Wisconsin 2023-2024 Regular Session

Wisconsin Assembly Bill AB639 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	LRB-0638/1
2	2	FFK:wlj
3	3	2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
4	4	2023 ASSEMBLY BILL 639
5	5	November 8, 2023 - Introduced by Representatives DITTRICH, NEDWESKI, O'CONNOR,
6	6	MAGNAFICI, ARMSTRONG, MURPHY, GOEBEN, DUCHOW, BRANDTJEN, ROZAR and
7	7	RETTINGER, cosponsored by Senators KNODL, BALLWEG and TOMCZYK. Referred
8	8	to Committee on Education.
9	9	*AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE*
10	10	AN ACT to amend 115.28 (7) (a) and 118.19 (3) (a); and to create 118.1913 of the
11	11	statutes; relating to: issuing a license to teach based on equivalency and
12	12	granting rule-making authority.
13	13	Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
14	14	This bill requires the Department of Public Instruction to offer a statutory
15	15	pathway to teacher licensure based on equivalency. Prior to August 1, 2022, DPI
16	16	offered a similar pathway under its administrative rules.
17	17	Under the bill, DPI must grant a provisional teaching license to an individual
18	18	who 1) has a bachelor's degree; 2) has at least six semesters of teaching experience,
19	19	which may include experience in a public school, private school, postsecondary
20	20	institution, or industry setting; and 3) successfully completes a standards-based
21	21	assessment program approved by DPI and an assessment approved by DPI of the
22	22	individual's knowledge, skills, and disposition. The bill also requires DPI to approve
23	23	a standards-based assessment and an assessment of knowledge, skills, and
24	24	disposition, which are required under the pathway, by no later than approximately
25	25	six months after the date on which the bill becomes law. Finally, the bill specifies that
26	26	an individual who obtains a provisional teaching license under this pathway is
27	27	eligible for a lifetime license if the individual successfully completes six semesters
28	28	of teaching experience under the license.
29	29	The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
30	30	enact as follows:
31	31	1
32	32	2
33	33	3 - 2 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-0638/1
34	34	FFK:wlj
35	35	SECTION 1 ASSEMBLY BILL 639
36	36	SECTION 1. 115.28 (7) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
37	37	115.28 (7) (a) License all teachers for the public schools of the state; make rules
38	38	establishing standards of attainment and procedures for the examination and
39	39	licensing of teachers within the limits prescribed in ss. 118.19 (2) and (3), 118.191,
40	40	118.1913, 118.1915, 118.192, 118.193, 118.194, 118.195, and 118.197; prescribe by
41	41	rule standards, requirements, and procedures for the approval of teacher
42	42	preparatory programs leading to licensure, including a requirement that, beginning
43	43	on July 1, 2012, and annually thereafter, each teacher preparatory program located
44	44	in this state shall submit to the department a list of individuals who have completed
45	45	the program and who have been recommended by the program for licensure under
46	46	this subsection, together with each individual's date of program completion, from
47	47	each term or semester of the program's most recently completed academic year; file
48	48	in the state superintendent's office all papers relating to state teachers' licenses; and
49	49	register each such license.
50	50	SECTION 2. 118.19 (3) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
51	51	118.19 (3) (a) No license to teach in any public school may be issued unless the
52	52	applicant possesses a bachelor's degree including such professional training as the
53	53	department by rule requires, except as permitted under par. (b) and ss. 115.28 (17)
54	54	(a), 118.191, 118.1913, 118.1915, 118.192, 118.193, 118.194, and 118.197.
55	55	Notwithstanding s. 36.11 (16), no teacher preparatory program in this state may be
56	56	approved by the state superintendent under s. 115.28 (7) (a), unless each student in
57	57	the program is required to complete student teaching consisting of full days for a full
58	58	semester following the daily schedule and semester calendar of the cooperating
59	59	school or the equivalent, as determined by the state superintendent. No license to
60	60	teach in any public school may be granted to an applicant who completed a
61	61	1
62	62	2
63	63	3
64	64	4
65	65	5
66	66	6
67	67	7
68	68	8
69	69	9
70	70	10
71	71	11
72	72	12
73	73	13
74	74	14
75	75	15
76	76	16
77	77	17
78	78	18
79	79	19
80	80	20
81	81	21
82	82	22
83	83	23
84	84	24
85	85	25 - 3 -2023 - 2024 Legislature
86	86	LRB-0638/1
87	87	FFK:wlj
88	88	SECTION 2
89	89	ASSEMBLY BILL 639
90	90	professional training program outside this state unless the applicant completed
91	91	student teaching consisting of full days for a full semester following the daily
92	92	schedule and semester calendar of the cooperating school or the equivalent, as
93	93	determined by the state superintendent. The state superintendent may grant
94	94	exceptions to the student teaching requirements under this paragraph when the
95	95	midyear calendars of the institution offering the teacher preparatory program and
96	96	the cooperating school differ from each other and would prevent students from
97	97	attending classes at the institution in accordance with the institution's calendar.
98	98	The state superintendent shall promulgate rules to implement this subsection. If for
99	99	the purpose of granting a license to teach or for approving a teacher preparatory
100	100	program the state superintendent requires that an institution of higher education
101	101	be accredited, the state superintendent shall accept accreditation by a regional or
102	102	national institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. department of
103	103	education or by a programmatic accrediting organization.
104	104	SECTION 3. 118.1913 of the statutes is created to read:
105	105	118.1913 License based on equivalency. (1) Notwithstanding s. 118.19
106	106	(4m), (6) to (9), (12), and (14), the department shall grant a provisional teaching
107	107	license to an individual who is eligible for licensure under s. 118.19 (4) and (10) and
108	108	who satisfies all of the following:
109	109	(a) The individual possesses a bachelor's degree.
110	110	(b) The individual has at least 6 semesters of teaching experience. In this
111	111	paragraph, teaching experience includes teaching in a public school, private school,
112	112	postsecondary institution, or industry setting.
113	113	(c) The individual successfully completes all of the following:
114	114	1
115	115	2
116	116	3
117	117	4
118	118	5
119	119	6
120	120	7
121	121	8
122	122	9
123	123	10
124	124	11
125	125	12
126	126	13
127	127	14
128	128	15
129	129	16
130	130	17
131	131	18
132	132	19
133	133	20
134	134	21
135	135	22
136	136	23
137	137	24 - 4 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-0638/1
138	138	FFK:wlj
139	139	SECTION 3 ASSEMBLY BILL 639
140	140	1. A standards-based assessment program approved by the department under
141	141	sub. (2) (a).
142	142	2. An assessment approved by the department under sub. (2) (b) of the
143	143	individual's knowledge, skills, and disposition.
144	144	(2) By the first day of the 7th month after the effective date of this subsection
145	145	.... [LRB inserts date], the department shall approve all of the following:
146	146	(a) A standards-based assessment program for a license under this section.
147	147	(b) An assessment of an individual's knowledge, skills, and disposition that
148	148	includes at least all of the following categories:
149	149	1. Communication skills.
150	150	2. Content knowledge for subject area programs.
151	151	3. Pedagogical knowledge.
152	152	4. Reading.
153	153	(3) A provisional license under sub. (1) authorizes an individual to teach the
154	154	subject and educational levels for which the individual has successfully
155	155	demonstrated equivalency, as determined by the department by rule.
156	156	(4) The department shall issue a lifetime license to an individual who obtains
157	157	a provisional license under sub. (1) if the individual successfully completes 6
158	158	semesters of teaching experience, as defined by the department by rule. An
159	159	individual who does not successfully complete 6 semesters of teaching experience, as
160	160	defined by the department by rule, within the 3-year term of a provisional license
161	161	issued under sub. (1) may apply to renew the provisional license. There is no limit
162	162	to the number of times an individual may renew a provisional license under this
163	163	subsection.
164	164	(END)
165	165	1
166	166	2
167	167	3
168	168	4
169	169	5
170	170	6
171	171	7
172	172	8
173	173	9
174	174	10
175	175	11
176	176	12
177	177	13
178	178	14
179	179	15
180	180	16
181	181	17
182	182	18
183	183	19
184	184	20
185	185	21
186	186	22
187	187	23
188	188	24
189	189	25