Highly Qualified Teachers
The purpose of ESEA Title II, Part A is to help states and school districts ensure that all students have effective teachers; that is, teachers with the subject-matter knowledge and teaching skills necessary to help all children achieve to high academic standards, regardless of individual learning styles or needs. In this regard, the program provides substantial funding to help states and districts recruit, train, reward, and retain effective teachers. Title II, Part A and Title I, Part A also place particular emphasis on the need for states and districts to ensure that teachers of core academic subjects meet certain minimum requirements to become effective educators. The criteria to be considered highly qualified are that teachers hold at least a bachelor’s degree, be fully licensed by the state, and demonstrate content knowledge in each subject they teach. By the end of the 2005-06 school years, one hundred percent of core academic teachers were mandated to meet the requirements.
A description of South Carolina’s implementation of the requirements for highly qualified (HQ) teachers is available in the following document:
Quick Facts about South Carolina's Highly Qualified Teacher Requirement
Teachers can verify their HQ status through the "View Certification Status" link at http://www.scteachers.org.
More detailed information for administrators is found in the HQ 101 Notebook.
Approved district users of the Certification Portal System have access to teachers’ HQ status.
PARAPROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
In a similar manner, Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is designed to help disadvantaged children reach high academic standards. The Act imposes higher standards of qualifications to ensure that students who need the most help receive instructional support from qualified paraprofessionals.
§2141: Corrective action related to the employment of paraprofessionals is mandated by §2141 of the Act. Review South Carolina’s policy and district tracking. .
Section 2141(a)(b)(c) Policy; Section 2141 District Tracking