Questions and answers about the American Board
for the Certification of Teacher Excellence
1. What is the American Board for the Certification of Teacher Excellence?
The American Board for the Certification of Teacher Excellence (ABCTE) was created in 2001 by the Education Leaders Council (ELC) and the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) to develop a fast-track teaching certificate, the “Passport to Teaching.” ABCTE’s approach to licensure de-values teacher preparation and teaching as a profession.
2. Who are the ABCTE supporters?
The ELC was created in 1995 by ultra-conservative state superintendents and board members to express their politically conservative views. NCTQ is an offspring of the Fordham Foundation, run by Chester Finn.
ABCTE has strong backing from privatization proponents and pro-voucher organizations. The operation has been funded primarily by a five-year, $40 million grant from former U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige’s discretionary fund.
3. How does a prospective teacher acquire the ABCTE “Passport to Teaching?”
The “Passport to Teaching” does not require any coursework or experience in teaching. Prospective ABCTE teachers must possess a Bachelor’s degree, complete a background check, pass two computer-based tests, and pay $500 for the Passport. The ABCTE route to certification does not require prospective teachers to have experience working with children or an internship in schools. It doesn’t require that they show any evidence that they can help students learn.
4. How is the ABCTE testing approach different than the PRAXIS tests?
ABCTE has not published or made public the standards on which its tests are based. The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) says, “This lack of transparency or disclosure makes it impossible for state boards of education to determine the rigor of the standards, the validity of the assessments, or the alignment to state curriculum requirements of the “Passport to Teaching” tests.
The PRAXIS tests (developed by the highly-regarded Educational Testing Service) meet all of the scientific and research-based qualifications recommended by testing experts.
5. Shouldn’t people with strong content knowledge be allowed to become teachers?
They should. That is why NEA supports alternative routes to state licensure. But, those routes must include an emphasis on teaching skills and knowledge of how children learn and how different children learn differently, plus the practical, measurable application of that knowledge through student teaching or internships.
The ABCTE single-test approach de-values the professional teaching credential and is meant to lower standards for the teaching profession. Lowering standards for teachers at a time when we are raising standards for student achievement flies in the face of logic. Many believe it would set up new teachers to fail and would create a revolving-door labor market for teachers.
6. Do many states recognize the ABCTE “Passport to Teaching”?
Mississippi is the latest state to join Idaho, Florida, New Hampshire, Utah, and Pennsylvania in accepting the ABCTE “Passport to Teaching” as part of their state licensing systems. Many other states have defeated the issue, including California, Maryland, Missouri, and Minnesota.
7. Who – besides NEA – opposes the ABCTE “Passport to Teaching” approach to state licensure?
Leading national organizations, including the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), have joined in opposing use of the ABCTE program.
8. What should we look for in 2006?
Despite ABCTE supporters’ limited success in convincing state
policy makers of the program’s value, ABCTE will be taking an even
more aggressive approach, particularly in state legislatures. It continues
to have an influx of funds from the U.S. Department of Education, and
the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) will be
producing and distributing model legislation before 2006 legislative
sessions begin.
