No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB)

The definition depends on the classes being taught. The NCLB does not include ESL itself as a core academic subject.

• When teaching ESL as a common branch class in kindergarten through grade 6, teachers must meet the NCLB's definition for elementary teachers. By virtue of being certified, ESL teachers meet the NCLB's definition for elementary teachers.
   
• When teaching a class in grades 7 through 12 to students who have very limited English language proficiency and who use the class to satisfy English or language arts requirements, certified ESL teachers are subject to the NCLB because they are teaching a core subject, and they must satisfy the NCLB definition for middle and secondary teachers. By virtue of being certified in ESL, they are “highly qualified” to teach English and language arts to students with very limited English proficiency because they must complete at least 30 college credits in English and English language learning to qualify for the ESL certificate.

NOTE ON BILINGUAL EDUCATION. State regulations require classes taught in a bilingual format to be taught by teachers with certificates in the subjects they are teaching who also have applicable bilingual extensions.

• Teachers of bilingual classes in elementary school or special education through grade 6 must meet the NCLB definition for elementary teachers.
   
• Teachers of bilingual classes in core academic subjects in grades 7 through 12 (and in the arts, languages other than English and reading at any grade level) must meet the NCLB definition for middle and secondary teachers.

• When certified special education teachers directly instruct students in common branch subjects with instructional content at the level of K through grade 6, including those who teach in middle and secondary schools at grades above grade 6, they must be “highly qualified” using the definition for elementary school teachers. Dual certification is not required by the NCLB.
  
  
• When certified special education teachers directly instruct students in core academic subjects with instructional content at the level of grades 7 through 12, the teachers must be “highly qualified” using the definition for middle or secondary school teachers. This is true even when special education teachers teach classes covering multiple core subjects at the level of grades 7 through 12 in a self-contained classroom for special education students. Since any one teacher would have difficulty demonstrating subject matter competency in several subjects at the level of grades 7 through 12, even using the HOUSSE, special education teachers in self-contained classrooms may need to have teaching assignments with a limited range of core academic subjects. Dual certification is not required by the NCLB. Special education teachers may demonstrate subject matter competency for multiple subjects using any of the methods permitted by the NCLB, including the HOUSSE if they are not new to the profession, as shown in Appendix A.
  
  
• When special educators do not directly instruct students on any core academic subject or only provide consultation to highly qualified teachers of core academic subjects in adapting curricula, using behavioral supports and interventions, and selecting appropriate accommodations, the special educators do not need to meet the same NCLB "highly qualified" subject-matter competency requirements that apply to teachers of core academic subjects. [USDOE, December 2002]
  
   
• When certified special education teachers serve in “resource rooms” to provide extra help to selected students, they are subject to the NCLB if they teach core academic subjects. Federal guidance indicates that “special education teachers who provide instruction in core academic subjects must meet the highly qualified teacher requirements for those core academic subjects that they teach. These requirements apply whether a special education teacher provides core academic instruction in a regular classroom, a resource room, or another setting.” [USDOE, 9/12/03]
   
• When certified special education teachers teach classes that do not cover any core academic subjects, they are not subject to the NCLB and do not need to be “highly qualified.” [USDOE, December 2002]

Please note that the Senate bill (S.1248) on the reauthorization of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) contains a definition of "highly qualified" for special education teachers that differs from the general NCLB definition and that would give special education teachers an additional year to become highly qualified. The House bill (H.R. 1350) uses the NCLB definition of "highly qualified.” As of this writing, it has yet to be determined what the IDEA definition will be and how that will impact the NCLB's requirements for special education teachers. SED will issue further guidance as soon as final information becomes available.

  What definition of “highly qualified” applies to teachers of social studies classes in grades 7 through 12?

The NCLB definition of “highly qualified” for middle and secondary school teachers applies to teachers whose classes cover content at the level of grades 7 through 12 in any of the disciplines of social science listed in the NCLB as core academic subjects. They include: civics and government, economics, history and geography. [NCLB 9101(11) ]

In New York State, teachers of these social science disciplines must be certified social studies teachers. Their certification requirements prepare them to teach all these subjects and be “highly qualified” under the NCLB.

What definition of “highly qualified” applies to teachers of science classes in grades 7 through 12?

Under the NCLB, “science” is a core academic subject. SED interprets “science” in the NCLB to mean the life and physical sciences and not the “social sciences” that are included in “social studies.” USDOE's draft non-regulatory guidance states that “content knowledge in one scientific discipline does not necessarily mean that a teacher will have sufficient subject-matter competency in another. Middle and secondary school science teachers must demonstrate subject-matter competency appropriate to the specific courses they are teaching. For example, a teacher who majored in biology is not, on that basis alone, considered highly qualified to teach physics.” [USDOE September 12, 2003]

In New York State, when certified science teachers teach within the scope of their certificates in science, they are, by definition, “highly qualified” for their teaching assignments because the State's requirements for certification in science are aligned with the NCLB's definition of “highly qualified.” Dual certification is not required by the NCLB when certified science teachers teach more than one field of science. Certified science teachers have demonstrated subject matter competency in their certificate fields and in all the related fields that their certificates cover by virtue of being certified.

When certified science teachers are assigned to teach a class in a field of science that is not included in their certificates titles on an “incidental” basis, and their LEA determines that the “incidental” field is related to the field of their science certificates, the teachers can be considered to have demonstrated subject matter competency in the “incidental” field. See Item D7 for further information about incidental teaching.

  What definition of “highly qualified” applies to Career and Technical Education (CTE) teachers whose classes are subject to the NCLB?

The detailed response appears in NCLB NYS Field Memo #04-2003, available at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/nclbhome.htm . A summary response follows.

• CTE teachers are only subject to the NCLB when they are teaching CTE classes that students can use for credit for high school graduation in a core academic subject defined by the NCLB.
   
• When CTE teachers teach a class that is subject to the NCLB, CTE teachers must meet the same requirements for being “highly qualified” as any other teacher, except that they may collaboratively plan and deliver the class with another teacher who is “highly qualified” for the core academic subjects being taught using the collaborative teaching model described in NCLB NYS Field Memo #04-2003. The collaborative teaching model is only available to CTE teachers.

  What definition of “highly qualified” applies to teachers in alternative education programs?

Teachers in alternative education programs leading to credit-based diplomas who teach core academic subjects must satisfy the same requirements as all other teachers of core academic subjects in order to be “highly qualified.” Since any one teacher would have difficulty demonstrating subject matter competency in several subjects at the level of grades 7 through 12, even with the HOUSSE, teachers in alternative education programs may need to have teaching assignments with a limited range of core academic subjects.

  Can a teacher be “highly qualified” for a class taught as “incidental teaching?”

In specific circumstances, section 80-5.3 of the Commissioner's Regulations permits certified teachers to teach up to five hours per week beyond the scope of their certificate titles with the approval of the closest District Superintendent (or the Chancellor in New York City). These teaching assignments are called “incidental teaching.” See http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/part80.htm#5.3 for further information about “incidental teaching.”

For NCLB purposes, teachers doing permissible “incidental teaching” satisfy the certification part of the definition of “highly qualified” because State regulations permit incidental teaching without an additional credential. However, to satisfy the subject matter competency part of the definition of “highly qualified,” such teachers must also demonstrate subject matter competency in the incidental subject they are teaching.