Endorsement by Exam: Policy and Practice in Rural Special Education

Abstract

National- and state-level education policies are evolving to address teacher shortages that are pervasive across the United States and are particularly problematic in rural special education. In this article, we describe a policy we call “endorsement by exam” in which teachers certified in one subject area can become certified in other areas by passing a content knowledge test. Although such add-on endorsements are not uncommon in some content areas (e.g., chemistry teachers adding certification in biology), some states have extended this practice to include special education certification. The purpose of this article is to explore what state agencies have adopted endorsement by exam for special education. Despite difficulties in obtaining reliable information, we determined approximately eight states have adopted some form of this policy. We discuss results in terms of rurality and conclude by explaining our position that endorsement by exam is a potentially harmful quick fix that may in fact exacerbate teacher shortages in the long term and thus is ill advised.

A Tale of Two Grant-Funded Special Education Recruitment and Training Projects Focused on Assistive Technology

“…The need for special education teachers is not an issue that will be solved easily so efforts must include creative problem solving in the recruitment and retention. Teacher shortages can have a complicated impact in small rural districts where filling vacancies can be a challenge with factors such as remote location, lack of resources, and high caseloads being frequently stated as reasons that exacerbate the needs for these rural school districts (Hollo et al, 2019;Sawchuk, 2018;Viadero, 2018). When looking at recruitment and retention of special educators, factors such as workload and working conditions must be considered.…”

“…Recruitment strategies that IHE's employ are varied and wide. Some states have used strategies such as gaining a special education endorsement by completing the accompanying exam (Hollo et al, 2019) while other states offer alternative pathways where new teachers are enrolled in a preparation program while working as a teacher. The two projects described here aimed to work with districts and schools to provide resources to support and encourage retention of special educators.…”

Pathways to Teacher STEM Certification in Texas: A Case for Addressing the Minority Teacher Shortage

“…In Texas, teachers with a valid Texas classroom teaching certificate and a baccalaureate degree may obtain additional certifications through additional certification-by-exam (cert-byexam) (Texas Education Agency, 2020a) also referred to as endorsement by exam (Hollo et al, 2019) and additional exam (Ruiz de Castilla, 2018). While advantageous for teachers desiring to expand expertise, cert-by-exam is not an option for initial certification, teachers who teach students with visual impairments, or non-classroom teaching purposes (e.g., superintendent, principal, school counselor).…”

edTPA: Assisting Rural Special Education Teacher Candidates to Incorporate Self-Regulation Skills in Planning and Instruction

“…These candidates may be placed in classrooms without fully licensed special educators or special educators that have little to no access to professional development due to geographic isolation. For example, Hollo et al (2019) highlighted the harmful policies that some states have taken to combat teacher shortages. In short, many states are allowing educators who are licensed in a particular content area to take additional licensure exams to become endorsed in other content areas, described by the researchers as endorsement by exam (Hollo et al, 2019).…”

“…For example, Hollo et al (2019) highlighted the harmful policies that some states have taken to combat teacher shortages. In short, many states are allowing educators who are licensed in a particular content area to take additional licensure exams to become endorsed in other content areas, described by the researchers as endorsement by exam (Hollo et al, 2019). Hypothetically, this means that someone licensed in elementary education could receive an endorsement to teach students with moderate/ severe intellectual disability in high school without any coursework or experience teaching this population.…”