE, and applied for the license(s) you want, please print and save the receipt. PLEASE REMEMBER TO MAKE COPIES OF ALL APPLICATIONS AND SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION BEFORE SUBMITTING THEM TO THE OFFICE OF LICENSURE AND FIELD EXPERIENCE. STUDENTS ARE ASKED TO SUBMIT ONE COPY TO THE APPLIED LINGUISTICS LICENSURE COORDINATOR AND TO KEEP ONE COPY FOR THEIR PERSONAL RECORDS. 12

13 IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS & ADDRESSES Apling Licensure Coordinator Supervisor, Judith Ishigami Office of Licensure and Field Experience (Graduate College of Education) Elaine Bauer, University Licensure Coordinator Applied Linguistics Main Office Michele Ladanyi, Program Coordinator MA Practicum/Field Experience Coordinator Judith Ishigam Massachusetts Department of Education OTHER IMPORTANT INTERNET ADDRESSES Applied Linguistics Graduate Program site. Graduate College of Education UMass Boston.. Massachusetts Department of Education. National Evaluation Systems: MTEL.. U.S. Department of Education (No Child Left Behind). 2 Please note the GCOE website contains all necessary applications and student teaching evaluation forms. 13