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California’s new budget clarifies which college degrees teacher candidates can use to meet credential requirements, creates a statewide system to review teacher transcripts and increases the cost to renew a teaching credential to help pay for it.
Teacher candidates pursuing a single-subject credential must have a degree in a subject related to their credential.
Individuals pursuing multiple-subject credentials are required to have a degree in liberal studies or education, or a degree that requires courses in language studies, literature, mathematics, science, social studies, history, the arts, physical education and human development, according to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC).
Teacher preparation programs are expected to help students demonstrate subject-matter knowledge through coursework or a degree, but tests will still be provided for candidates who aren’t able to do that.
The budget includes $5 million to help fund a collaboration between the CTC and county offices of education in order to design and implement a statewide transcript review service to validate teachers’ eligibility. The balance of the cost will be funded by a $25 increase in the fee to renew a credential.
Currently, teachers pay $100 to renew their credential every five years; this will make it $125. The $100 fee for a new credential will remain the same.
“By creating a free, statewide system for reviewing the college transcripts of teacher candidates, the budget creates a viable alternative to examinations, saving teacher candidates hundreds of dollars in examination fees,” according to the budget.
