Getting Certified in 50 States

Abbreviations

S. hrs.-- Semester hours

SLMS-- School library media specialist

Table Explanation

Table 1. "Certification Requirements" lists the date the requirements became effective or the date on which the information was first published. The table also lists the titles of certificates or endorsement areas; the academic preparation, experience, and recommendations necessary for those areas; and any standardized tests that are required.
Tests. Thirty-five states currently use some form of testing associated with preparatory programs or licensure, certification, and endorsement. Ten states have their own tests and 25 others administer a component of the Praxis Series, designed and administered by the Educational Testing Service. (For additional information about the Praxis Series, call 609-771-7395; or visit www.teachingandlearning.org/
licnsure/praxis; or e-mail praxis@ets.org.) The Praxis Series includes:
Praxis I: Academic Skills Assessments
* Pre-Professional Skills Tests (PPST), which are traditional, paper-based tests
* Computer-Based Tests (PI-CBT)
Praxis II: Subject Assessments
* Core Battery Tests, formerly NTE Core Battery (General Knowledge, Communication Skills, Professional Knowledge)
* Subject Assessments/Specialty Area Tests (Library Media Specialist--10310)
* Multiple Subjects Assessment for Teachers (MSAT)
* Principles of Learning and Teaching Tests (PLT).
The following 16 states require the Praxis II Specialty Area Test/Library Media Specialist for some form of school librarian certification: Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
Seven states require other specialty tests: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Texas. Contact the individual states to inquire about reciprocity and other testing exemptions.

Table 2. "Knowledge/Subject Areas/ Competencies" specifies course content in broad library and information science terms, but retains the wording used by individual states. Some states require applicants to meet or demonstrate extensive competencies. In such cases, I have included the notation "competency based." For a more complete description of the required competencies, contact the individual states. The following 18 states currently require applicants to meet or demonstrate competencies: Alabama, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Three states have identified the extensive NCATE competencies as the basis for their preparatory programs: Michigan, Oklahoma, and West Virginia.