Kansas
Teaching Standards and Leadership Standards
Teaching Standards
Is working with and meeting the needs of students with disabilities addressed in state teaching standards?
Kansas Professional Education Standard 3 establishes the expectation that teachers demonstrate the ability to differentiate instruction for diverse learners and students with exceptionalities.
KSDE Professional Education Standard 3: The educator demonstrates the ability to provide different approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are equitable, that are based on developmental levels, and that are adapted to diverse learners, including those with exceptionalities.
Source: Kansas State Department of Education, Kansas Performance Teaching Portfolio
School Leadership Standards
Is knowledge of working with students with disabilities included in leader standards?
Kansas utilizes the Educational Leadership Policy Standards (ISLLC), including as part of the Kansas Educator Evaluation Protocol. Additionally, the state’s principal evaluation rating scale outlines specific professional expectations. Both the ISLLC standards and the rating scale address furthering the success of “every student,” but do not address specific knowledge on working with students with disabilities.
Source: Kansas State Department of Education
Teacher and Principal Preparation
Teacher Preparation – Program Approval/Accreditation
Required coursework in teaching students with disabilities/diverse learners
Teacher education institutions build their programs around standards that include general education standards, professional education standards and content standards. Professional education standards in Kansas are based on those developed by member states of the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC).
Standard 2: The educator demonstrates an understanding of how individuals learn and develop intellectually, socially and personally and provides learning opportunities that support this development.
Standard 3: The educator demonstrates the ability to provide different approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are equitable, that are based on developmental levels and that are adapted to diverse learners, including those with exceptionalities.
Source: Kansas State Department of Education, Kansas Performance Teaching Portfolio
Clinical time in diverse settings/teaching special populations
Under initial program approval procedures for teacher education programs, teacher candidates are required to complete a minimum of 12 weeks of student teaching. However, the requirement does not specify required experience in diverse settings or with special populations.
Source: Regulations and Standards for Kansas Educators 91-1-235
Teacher Preparation – Accountability
Quality of teacher preparation programs
Kansas currently requires “performance-based evidence” as part of the approval process for teacher preparation programs; however, none of the listed requirements focus on the quality of the teachers coming out of the program. Kansas neither collects program-specific, objective data that reflect program performance, nor has it established minimum performance standards that can be used for accountability purposes.
Sources:
2012 State Teacher Policy Yearbook: Improving Teacher Preparation in Kansas
National Council on Teacher Quality
Principal Preparation – Program Approval/Accreditation
Required course work in leading a school/district that serves special education students/diverse learners
Our policy review did not identify any required course work for prospective principals addressing skills needed to lead a school or district that serves students with disabilities/diverse learners.
Principal Preparation – Accountability
Are programs reviewed based on outcomes of graduates’ success? Can school principals be linked back to institutions of higher education and preparation programs?
Our policy review did not generate any information about such principal/administrator program accountability.
Teacher and Principal Certification/Licensure
Teacher Certification/Licensure – Structure
Is a specific certificate, license or endorsement related to special education required?
Kansas offers a K-12 and grade-specific teacher certification. Candidates seeking an elementary special education license are required to pass an elementary subject-matter test. A secondary subject-matter test in at least one subject is required for secondary special education license.
The state requires dual certification; therefore, candidates choosing elementary special education certification are held to the same preparation and testing requirements as general elementary teachers. Candidates opting for secondary special education certification are required to pass one content area test.
Sources:
2012 State Teacher Policy Yearbook: Improving Teacher Preparation in Kansas
National Council on Teacher Quality
Teacher Certification – Examination
Does the state require teachers to pass a basic skills exam for initial certification? What are the pass rates on the exams? Does the state require Praxis II or more pedagogical assessment for licensure? Does it include anything about teaching diverse learners or special populations?
Prior to entering a teacher education program, students may be required to take the Praxis I tests to demonstrate qualifications. All candidates for an initial teaching license are required to take one of the four Principles of Learning and Teaching tests (Early Childhood, K-6, 5-9 and 7-12) as well as Praxis II tests for each area of licensure.
Source: Kansas Test Requirements, ETS
Teacher Certification/Licensure – Requirements
Is professional development around working with special populations required to move from initial to a professional license?
The state of Kansas offers Initial (2 year), Professional (5 year), and Accomplished (10 year) teacher licenses. Professional development around working with special populations is not required to move from initial to professional licensure.
Source: Kansas State Department of Education, Licensure Requirements
Principal Certification/Licensure – Requirements
Is prior teaching experience required to become a principal and/or a superintendent? Is specific coursework or other evidence required around working with special populations?
Our state policy review did not identify any required coursework or evidence of working with special populations for administrator licensure. Kansas requires school leaders to obtain a Master’s degree, have prior teaching experience, complete a state-approved preparation program, and pass a test.
Principals: Candidates for a conditional school leadership license must submit an official transcript verifying the granting of a graduate degree, verification from an accredited institution by a designee of the graduate-level school leadership program, verification of a minimum 3.25 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale in graduate coursework, and verification of successful completion of a school leadership assessment. Candidates also must verify at least one year of recent accredited experience or at least eight semester hours of recent credit and verification of three years of experience in a state-accredited school while holding a professional teaching license, a professional school specialist license, a professional clinical license, or a full vocational-technical certificate.
Superintendents: Candidates should submit verification of successful completion of the school leadership performance assessment prescribed by the state board while employed in a school accredited by the state board or by a national or regional accrediting agency recognized by the state board. Also required is verification of at least one year of recent accredited experience or at least eight semester hours of recent credit.
Sources:
Teacher Education and Licensure–Regulations and Standards For Kansas Educators §91-1-203(a)(2)
Teacher Education and Licensure–Regulations and Standards For Kansas Educators §91-1-203(b)(2)
Administrator License Requirements, Portability, Waivers and Alternative Certification, ECS
Operating in the Dark, George W. Bush Institute
Teacher and Principal Induction
Teacher Induction
Is mentoring required for all new teachers and for how many years? If so, do program guidelines/requirements specifically address teaching diverse learners?
State regulations require first-year teachers to complete a district-administered induction and mentoring program. The State Board of Education’s transitional licensure policy requires each conditionally or initially licensed teacher to “complete a year-long, district-administered induction and mentoring program to pass the performance assessment as a prerequisite to receiving a professional license.” [Kansas Administrative Regulations (KAR) 91-1-203 and Commissioner’s letter, May 22, 2008]
While state law itself does not specifically require new teachers to receive induction or mentoring support, school districts may opt to operate such a program. If they do, state law stipulates that mentor teacher programs are “for the purpose of providing probationary teachers with professional support and … continuous assistance.” [Kansas Statutes Annotated (KSA) 72-1412]
Source: Review of State Policies on Teacher Induction (2012), New Teacher Center
Principal Induction
Is coaching/mentoring required for all new principals/administrators/ superintendents and for how many years? If so, do program guidelines/requirements specifically serving diverse learners?
The state does not currently require induction and mentoring for all new school administrators. However, the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) — acting on the 2008 recommendations of the Kansas Educational Leadership Commission — has provided assistance to districts in training and developing quality mentors. The KSDE has implemented pilot projects for the induction and mentoring of school principals and superintendents. Nineteen first-year Kansas principals were enrolled in a state piloted induction/mentoring program during the 2013-2014 school year. Fifty-seven first-year superintendents have participated in a similar induction/mentoring program since the 2011-2012 school year.
Sources:
Review of State Policies on Teacher Induction (2012), New Teacher Center
Kansas Educational Leadership Institute (KELI), Principal Mentoring/Induction Program
KELI, Superintendent Mentoring/Induction Program
Teacher and Principal Professional Development Standards
Teacher Professional Development Standards
Does the state have professional development standards for teacher PD?
In 2012 Kansas renewed its adoption the Professional Learning Standards developed by Learning Forward. These standards outline the characteristics of professional learning that leads to effective teaching practices, supportive leadership, and improved student results.
Sources:
Learning Forward
Kansas State Board of Education (April 2012, board meeting Agenda Item 11)
Principal Professional Development Standards
Does the state have professional development standards for leadership PD?
The Professional Learning Standards developed by Learning Forward outline the expectations for a supportive leadership that improves student results.
Sources:
Learning Forward
Kansas State Board of Education (April 2012, board meeting Agenda Item 11)