Secondary Teacher Preparation: District of
Columbia

Analysis of District of Columbia's policies

The District of Columbia requires that its secondary teacher candidates pass a Praxis II content test to teach any core secondary subjects.  

Unfortunately, the District permits a significant loophole to this important policy by allowing both general science and general social studies licenses, without requiring subject-matter testing for each subject area within these disciplines. 

General social studies candidates must pass the Praxis II Social Studies: Content Knowledge test. Teachers with this license are not limited to teaching general social studies but rather can teach any of the topical areas. (For the District's science loophole, see Goal 1-G.)

To add an endorsement area, secondary teachers may choose from the following options: earn a passing score on a Praxis II content exam, complete a major or major equivalent in the subject area, or meet the coursework requirements outlined in the District's regulations.

Citation

DC Municipal Regulations, 5.1619, 5.1610 Teacher Licensure Requirements osse.dc.gov/seo/cwp/view,a,1224,Q,563671,PM,1.asp Praxis Testing Requirements www.ets.org Teaching Endorsement Licenses http://www.osse.dc.gov/seo/cwp/view,a,1224,Q,564399,PM,1.asp

Recommendations for District of Columbia

Require subject-matter testing for all secondary teacher candidates. 
The District of Columbia wisely requires subject-matter tests for most secondary teachers but should address any loopholes that undermine this policy (see Goal 1-G). 

Require secondary social studies teachers to pass a content test for each discipline they are licensed to teach.
By allowing a general social studies certification—and only requiring a general knowledge social studies exam—the District of Columbia is not ensuring that its secondary teachers possess adequate subject-specific content knowledge. The state's required assessment combines all subject areas (e.g., history, geography, economics) and does not report separate scores for each subject area. 

Require subject-matter testing when adding subject-area endorsements.
The District of Columbia should require passing scores on subject-specific content tests, regardless of other coursework or degree requirements, for teachers who are licensed in core secondary subjects and wish to add another subject area, or endorsement, to their licenses. While coursework may be generally indicative of background in a particular subject area, only a subject-matter test ensures that teachers know the specific content they will need to teach.

State response to our analysis

The District of Columbia asserted that it would be helpful if NCTQ defined general science and social studies because it is the District's belief that these courses cover a blending of the sciences and a blending of topics covered in general social studies classrooms. Therefore, the District contends that it has adopted the appropriate exams for these subjects. 

Last word

The issue is not that general science and general social studies are allowable licensure areas, but rather that teacher candidates are not required to pass a content test in each subject area prior to entering the classroom. Most high school science courses are specialized, and the teachers of these subjects are not interchangeable. Teachers obtaining the general science license need only pass a general knowledge science exam, which does not ensure subject-specific content knowledge. This means that a teacher with a background in biology could be fully certified to teach advanced chemistry or physics having passed only a general science test—and perhaps answering most of the chemistry or physics questions incorrectly.  Likewise, for the general social studies certification, teachers can have a background in a wide variety of fields, ranging from history and political science to anthropology and psychology. Under such a license a teacher who majored in psychology could teach history to high school students having passed only a general knowledge test and answering most—and perhaps all—history questions incorrectly.