College of Education and Behavioral Sciences

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Policy on Expiration of Courses and Programs Leading to Professional Education Certification

For undergraduate certification-only programs:

A student who entered WKU as a beginning freshman or transfer student Fall 2005 and thereafter (i.e., iCAP-eligible students) will be allowed seven consecutive years from the student's catalog term (initial term of entry) to complete teacher certification requirements. The Dean of the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences may grant an extension to this deadline.

For undergraduate courses used to satisfy requirements in programs leading to teacher certification:

Consistent with NCATE Standard 1 (Candidate Knowledge, Skills, and Professional Dispositions), approved courses for programs leading to teacher certification must be aligned with current standards. Some older courses may not be aligned with current standards, and thus it may not be appropriate to count them in a student's program. Generally speaking, professional education and "content" courses used to satisfy program requirements in programs leading to professional education certification should be no more than 10 years old. Decisions about whether older content courses may be used will be made on a case-by-case basis by the department head of the student's major. For students in programs leading to secondary certification (Grades P-12, 5-12, and 8-12), decisions about whether older pedagogy courses may be used will be made by the faculty in the department in which the course is offered. However, if the pedagogy course is offered outside of the School of Teacher Education, the decision about whether the course may be used will be made in consultation with the School of Teacher Education. In all cases, documentation regarding the currency of course content and the alignment of the course with current teacher standards must be provided by the student and approved by the department that offers the course, upon recommendation from the School of Teacher Education when appropriate. Students who wish to use courses older than 10 years to satisfy program requirements may be required to demonstrate proficiency related to current course content and learning outcomes.

For graduate certification-only programs, endorsement programs, Planned Fifth-Year (Rank II) programs, and Planned Sixth-Year (Rank I) programs:

Course work for programs leading to certification in professional education must be aligned with current standards. Some older courses are not aligned with current standards, and thus it may not be appropriate to count them in a student's program. Generally speaking, courses used to satisfy program requirements in programs leading to professional education certification should be no more than 10 years old at the time that the certification program is written. Decisions about whether older courses may be used will be made on a case-by-case basis by the department head of the student's major. Students may be required to demonstrate proficiency related to current course content if they wish to satisfy program requirements using courses taken more than 10 years prior to when the student's program of studies is written. All requirements for graduate certification-only, endorsement, Planned Fifth-Year, and Planned Sixth-Year programs must be completed within ten years from the date the first course was taken. Students may request an extension, which must be approved by the Dean of the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences on recommendation of the advisor and department head.

 

Revision approved by University Senate 5/13/13