Pursuant to Education Code sections 44225(h) and 44370, the commission will assess for approval any regionally accredited institution of higher education, or local education agency seeking to offer an intern program, that designs and implements a teacher preparation program that meets the standards and criteria set forth in this section and in sections 80067.1.
(a) Standard 1: Program Design and Curriculum. The program is designed to address the range of candidate performance expectations so that early childhood teachers will develop the knowledge, skills, and abilities to work effectively with all children from preschool through grade 3 and their families. Coursework and fieldwork/clinical practice experiences provide candidates with opportunities to learn and practice competencies relating to the care and education of young children preschool to grade 3. Candidate preparation is grounded in a clearly articulated evidence-based theoretical framework of developmentally, linguistically, and culturally responsive teaching and learning practices for the care and education of young children. The program also includes preparation for collaborating effectively with families to support their children's development and learning. These research and evidence-based theoretical foundations are reflected in the organization, scope, and sequence of the curriculum provided to candidates. In order to prepare candidates to effectively teach all PK-3 California public school students, the program's curriculum includes child and adolescent growth and development, including the implications of neurodiversity, human learning theory; social, cultural, philosophical, and historical foundations of education; developmentally, linguistically, and culturally responsive pedagogy for young children in the content areas identified in California's most current K-3 Content Standards and Frameworks and the Preschool Learning Foundations and Curriculum Framework adopted by the state board of education under Education Code sections 51002, 51226, and 60605. The program design also includes a coherent candidate assessment system to provide formative information to candidates regarding their progress towards the credential.
(b) Standard 2: Preparing Candidates Toward Mastery of the PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Teaching Performance Expectations. The PK-3 ECE Teaching Performance Expectations describe the set of professional knowledge, skills, and abilities expected of a beginning level PK-3 ECE practitioner in order to effectively support the growth, development, and learning of all PK-3 students in meeting the state-adopted standards and to work collaboratively with families to support children's learning. The program's organized coursework and clinical practice experiences provide multiple opportunities for candidates to learn, apply, and reflect on each PK-3 ECE Teaching Performance Expectation. As candidates progress through the program, pedagogical assignments are increasingly complex and challenging. The scope of the pedagogical assignments (a) addresses the PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Teaching Performance Expectations as they apply to the authorization of the PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Credential, and (b) prepares the candidate for the teaching performance assessment and other program-based assessments.
(c) Standard 3: Clinical Practice: Opportunities to Learn and to Practice(1) Organization of Clinical Practice Experiences. The program's clinical practice experiences are designed to provide the candidate with a developmental and sequential set of activities that are integrated with the program's coursework and extend the candidate's learning through application of theory to practice with PK-3 students in California early learning settings. Some of these experiences may take place within the candidate's California Early Childhood Education employment setting, including (California State Preschool, Head Start) as well as wthin TK-3 public school settings, provided the candidate meets the 600 hours of clinical practice as described below. Clinical Practice is a developmental and sequential set of activities integrated with theoretical and pedagogical coursework and must consist of a minimum of 600 hours of clinical practice. The range of Clinical Practice experiences provided by the program includes supervised early field experiences, initial student teaching (co-planning and co-teaching with both general educators and Education specialists, as appropriate, or guided teaching), and final student teaching. Clinical practice experiences must include two different grade levels within the PK-3 grade range including at least 200 hours in a preschool (PK) and/or transitional Kindergarten (TK) setting and a minimum of 200 hours in a Kindergarten through third grade (K-3) setting. Student teaching includes a minimum of four weeks of solo or co-teaching or its equivalent. For interns, early field experience would take place in an experienced mentor's classroom. Candidates in a Teacher Residency program pathway must have experiences in a different grade level than which they are doing their residency placement.
Clinical Practice, including field experiences, provides opportunities for all candidates to observe classrooms and settings that exemplify developmentally-, culturally- and linguistically appropriate and effective practices.
Candidates are provided with opportunities to gain knowledge of important concepts in early learning appropriate to the developmental range of young children PK-grade 3. For young children in PK, these concepts are consistent with California's adopted Preschool Learning Foundations and Curriculum Frameworks. For children in grades TK-3, these would be consistent with both the Preschool Learning Foundations and the K-3 Student Content Standards and Frameworks for these grade levels, as appropriate to the age/grade levels of the children. The program provides candidates with opportunities to demonstrate their understanding of a range of early childhood assessments of learning as well as of social, emotional growth and development. The program provides candidates with opportunities to understand how ECE personnel organize and supervise the work of other adults in the early learning setting (e.g., paraprofessionals, other support personnel).
As candidates progress through the curriculum, faculty and other qualified supervisors with appropriate background and expertise in early childhood education as identified and selected by the program and/or by the program in collaboration with employers, assess candidates' pedagogical performance in relation to the PK-3 ECE Teaching Performance Expectations and provide formative and timely performance feedback regarding candidates' progress toward mastering the PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Teaching Performance Expectations.
The program provides initial orientation for preparation program supervisors and employer-based supervisors of clinical practice experiences to ensure all supervisors understand their role and expectations. The minimum amount of program supervision involving formal evaluation of each candidate must be 4 times per quarter or 6 times per semester. The minimum amount of district-employed supervisors' support and guidance must be 5 hours per week.
Clinical supervision may include an in-person site visit, video capture or synchronous video observation, but the activities must be archived either by annotated video or scripted observations and evaluated based on the Teaching Performance Expectations, in order to produce data that can be aggregated and disaggregated.
(2) Criteria for Clinical Practice Placements. Clinical sites should be selected that demonstrate commitment to developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate practices as well as to collaborative relationships with families/guardians. In addition, clinical sites should demonstrate evidence-based practices and continuous program improvement, have partnerships with appropriate other educational, social, and community entities that support teaching and learning, place students with disabilities in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), provide robust programs and support for English learners, reflect to the extent possible socioeconomic and cultural diversity, and permit video capture for candidate reflection and teaching performance assessment completion. Clinical sites should also have a fully qualified site administrator.(3) Criteria for the Selection of Program Supervisors. The program selects individuals who are credentialed, or who hold a Master Teacher or higher-level Child Development Permit as appropriate to the field placement of the candidate being supervised, or who have equivalent expertise such as an advanced degree or other evidence of professional competence and expertise in the field of early childhood education. Supervisors should have recent professional experiences in early childhood settings where the curriculum aligns with California's Preschool Learning Foundations and state-adopted Content Standards and Frameworks adopted by the state board of education under Education Code sections 51002, 51226, and 60605 that reflect the diversity of California's student population, as appropriate to the instructional setting. The program provides supervisors with orientation to the program's expectations and assures that supervisors are knowledgeable about the program curriculum and assessments, including the Teaching Performance Expectations and the Commission-approved teaching performance assessment model(s) chosen by the program. In addition, program supervisors maintain current knowledge of effective supervision approaches such as cognitive coaching, adult learning theory, current content-specific pedagogy and instructional practices.(4) Criteria for the Selection of LEA/ECE Employed Supervisors. The program selects LEA/ECE site supervisors who hold a PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Credential or a Multiple Subject Credential, or who hold a Master Teacher level or higher Child Development Permit and have a minimum of three years of appropriate teaching experience (e.g., Preschool, TK-3). The LEA/ECE supervisor must have demonstrated exemplary teaching practices as determined by the employer and the preparation program. The matching of candidate and LEA-employed supervisor must be a collaborative process between the employer and the program. The program provides LEA-employed supervisors a minimum of 10 hours of initial orientation to the program curriculum, effective supervision approaches such as cognitive coaching, adult learning theory, and current content-specific pedagogy and instructional practices. The program ensures that LEA-employed supervisors remain current in the knowledge and skills needed to provide effective candidate supervision and address program expectations for Clinical Practice experiences.
(d) Standard 4: Equity, Inclusion and Diversity. The program provides each candidate with an opportunity to learn and apply theories and principles of educational equity for purposes of creating and supporting socially just learning environments. Through coursework and Clinical Practice experiences, candidates (a) examine their personal attitudes related to issues of privilege and power in different domains including age, gender, language, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, ableness, and socioeconomic status; (b) learn ways to analyze, monitor, and address these issues at the individual and system level; (c) understand how explicit and implicit racial bias impacts instruction, classroom management, and other early childhood program policies; and (d) develop an understanding of the role of the teacher in creating equitable learning opportunities and outcomes in early childhood education settings. The program provides opportunities for candidates to learn how to identify, analyze, and minimize personal bias, how policies and historical practices create and maintain institutional bias, and how teachers can help address any identified inequity. The program prepares candidates to improve growth, development, and learning for all children by examining teaching, learning, children's engagement, family and community involvement, and other supports for learning and access for all young children.
The program ensures candidates understand the importance of building on children's strengths and assets as a foundation for supporting children's growth, development, and learning, especially children who are multilingual language learners and children with disabilities or other special learning needs.
(e) Standard 5: Monitoring, Supporting, and Assessing Candidate Progress towards Meeting Credential Requirements. Candidates are assessed by the preparation program for meeting all applicable program requirements. With respect to the Teaching Performance Expectations, candidates are assessed through a coherent set of performance-based activities focusing on the adopted PK-3 ECE Teaching Performance Expectations. The information gained through the program's assessments is used to help set learning goals for candidates and inform candidates' progress towards meeting the PK-3 ECE Teaching Performance Expectations. Program faculty, program supervisors, and LEA-based supervisors monitor and support candidates during their progress towards mastering the Teaching Performance Expectations. Evidence regarding candidate progress and performance in meeting these and all other program requirements is used to guide advisement and assistance efforts. The program provides support and assistance to candidates and only retains candidates who are suited for advancement into teaching. Appropriate information is accessible to guide candidates' meeting of all program requirements.
(f) Standard 6: Implementation of a Teaching Performance Assessment. In accordance with Education Code Section 44320.2, teaching performance assessment is implemented according to the requirements of the Commission-approved model(s) selected by the program. One or more individuals responsible for implementing the teaching performance assessment document the administration processes for all tasks/activities of the applicable teaching performance assessment model(s) in accordance with the requirements of the selected model. The program consults as needed with the model sponsor where issues of consistency in implementing the model as designed arise. The program requires program faculty (including full time, adjunct, and other individuals providing instructional and/or supervisory services to candidates within the program) to become knowledgeable about the teaching performance assessment tasks, rubrics, and scoring, as well as how the teaching performance assessment is implemented within the program so that they can appropriately prepare candidates for the assessment and also use teaching performance assessment data for program improvement purposes. (1) Standard 6A: Administration of the Teaching Performance Assessment(A) The program identifies one or more individuals responsible for implementing the chosen teaching performance assessment model(s) and documents the administration processes for all tasks/activities of the applicable teaching performance assessment model(s) in accordance with the model's implementation requirements.(B) The program places candidates only in student teaching or intern placements where the candidate is able to record their teaching with PK-3 students. The program assures that each PK-3 setting where the candidate is placed has a recording policy in place. The program requires candidates to affirm that the candidate has followed all applicable policies for the teaching performance assessment and maintains records of this affirmation for a full accreditation cycle.(C) If the program participates in the local scoring option provided by the model sponsor, the program coordinates with the model sponsor to identify the local assessors who would be used to score teaching performance assessment responses from the program's candidates.(D) The program maintains program level and candidate level teaching performance assessment data, including but not limited to individual and aggregate results of candidate performance over time. The program documents the use of these data for Commission reporting, accreditation, and program improvement purposes.(E) The program assures that candidates understand the appropriate use of materials submitted as part of their teaching performance assessment responses, the appropriate use of their individual performance data, and privacy considerations relating to the use of candidate data.(F) A program using a local scoring process establishes and consistently uses appropriate measures to ensure the security of all training materials, including all print, online, video, and assessor materials which may be in the program's possession.(G) The program has a clearly defined written appeal policy for candidates, informs candidates about the policy prior to the assessment, and implements the appeal policy with candidates who do not pass the teaching performance assessment and appeal their results.(H) The program using a local scoring process provides and implements an appeal policy, with the model sponsor, for candidates who do not pass the teaching performance assessment.(2) Standard 6B: Candidate Preparation and Support. The teacher preparation program assures that each candidate receives clear and accurate information about the nature of the pedagogical tasks within the Commission-approved teaching performance assessment model(s) selected by the program and the passing score standard for the assessment. The program provides multiple formative opportunities for candidates to prepare for the teaching performance assessment tasks/activities. The program assures that candidates understand that all responses submitted for scoring represent the candidate's own work. For candidates who are not successful on the assessment, the program provides appropriate remediation support and guidance on resubmitting task components consistent with the model's guidelines.(A) The program implements as indicated below the following support activities for candidates. These activities constitute required forms of support for candidates within the teaching performance assessment process:1. Providing candidates with access to handbooks and other explanatory materials about the teaching performance assessment and expectations for candidate performance on the assessment.2. Explaining teaching performance assessment tasks and scoring rubrics.3. Engaging candidates in formative experiences aligned with a teaching performance assessment (e.g., assignments analyzing their instruction, developing curriculum units, or assessing student work).4. Providing candidates who are not successful on the assessment with additional support focusing on understanding the task(s) and rubric(s) on which the candidate was not successful as well as on understanding what needs to be resubmitted for scoring and the process for resubmitting responses for scoring.(B) These activities constitute acceptable, but not required forms of support for candidates within the teaching performance assessment process:1. Guiding discussions about the teaching performance assessment tasks and scoring rubrics.2. Providing support documents such as advice on making good choices about what to use within the assessment responses.3. Using teaching performance assessment scoring rubrics on assignments other than the candidate responses submitted for scoring.4. Asking probing questions about candidate draft teaching performance assessment responses, without providing direct edits or specific suggestions about the candidate's work.5. Assisting candidates in understanding how to use the electronic platforms for models/programs using electronic uploading of candidate responses.6. Arranging technical assistance for the video portion of the assessment.(C) These activities constitute unacceptable forms of support for candidates within the teaching performance assessment process:1. Editing a candidate's official materials prior to submission and/or prior to resubmission (for candidates who are unsuccessful on the assessment).2. Providing specific critique of candidate responses that indicates alternative responses, prior to submission for official scoring and/or prior to resubmission (for candidates who are unsuccessful on the assessment).3. Telling candidates which materials to select for submission.4. Uploading candidate teaching performance assessment responses (written responses or video entries) on public access websites, including social media.(D) The program provides candidates with timely feedback on formative assessments and experiences preparatory to the teaching performance assessment. The feedback includes information relative to candidate demonstration of competency on the domains of the PK-3 Teaching Performance Expectations.(E) The program provides opportunities for candidates who are not successful on the assessment to receive remedial assistance, and to retake the assessment. The program only recommends candidates who have met the passing score on the teaching performance assessment for a PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Credential and have met all credential requirements.(3) Standard 6C: Assessor Qualifications, Training, and Scoring Reliability. The model sponsor selects potential assessors for the centralized scoring option. The program selects potential assessors for the local scoring option and must follow selection criteria established by the model sponsor. The selection criteria for all assessors include but are not limited to pedagogical expertise in the areas assessed within the teaching performance assessment. The model sponsor is responsible for training, calibration, and scoring reliability for all assessors within the centralized scoring process. All potential assessors must pass initial training and calibration prior to scoring and must remain calibrated throughout the scoring process.(g) Standard 7: Effective Literacy Instruction in PK-3 Settings. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), The credential program's coursework and supervised field experiences encompass the study of effective means of teaching literacy to young children across all content areas based on the English Language Arts (ELA) and Literacy Standards, English Language Development (ELD) Standards, and Preschool Learning Foundations adopted by the state board of education under Education Code sections 51002, 51226, and 60605. Program coursework and supervised field experiences are aligned with the current English Language Arts/English Language Development Framework adopted by the state board of education under Education Code sections 51002, 51226, and 60605, including the crosscutting themes of Foundational Skills, Meaning Making, and Language Development, Effective Expression, and Content Knowledge, as well as the Preschool Curriculum Framework. The program emphasizes the relationships among the five themes, including the importance of the foundational skills to children's learning across all themes and how progress in the other themes supports progress in the foundational skills. Through the integration of literacy coursework and supervised clinical practice, candidates learn that children's instruction in each of the themes is essential and should occur concurrently (rather than sequentially), with emphasis based on the children's age or grade-level standards as appropriate. Candidates also learn that for multilingual and English learner students, concurrent instruction in each of the themes through integrated and designated ELD is critical. Grounded in Universal Design for Learning and asset-based pedagogies, the program supports the development of candidates' knowledge, skills, and abilities expressed in the Teaching Performance Expectations to provide effective literacy instruction that is organized, comprehensive, systematic, evidence based, culturally and linguistically sustaining, and responsive to children's age, grade, and prior literacy development. Candidates also learn to provide literacy instruction that is responsive to children's linguistic, cognitive, and social strengths. Candidates learn the power of language (both oral and written) to understand and transform the world and to create and support socially just learning environments. The program builds candidates' understanding that high-quality literacy instruction integrates all strands of the ELA/literacy standards, all parts of the ELD standards, all strands of the language and literacy and English-language development domains in the Preschool Learning Foundations, and other disciplinary standards to develop children's capacities as effective and critical listeners, speakers, readers, and writers.
(1) The study of high-quality literacy instruction in the program also incorporates the following elements of the California Comprehensive State Literacy Plan adopted by the state board of education under Education Code sections 51002, 51226, and 60605: (A) Principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion, including books and other instructional materials and practices that are asset based and culturally and linguistically responsive, affirming, and sustaining.(B) Multi-Tiered System of Support, including best first instruction; targeted, supplemental instruction for children whose literacy skills are not progressing as expected toward grade-level standards; and referrals for intensive intervention for children who have not benefited from supplemental support.(C) Instruction that is responsive to individual children's age, language and literacy development, and literacy goals; that engages families and communities as educational partners; and that is reflective of social and emotional learning and trauma-informed practices.(D) Incorporation of the California Dyslexia Guidelines developed by the superintendent of public instruction under Education Code 56335.(E) Integrated and designated ELD(F) Knowledge of how to promote multiliteracy in both English-medium and multilingual programs.(G) Assessment for various purposes, including formative, progress monitoring, and summative literacy assessment; screening to determine children's literacy profiles, including English learner typologies, and to identify potential difficulties in reading and writing, including risk for dyslexia; and the possible need for referrals for additional assessment and intervention.(2) Consistent with the ELA/ELD Framework, candidates learn instructional practices, through coursework and supervised field experiences, that are active, motivating, and engaging. Candidates learn that effective practices begin with building on students' cultural and linguistic assets, including home languages and dialects, backgrounds, experiences, and knowledge, including family and community, in all instruction. The program makes clear the importance of creating environments that promote children's autonomy in learning, including providing choices in reading and other literacy-related activities. Candidates also learn that instructional practices vary according to children's age, learning profiles and goals, English language proficiency, and assessed strengths and needs and include, as appropriate, direct instruction, collaborative learning, and inquiry-based learning. Candidates also learn the value of guided self-assessment and goal setting for children's independence, motivation, and learning. Importantly, candidates learn the importance of creating literacy environments for young children that are nurturing and joyful and that encourage active, playful exploration and investigation and providing opportunities for children to engage freely in child-initiated, self-directed activities; work individually and in small groups; and take part in imaginative and dramatic play. The program also emphasizes the importance of families as the first, primary, and ongoing contributors to children's literacy development. Candidates learn ways to collaborate and partner with families and communities ensuring that families are welcomed, informed, heard, and included in literacy development opportunities.(h) Standard 7A: Foundational Skills. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), the PK-3 ECE Specialist Instruction Credential program offers coursework and supervised field experiences that include evidence-based means of teaching the foundational skills to all children as a part of a comprehensive literacy program, with special emphasis in transitional kindergarten through grade three. Foundational skills include print concepts, including letters of the alphabet; phonological awareness, including phonemic awareness; phonics, spelling, and word recognition; decoding and encoding; morphological awareness; and text reading fluency, including accuracy, prosody (expression), and rate (an indicator of automaticity). Through the program, candidates learn that effective instruction in foundational reading skills is structured and organized as well as direct, systematic, and explicit and occurs in an environment that is print rich and child centered. Candidates learn to engage young children actively and deliberately with games, books, poetry, oral storytelling, and songs that draw their attention to print, the manipulation of sounds, and alphabet letters. The program ensures that candidates understand that instruction in phonological awareness and phonics includes phonemic awareness; letter-sound, spelling-sound, and sound-symbol correspondences; spelling patterns; and practice in connected, decodable text. Candidates learn that instruction in foundational skills, particularly in text reading fluency, also emphasizes spelling and syllable patterns, semantics, morphology, and syntax. As a result, candidates learn the connections among the foundational skills, language, and cognitive skills that support students as they learn to read and write increasingly complex disciplinary texts with comprehension and effective expression. The program also teaches that decoding requires mapping of spellings to their pronunciation, while encoding requires mapping of phonemes to their spellings, and emphasizes teaching both in ways that reflect their reciprocal relationship. Accordingly, the program teaches candidates to provide explicit instruction for young children in letter formation/printing in conjunction with applicable foundational skills and to help children apply their encoding skills in comprehensive writing instruction.
The program also includes evidence-based means of teaching foundational skills to multilingual children/English learner students while they are simultaneously developing oral English language proficiency, and in some cases literacy skills in an additional language. The program teaches candidates to plan foundational skills instruction based on children's previous literacy experiences in their home languages and to differentiate instruction using guidance from the ELA/ELD Framework, including knowledge of cross-language transfer between the home languages and English.
The program teaches candidates that effective instruction in foundational skills employs early intervention strategies informed by ongoing measures of student progress and diagnostic techniques and includes tiered supports in inclusive settings for children with reading, writing, or other literacy difficulties and disabilities, including children at risk for or with dyslexia. Candidates learn to monitor children's progress based on their knowledge of critical milestones of foundational skill development and to adjust and differentiate instruction for children whose skills are not progressing as expected toward grade-level standards. They also learn to adapt instruction and provide accommodations and supplemental support to children who continue to experience difficulty and to collaborate with children's families and guardians as well as with other teachers, specialists, and administrators from the school or district to initiate needed referrals for additional assessment and intensive intervention.
The program provides supervised, guided practice in clinical settings that allow candidates to provide comprehensive literacy instruction, including initial or supplemental foundational skills instruction at beginning levels of reading (i.e., instruction beyond the earliest years and before children have typically developed fluency in decoding).
(i) Standard 7B: Meaning Making. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), coursework and supervised field experiences emphasize meaning making as the central purpose for interacting with and interpreting texts, composing texts, engaging in research, participating in discussion, speaking with others, and listening to, viewing, and giving presentations. The program teaches candidates ways to engage children in rich early literacy experiences. Candidates learn the value of reading aloud and strategies for modeling and assisting children in making predictions, retelling and reenacting, and responding to and generating questions about stories and other text. The program addresses literal and inferential comprehension with all children at all grades and in all disciplines, including making connections with prior knowledge and experiences. The program also teaches the importance of attending to higher order cognitive skills at all grades, such as reasoning, inferencing, perspective taking, and critical listening, speaking, reading, and writing across disciplines in ways that are appropriate for the age of the children. The program ensures that candidates understand that among the contributors to meaning making are language, including vocabulary and grammatical and discourse-level understandings; content knowledge; motivation and engagement; comprehension monitoring; and in the case of reading and writing, the ability to recognize and produce printed words and use the alphabetic code to express ideas automatically and efficiently with understanding. The program highlights the importance of providing children opportunities to interact with a range of print and digital, high-quality literary and informational texts that are developmentally appropriate and culturally and linguistically relevant and affirming as listeners, speakers, readers, and writers and to share their understandings, insights, and responses in collaboration with others. Through coursework and supervised field experiences, candidates learn to engage children in listening, reading, speaking, writing, and viewing closely to draw information from texts, ask and answer questions, and support analysis, reflection, and research. Candidates also learn to promote deep and sustained reading of increasingly complex texts and to plan instruction, including intentional scaffolding and integration of children's asset, based on an analysis of the text complexity of instructional materials and the integration of meaning making with other themes.
(j) Standard 7C: Language Development. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), coursework and supervised field experiences emphasize language development as the cornerstone of literacy, learning, and relationship building and as a social process and meaning making system. Candidates learn that it is with and through language that children learn, think, and express information, ideas, perspectives, and questions orally and in writing. Candidates also learn to provide young children with thoughtful and rich exposure to and experience with varied forms of language and to respond attentively to children's use of language. The program presents ways to create environments and frame interactions that foster oral and written language development for all children, including discipline-specific academic language. Candidates learn to express interest in and attend to children's verbalizations and expand and elaborate on their language, adding details or more complex sentence structures. The program focuses on instruction that values and leverages children' existing linguistic repertoires, including home languages and dialects, and that accepts and encourages translanguaging. The program promotes multilingualism and addresses multiliteracy in both English-medium and multilingual programs. The program addresses the importance of developing children's language, including their knowledge of how language works. Candidates learn to support children's oral and written language development, including vocabulary knowledge and use. The program highlights effective teaching of vocabulary both indirectly (through rich and varied language experiences, frequent independent reading, and word play/word consciousness) and directly (through the explicit teaching of general academic and discipline-specific terms and of independent word learning strategies, including morphology and etymology). The program also attends to grammatical and discourse-level understandings of language. Candidates learn that grammatical structures (e.g., syntax) and vocabulary interact to form text types or genres that vary according to purpose, intended audience, context, situation, and discipline. The program addresses ways to facilitate children's learning of complex sentence and text structures and emphasizes that children enrich their language as they listen, speak, read, and write; interact with one another; learn about language; create diverse oral, print, digital, and multimodal texts; and engage with rich content across disciplines. Candidates learn to plan instruction based on the analysis of instructional materials and tasks; the assessment (formal and informal) of individual children's speaking, writing, and other communications; understanding of children's English language proficiency; and the integration of language development with other themes.
(k) Standard 7D: Effective Expression. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), coursework and supervised field experiences address effective oral and written expression, including how children learn to effectively express themselves as activity, play, and discussion partners; presenters; and writers and to use digital media and visual displays to enhance their expression in a manner that is appropriate for their age and development. Candidates learn how to engage children in a range of interactions and collaborative conversations with diverse partners on grade-level topics and texts and to engage young children in extended conversations in which multiple conversational turns are taken. Candidates learn to help children identify effective expression in what they listen to, view, and read, as they examine the words, images, and organizational structure of written, oral, or visual text. Through the program, candidates learn to teach children to discuss, orally present, and write in ways appropriate to their age and development so that their meanings are conveyed clearly, logically, powerfully, and, when appropriate and desired, poetically. Candidates also learn how to help children communicate in ways appropriate for their purpose, audience, context, and task and gain command over the conventions of written and spoken English (along with other languages in multilingual programs) as they create print and digital texts. The program focuses on candidate instruction and supervised support that values and leverages children's existing languages and dialects, including translanguaging, and that promotes effective expression in languages other than English in both English-medium and multilingual programs. Through coursework and supervised field experiences, candidates learn to create writing-rich environments with instruction that carefully guides and supports children as they learn to write daily for various purposes, including informal writing. Candidates learn to model writing and engage children in responding to texts and experiences through dictation and writing that support learning and reflection across disciplines. Candidates learn that young children begin with drawings, marks, and scribbles that become strings of letters and phonetically spelled words and progress to conventional spellings and sentences. The program includes explicit instruction for children in transitional kindergarten and kindergarten in letter formation/printing and related language conventions, such as capitalization and punctuation, in conjunction with applicable decoding skills.
Candidates learn to support children in grade one and beyond in the development of the organization, style, and mechanics of their writing. Additionally, candidates learn to teach children to plan, develop, provide feedback to peers, revise using peer and teacher feedback, edit, and produce their own writing and oral presentations in increasingly sophisticated genres, drawing on the modes of opinion, information, and narration. Candidates learn the importance of supporting students to use keyboarding, technology, and multimedia, as appropriate, and the value of developing spelling and handwriting fluency in the writing process. Candidates also learn to engage children in self- and peer-assessment using a range of tools and to allocate sufficient time for creation, reflection, and revision. The program teaches candidates to plan instruction based on the analysis of instructional materials and tasks; the assessment (formal and informal) of individual children's speaking, writing, or other communications; and the integration of effective expression with other themes.
(l) Standard 7E: Content Knowledge. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), coursework and supervised field experiences address content knowledge, which includes literary, cultural, and discipline-specific knowledge, as a powerful contributor to the comprehension of texts and sources of information and ideas. The program highlights the integration of literacy across disciplines and the reciprocal relationships among the development of academic language(s), literacy, and content knowledge. Additionally, the program promotes the collaboration of educators to plan and implement instruction that maximizes children's development of literacy skills and content knowledge. The program also teaches candidates to understand that while building content knowledge enhances literacy development, it also serves to motivate many children, particularly when the content relevance is clear, reflects and values children's diverse experiences and cultures, and is responsive to their interests. The program emphasizes the importance of full access to content instruction -- including through print and digital texts and multimedia, discussions, experimentation, and hands-on explorations -- for all children. The program teaches candidates to provide the supports needed based on children's language proficiency levels or learning differences and addresses inclusive practices and co-teaching models. Candidates learn to foster new learning and provide choices that reflect and expand children's interests; they engage children in learning experiences that connect to the worlds they know while enriching and extending those worlds. The program helps candidates build children's understandings of the ways in which disciplines use language and literacy to engage with content and communicate as members of discourse communities (e.g., historians, scientists).
The program addresses the role of content knowledge as children navigate increasingly complex literary and informational texts, research questions of interest, evaluate the credibility of sources, and share knowledge as writers and speakers in ways that are appropriate to their age and development. The program also teaches wide and independent reading in knowledge building and literacy development. In addition, the program provides multiple opportunities for candidates learn how to promote digital literacy and the use of educational technology, including the ability to find, evaluate, use, share, analyze, create, and communicate digital resources safely and responsibly, and to foster digital citizenship in ways that are appropriate for children's age and development. The program teaches candidates to plan instruction based on the analysis of instructional materials, tasks, and student progress as well as the integration of content knowledge with other themes.
(m) 7F: Literacy Instruction for Children with Disabilities. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), coursework and supervised field experiences provide candidates an understanding of how various disabilities can impact literacy instruction (e.g., dyslexia, dysgraphia, autism, speech/language impairment, varied cognitive abilities, executive function disorder, visual impairments and blindness, deaf and hard of hearing). The program addresses how candidates can appropriately adapt, differentiate, and accommodate instruction to provide access to the curriculum for all children and to work effectively within co-teaching and inclusion models. The program teaches candidates to understand their responsibility for providing initial and supplemental instruction for children. Candidates learn and practice how to collaborate with families and guardians as well as with other teachers, specialists, and administrators from the school or district to gain additional assessment and instructional support for children. The program also teaches candidates to understand the distinction between the characteristics of emerging bi/multilingualism and the range of learning disabilities. Candidates learn the importance of accurate identification (neither over- nor under-identification) of multilingual and English learner students with disabilities and to seek support from language development and disability education specialists to initiate appropriate referrals and interventions. The program incorporates the California Dyslexia Guidelines, as specified in Education Code § 44259(b)(4), through literacy coursework and, where practicable, supervised field experiences that include the definition of dyslexia and its characteristics; screening to determine literacy profiles and the risk for dyslexia and other potential reading and writing difficulties or disabilities; and effective approaches for teaching and adapting/differentiating instruction for children at risk for and with dyslexia and other literacy-related disabilities. Candidates learn that guiding principles for educating children at risk for and with dyslexia and other literacy-related disabilities are anchored in valid assessment and instructional practices that are evidence based and that incorporate structured literacy (i.e., instruction that is comprehensive, systematic, explicit, cumulative, and multimodal and that includes phonology, orthography, phonics, morphology, syntax, and semantics) along with other cognitive and perceptual supports.
(n) Standard 7G: Integrated and Designated English Language Development. As outlined in Education Code Section 44259(b)(4), coursework and supervised field experiences emphasize that ELD should be integrated into ELA and all other content instruction and build on children's cultural and linguistic assets, including their home languages and dialects. The program also emphasizes that comprehensive ELD includes both integrated and designated ELD and is part of Tier 1 instruction. Candidates learn how integrated and designated ELD are related, building into and from one another, and how designated ELD should be taught in connection with (rather than isolated from) content areas and topics. Through coursework and supervised field experiences, candidates learn to provide integrated ELD in which children identified as English learner students are taught to use and understand English to access and make meaning of academic content throughout the school day and across disciplines. All candidates learn to use the ELA/literacy standards, Preschool Learning Foundations, (or other content standards), and ELD standards, as defined in § 11300 (a, c), in tandem to plan instruction that advances English learner students' academic and language development, strengthening their abilities to use academic English as they simultaneously learn content. The program teaches candidates to design instruction that is appropriate for children's literacy profiles, levels of English language proficiency, and prior educational experiences. Candidates also learn to design instruction that develops children's abilities to use English purposefully, interact in meaningful ways, and understand how English works. The program also prepares candidates to provide designated ELD as a part of the regular school day in which English learner students are taught English language skills critical for engaging in grade-level content learning. Candidates learn that designated ELD instruction is tailored to children's proficiency on the English language development continuum, based on the ELD standards. Candidates also learn to use the ELD standards as the focus of instruction in designated ELD in ways that support content instruction, building into and from specific topics of study. To the extent possible, the program provides supervised field experiences for candidates that include English learner students and recently reclassified English learner students.
(o) Standard 7H: Literacy Teaching Performance Expectations and Supervised Clinical Practice. The program teaches all elements of the Literacy Teaching Performance Expectations and provides instruction, practice, and informal feedback and self-assessment focused on the knowledge, skills, and abilities required by any required local and/or state literacy performance assessments. Supervised, guided practice in clinical settings, as specified in § 80067.2(b) and § 80067.2(c), provides opportunities for candidates to apply what they have learned and to gain feedback on how to improve and/or develop their practice to meet the learning needs of their children.(p) Standard 8: Effective Mathematics Instruction in PK-3 Settings. The credential program's coursework and supervised field experiences include the study of effective means of teaching mathematics to young children, consistent with the State Board adopted K-3 Mathematics Standards and Framework and the Preschool Learning Foundations and Curriculum Framework adopted by the state board of education under Education Code sections 51002, 51226, and 60605. Coursework and supervised field experiences prepare teachers to model mathematical thinking, inquiry, practice, and processes in their classrooms and to engage in mathematics teaching and learning in a mutually respectful manner with students. Coursework and supervised field experiences prepare candidates to draw on and extend children's prior mathematical knowledge, understandings, and capabilities. The program prepares candidates to build positive relationships with children that help candidates understand children's mathematical understandings and provide appropriate learning activities and experiences that build on children's developing mathematical capabilities. The program prepares candidates to use their knowledge of individual children to meet them where they are developmentally and provide the support needed to sustain their progress.
Through coursework and supervised field experiences programs stress the goal of building children's conceptual understanding so that children develop a strong foundation for later math learning. Candidates learn to engage children in activities that encourage students to use a range of tools and strategies to solve problems, including working in pairs or small groups. The program teaches candidates to relate mathematics to children's interests and everyday life and embed math learning opportunities in daily activities. Candidates learn how to differentiate instruction and learning activities to meet individual children's learning needs.
Candidates learn to provide learning activities and opportunities for children to figure out different ways to solve problems on their own or with classmates, and to explain or show how they arrived at their solution to the problem. Programs emphasize the importance of observing, listening, and reflecting on children's mathematical thinking and discourse and asking questions, posing new learning activities and opportunities and providing a variety of tools to further surface and build on children's mathematical thinking. Candidates learn to ask children questions to elicit children's thinking and problem-solving processes as they engage in math activities.
Coursework and supervised field experiences prepare teachers to facilitate children's learning in all of the critical strands of mathematics in the areas of 1) number and operations, including counting and cardinality, 2) mathematical thinking and understanding relationships, 3) algebra and functions, 4) measurement and data analysis, and 5) geometry. For all strands and across all grade levels PK-3, the program provides teachers with effective ways to both engage children in thinking about mathematics while they do mathematics, and help children develop confidence in their mathematical skills. The program assists teachers to learn to help children develop increasingly complex mathematical understandings and skills consistent with the progression of the mathematics strands identified in the K-3 Mathematics Standards and Framework and the Preschool Learning Foundations and Curriculum Framework.
Through coursework and supervised field experiences, candidates learn that deep mathematical thinking and learning occurs and is supported through promoting multiple modes of communication about mathematics, including language, gestures, movement, use of a variety of tools, writing, art, and other modalities, thereby allowing all children, including English learners and children with disabilities, opportunities to express their mathematical development in meaningful and comprehensible ways.
(t) Standard 9: Induction Individual Development Plan. Before exiting the preliminary program, candidates, LEA-based supervisors, and program supervisors collaborate on an individual development plan (IDP) consisting of recommendations for professional development and growth in the candidate's clear program. The plan is a portable document archived by the preliminary program and provided to the candidate for transmission to the clear/induction program.Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 5, § 80067.2
Note: Authority cited: Section 44225, Education Code. Reference: Sections 44256(c), 44259.7, 44265, 44265.5, 44227.7 and 44373, Education Code.
1. New section filed 2-7-2024; operative 4/1/2024 (Register 2024, No. 6).