Kentucky Teaching Certification

Kentucky Educ. Statistics

Avg. Elem. Teacher Salary	$48,300
Avg. Sec. Teacher Salary	$50,040
Teacher Retention (?)	96%
Average Admin. Salary	$80,190
Vacation Wks/Yr	15

Getting Involved...

Investing in our future is vitally important and strangely difficult. In order to fight oppression from the greedy and power-hungry elite, to better our ways of life with advancing technology, and to increase our country's overall views toward the concept of acceptance, we need education to be a priority. Learn how you can be a spoke in this terribly important wheel. See how Kentucky measures up to the rest of the country by viewing the percentage of state revenue going toward education in each state. (see State Education Spending vs. Overall State Revenue).

Learn AboutYour Governor'sTrack Record

Learn about your Governor's views and voting record with regard to education. (see Kentucky Governor's website).

Give YourKnowledge PowerBy Voting

Hold your public servants accountable. It is our duty as residents of Kentucky.

Help Make Education A Priority

Initial Kentucky Teaching Certification

The Kentucky Department of Education reported that in the 2009-10 school year, there were 44,023 public school teachers serving 644,963 public school students in the state. This represents a 1:14.6 teacher-student ratio. That year, Kentucky ranked twelfth in the nation in terms of the number of new teaching certificates issued. Almost five percent of Kentucky’s teachers that year were certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, which signifies that these program graduates demonstrated a commitment to excellence in teaching. Find schools offering teaching certification programs in Kentucky.

Education Requirements

Recommended Programs for Educators:

USC Rossier Master of Arts in Teaching Online — No GRE ^*

The Master of Arts in Teaching online (MAT online) from the USC Rossier School of Education prepares aspiring teachers for diverse and high-needs educational settings and can be completed in 12 months.

* GRE scores not required
Prepare for teaching credential

The Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board (502-564-5846) requires that all certified teachers in the state possess at least a bachelor’s degree with a minimum 2.5 total GPA (or 3.0 on the last 60 semester hours of coursework), and graduate from an approved program of teacher preparation in Kentucky.

If you completed a teacher preparation program outside of Kentucky, you are still a possible candidate for Kentucky teacher certification. Because Kentucky is a member of the NASDTEC Interstate Agreement, as long as your program was through a regionally accredited college or university in another state that is a NASDTEC member, the Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board will accept your credits.

If you completed your educator preparation program in a foreign country, you must have a course-by-course evaluation of your academic credits performed by one of these approved credential evaluation agencies.

Certification Options
Base teaching certificates offered in Kentucky correspond to the teacher training program you completed. They include:

Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education (Birth to Primary)
Elementary School (Primary to Grade 5)
Middle School (Grades 5 through 9)
Secondary School (Grades 8 through 12)
Middle/Secondary School (Grades 5 through 12)
Elementary/Middle/Secondary School (Primary through Grade 12)
Exceptional Children (Primary through Grade 12)

Endorsements offered in each of these areas are listed in the Examinations section below.

Examinations

For a synopsis of the assessment requirements for teachers in Kentucky, visit the Praxis website.

Basic skills testing:
Before you are accepted into a Kentucky teacher preparation program at a college or university, you will most likely be required to pass the Praxis I Basic Skills tests in reading, writing and mathematics. Contact your school advisor for more information on this requirement.

Content area assessment testing:
To receive an endorsement on your teaching certificate designating that you are allowed to teach in a certain content area, you must pass the Praxis II exam pertaining to that area. Exams are available for the following endorsement areas:

Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education (Birth through Grade P)
Elementary Education (Grades P-5)
Middle School (Grades 5-9):

English and Communications
Mathematics
Social Studies
Science
Agriculture
Business and Marketing Education
Engineering and Technology
Family and Consumer Sciences
Industrial Education

Secondary Education (Grades 8-12):

Biology
Chemistry
Earth Science
English
Mathematics
Physics
Social Studies
Journalism
Psychology
Sociology
Speech/Media Communications

All Grades:

Arabic
Chinese
Japanese
Russian
French
German
Latin
Spanish
Art
Health
Integrated Music
Vocal Music
Instrumental Music
Physical Education
Health and Physical Education
Communication Disorders
Hearing Impaired
Hearing Impaired with Sign Proficiency
Learning and Behavior Disorders
Gifted
Moderate and Severe Disabilities
Visually Impaired
Computer Information Systems
Dance
English as a Second Language
Theater
Literacy Specialist
Reading

Experience Requirements

As an applicant for teacher certification in Kentucky, you must complete a verifiable student teaching internship experience. This experience must be documented on your Application for Kentucky Certification and signed by the superintendent of the school where you served your internship. Your student teaching internship must be appropriate to the grade level and/or content area in which you plan to teach, and must be full-time.

During your student teaching experience, you can expect to lead the class, prepare and implement lesson plans, and assist and observe a classroom teacher, who will also be monitoring, assessing, and offering feedback on your classroom performance. The length of your student teaching experience will vary depending upon the policies of your college or university’s teacher preparation program.

Document and Application Requirements

Upon fulfilling your educational, experiential, and examination requirements for teacher certification in Kentucky, you may formally apply. File the Application for Kentucky Certification form. Complete Section I in its entirety and sign at the bottom of the section. Have the superintendent at the school where you completed your student teaching experience complete Section II. The institution where you completed your teacher preparation program must fill out Section IV. In addition,

Request that Educational Testing Service (ETS) forward your Praxis scores to the Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board
Attach official copies of your college transcripts
Attach check or money order for payment of application fees, payable to the Kentucky State Treasurer

Mail all of the above to Division of Certification, Education Professional Standards Board,
100 Airport Road, 3rd Floor, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601.

Criminal History Background Check

The Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board does not require a criminal history background check for teacher certification. However, such a check is mandatory before any Kentucky school will hire you to work with children in any capacity. Most Kentucky public and private schools use the AOCFastCheck online system to conduct criminal history background checks in a more effective and faster manner. This online system is conducted through the Administrative Office of the Courts. Applications for background checks are also still accepted in-person and via mail. For more information, contact the Administrative Office of the Courts at AOC Records Unit, 100 Millcreek Park, Frankfort, KY 40601 or by phone at 800-928-6381.

Contact Information

If you’re interested in more information on Kentucky colleges and universities that house approved teacher preparation programs, contact the Division of Educator Preparation at 502-564-4606.

For more information on educator certification in Kentucky, contact the Division of Certification at 502-564-5846.

**Teacher Retention Sources - U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education, Statistics Schools and Staffing Survey, 1999–2000 (“Public School Teacher Questionnaire,” “Private School Teacher Questionnaire,” and “Public Charter School Teacher Questionnaire”), and 2000–01 Teacher Follow-up Survey (“Questionnaire for Current Teachers” and “Questionnaire for Former Teachers,” Table 1.01). Washington, DC.

State estimations based on analysis by Richard Ingersoll, Professor of Education and Sociology, University of Pennsylvania, from the National Center for Education Statistics Student and Staffing Survey, and therefore include a slight margin of error.