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SABES Home> Licensure> Handbook

Table of Contents for Licensure Handbook

  1. The license in a nutshell
  2. Important facts about the license
  3. Congratulations!
  4. More about portfolios
  5. "What 'Route' am I?"
  6. How to meet standards
  7. Requirements for provisional license
  8. Requirements for professional license
  9. Requirements-by-Route chart
  10. How can SABES help you?
  11. Appendix A - The Standards
  12. Appendix B - Short History of the License

Also available as a 20-page PDF version[PDF icon]

handbook
Page 11: Appendix A: Standards

The following standards (professional and subject matter) reflect the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind that teachers need to have to be able to serve adult learners well. These standards were compiled from many sources and reached their present form after several stages of revision, often integrating considerable feedback from the field.

Professional Standards

These standards apply to actual practice. You can meet them through a variety of ways: school-based learning, staff development training, actual experience, personal study, learning from colleagues and learners, and so forth. In any case, the following chart lists the standards and which are specifically required for each "Route."

STANDARDS

REQUIRED FOR ROUTE:

 

1 & 2
All required

3

4

A. Understanding the Adult Learner:

1. Incorporates theories of and research in adult development in designing effective instruction appropriate to the learning environment (e.g., in the classroom, workplace, homeless shelter).

X

X

X

2. Incorporates theories of and research in adult learning and in learning disabilities in designing effective instruction appropriate to the learning environment.

X

X

X

3. Uses knowledge of the factors that influence adult learners’ participation and persistence in adult basic education programs to increase learner success.

X

X

 

B. Diversity and Equity:

1. Interacts equitably and responsibly with all learners.


X

 

2. Provides learners with strategies and tools to collaborate with other learners, co-workers, and community members.

X

   

3. Draws on the range of interests, needs, and approaches of learners in planning instruction.

X

 

4. Promotes learner understanding of American civic culture, its underlying ideals, political principles, institutions, procedures, and processes in the design of curriculum.

X

 

 

5. Uses, in appropriate contexts, instructional materials conveying a range of contributions that various immigrant and native groups have made to American society.

X

   

C. Instructional Design & Teaching Approaches:

1. Draws on the history, structure, purpose, and critical issues of adult basic education in planning instruction.



X



X

 

2. Uses needs analyses in the design of instruction.

X

     

3. Designs curriculum relevant to the experiences, interests, and goals of learners, the particular instructional setting, and the Department’s adult basic education curriculum frameworks.

X

X

 

4. Integrates appropriate use of technologies into the adult education teaching and learning process.

X

X

 

5. Sets forth the learning objectives, instructional methods, and their rationale in the design of instruction and makes them available to colleagues and learners.

X

X

X

6. Uses a variety of instructional methods, techniques, and tools that facilitate adult learning.

X

X

X

7. Uses strategies that are effective for learners to develop and use critical thinking skills and to solve complex problems.

X

X

X

D. Learner Assessment and Evaluation:

1. Creates and uses formal and informal assessments for the purpose of placing learners at the appropriate instructional level.



X



X



X

2. Creates and uses formative and summative assessments to evaluate learner progress.

X

X

X

3. Confers with colleagues, supervisors, and community resources when special assessments are required.

X

X

 

4. Evaluates the effectiveness of instruction and modifies it based upon results and student feedback.

X

X

X

5. Uses data collection systems for program improvement.

X

X

 

E. Facilitating the Adult Learning Environment:

1. Communicates effectively and appropriately with learners.



X



X

 

2. Creates an environment conducive to adult learning.

X

X

 

3. Promotes learner involvement in community and societal issues.

X

X

 

4. Refers adult learners with challenging life issues to the appropriate resources.

X

X

 

5. Uses resources available to learners to develop employment readiness skills.

X

X

 

6. Collaborates effectively with learners, colleagues, and relevant members of various educational settings (e.g., family literacy, corrections, or workplace education) and the community at large.

X

X

 

7. Incorporates the principles of lifelong learning (e.g., modeling self-application methods) to prepare learners for continued education and training outside the classroom.

X

   

F. Professionalism/Continuing Education:

1. Reflects critically on the experiences of self and others, such as learners, colleagues, and supervisors.


X

   

2. Develops goals for an individual professional development plan.

X

X

 

Total Number of Required Standards

29

21

8

Subject Matter Knowledge Requirements

The subject matter standards are roughly equivalent to knowledge gained from obtaining a bachelor's degree, but with additional required strengths--e.g. in math, to the algebra level--to equip licensed teachers to be able to teach GED test preparation. A DOE subject matter test for ABE is being prepared; when it is ready to administer, Route 1 and 2 license candidates will be required to take it. Route 3 and 4 candidates will be exempt from the test until October 2006.

  1. English / Reading and Writing
  1. Literature
    1. Literature appropriate for a range of adult reading levels
    2. Genres, literary elements, and literary techniques
    3. Nature, history, and structure of the English language: lexicon and grammar
  1. Reading and Writing
    1. Knowledge of theories, practices, and programs for developing reading skills and reading comprehension for adult learners
    2. Phonemic awareness and phonics: principles, knowledge, and instructional practices
    3. Vocabulary development
    4. Theories on the relationships between beginning writing and reading
    5. Writing process and formal elements of writing
  1. English as a Second Language
  1. Theories of language acquisition and development, including first and second language acquisition and development
  2. Linguistics, including phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics of English, other languages and language variations
  3. Language assessment procedures and instruments: selection, administration, and interpretation
  1. Mathematics
  1. Basic principles and concepts related to mathematics, including algebra
  2. Number sense and numeration
  3. Patterns and functions
  4. Geometry and measurement
  5. Data analysis
  1. History and Social Science
  1. Major developments and figures in Massachusetts, United States, and world history
  2. Principles, ideals, institutions, and processes of American government and the Founding Documents of the United States
  3. Basic geographical principles and concepts
    1. Major physical features of the world
    2. Key concepts of geography and its effects on various peoples
  1. Science
  1. Basic principles and concepts of physical and life sciences appropriate to the adult secondary curriculum
  2. Principles and procedures of scientific inquiry.

Appendix B provides a short history of the license's development.

Boston CRC Central Northeast Southeast West
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