The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
- (1) Academic year--September 1 through August 31.
- (2) Acceptable--A minimum criterion set by the Board.
- (3) Beginning educator--A person employed within the first two years after completing educator preparation program requirements in an accredited preparation program, who passed the appropriate assessment(s) for the field of certification pursued and was certified (received Texas certificate), and who was assigned in his/her area of certification.
- (4) Certification field--Professional development (elementary and secondary) and delivery system fields, academic or vocational content fields, special education fields, or professional fields in which an entity is approved to offer certification.
- (5) Cohort group--A group of persons admitted and beginning an educator preparation program in an academic year.
- (6) Cumulative pass rate--The number of examinations passed (by the previous year's first time takers) within the two year academic period divided by the number of previous year's first time tests taken. (This pass rate reflects performance on the last time a test was taken within the two academic years.)
- (7) Educator preparation program--An entity approved by the Board to recommend candidates in one or more certification fields. For the purposes of this section, "program" and "entity" are used interchangeably.
- (8) First time pass rate--The number of examinations (Examination for the Certification of Educators in Texas (ExCET), Texas Oral Proficiency Test (TOPT), or Texas Assessment of Sign Communication (TASC)) passed during an academic year on the first attempt divided by the number of first time attempts in that year. (The pass rate reflects performance only on the student's initial attempt on the test.)
- (9) Performance indicators--Data elements about a cohort of persons admitted to an educator preparation program in an academic year, including preparation for all certification fields.
Source Note:The provisions of this §229.2 adopted to be effective March 1, 1998, 23 TexReg 1021.