1. (a) A person may be temporarily certified to teach only in grade levels 8-12 if the person:

   1. (1) holds a baccalaureate or advanced degree from an accredited institution of higher education received with an academic major or interdisciplinary academic major, including reading, other than education, that is related to at least one area of the curriculum as prescribed under Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Texas Education Code; and
   2. (2) performs satisfactorily on the appropriate examinations prescribed under Section 21.048, Texas Education Code; and
   3. (3) passes a criminal history background check by submitted fingerprints for review.
2. (b) A certificate issued under this section is valid for a term not to exceed two academic years.
3. (c) A person may receive a certificate to teach only in a subject area of the curriculum prescribed under Subchapter A, Chapter 28, in which the person holds a baccalaureate or advanced degree from an institution of higher education with an academic major related to that area of the curriculum. Guidelines for determining the academic major related to the current grades 8-12 certificate structure will be developed by the Executive Director.
4. (d) A person who applies for a temporary teaching certificate under this section shall pay a fee equal to that required of applicants for a probationary certificate.
5. (e) A person who holds a certificate under this section may be employed by a school district only if the person and the school district agree that the person will be employed under a probationary contract for each year of the person's employment with the district.

6. (f) A school district employing a person who holds a certificate issued under this section must provide the board with evidence that it will provide the person with intensive support during the person's employment with the district, including:

   1. (1) mentoring in which the mentoring program is modeled on research-based mentoring and induction programs;

   2. (2) pre-service training that addresses the following areas before the first day of the start of the student academic year and ongoing appropriate professional development must include, but not be limited to, the following areas:

      1. (A) school policies and relevant state and federal law;
      2. (B) instructional methods and strategies that emphasize practical applications of the teaching-learning processes,
      3. (C) curriculum organization, planning, and evaluation, including the scope and sequence of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills in the subject area in which the teacher holds a certificate, and
      4. (D) basic principles and procedures of classroom management with emphasis on classroom discipline, using group and individual processes.
7. (g) Districts delivering the required intensive support for an educator holding the temporary teacher certificate must follow guidelines established by the Executive Director with evidence indicating the ability to comply with the provisions of this chapter.
8. (h) A school district may require that a person who will be employed by the district and who holds a temporary teacher certificate issued under this section complete a teacher training program.
9. (i) At the end of the two years of employment, the person must apply to the State Board for Educator Certification for a standard certificate. The person must also be recommended by the current employing school district for certification. All employing school districts must provide evidence to the board that each district provided the aforementioned intensive support.

10. (j) A standard teaching certificate shall be issued to a person under this section if:

    1. (1) the person held a temporary teacher certificate issued under this section;
    2. (2) the person has been continuously employed as a teacher of record in a public school district for two academic years; and
    3. (3) the employing district(s) has (have) favorably reviewed the person's performance, including classroom performance and performance in any teacher training program(s). Each school district must predominately base the review of a person's performance on the increase in achievement of the students over which the person has had charge.
11. (k) At the end of the two years of employment, if a person is granted a standard certificate, the person may not apply for or receive another temporary certificate under this rule.

Source Note:The provisions of this §232.5 adopted to be effective April 25, 2004, 29 TexReg 3960.