Certification

Teaching in a public school in New Jersey requires a certificate issued by the State of New Jersey. When you successfully complete your requirements for the B. A. Degree in one of our education programs, the Certification Office of the University will assist you in obtaining your initial certification. The state will issue you a Certificate of Eligibility with Advanced Standing (CEAS) in your initial certification area that will permit you to obtain your first teaching job.

Most endorsements for teacher certification in New Jersey require passing of Praxis II tests. The current list of licensure areas, praxis tests and passing scores is available from the website of the Educational Testing Service.

Our programs will enable you to develop the Knowledge, Skills and Dispositions that are important when working with children in schools. These properties are part of our College of Education Spectrum Model which forms the basis of the Kean University College of Education. These components are developed by means of course work and field experiences in elementary (K-5), middle school (5-8), and secondary (K-12) classrooms visited in public schools.

Elementary K-5 Certification

The initial CEAS in elementary education is known as Teacher of Elementary K-5. This permits the holder to obtain a teaching job as a teacher of elementary children in grades K-5.

Elementary K-5--5-8 Certification

Those interested in teaching in a middle school require a Middle School Endorsement. Middle School endorsements are also issued by the State of New Jersey either with University assistance, or by application through your County Board of Education office. There is a Board of Education for each county in New Jersey. It is not the local school district Board of Education where you live. The County Board of Education is there to help you, as a citizen of that county, in your dealings with the State Department of Education.

For a Middle School endorsement, a course in Adolescent Psychology is required. You also need at least 15 credits of the subject you are interested in, a passing score on the appropriate Praxis II exam, and a CEAS in Elementary K-5. Consult your County Board of Education for details.

K-12 (Secondary) Certification

The MSE Program partners with a variety of traditional arts and sciences majors to prepare students to be teachers in high schools.

For K-12 certification, the Praxis II test to be passed is the one required for the certification you are seeking. Passing of your Praxis II test is required in order to be eligible for student teaching during the Professional Field experience. Consult the Teaching Performance center to apply for Professional Field.

Additional Information

Effective in September, 2007 the State of New Jersey mandated the end of Elementary Certification K-8 (Kindergarten through 8th grade). Elementary teachers are now required to be certified for grades K through 5 using an Elementary K-5 endorsement. Then, to obtain Middle School (5-8) certification, one must first become certified for Elementary K-5, then obtain an endorsement as a Teacher of Elementary with Subject Matter Specialization 5-8. These endorsements are available for Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and Spanish.

Certification Tests.

The State of New Jersey uses a series of tests known as Praxis II which must be passed in order to be eligible for certification as a classroom teacher. For entry into Professional Internship you must take and pass all Praxis II tests required for your teacher certification.

Elementary-Middle majors who will be certified as K-5, 5-8 must pass two Praxis II certification tests.

• 1. Passing of the Elementary Education Multiple Subjects Praxis II test (No. 5032) is required for K-5 certification. This constitutes your initial certification level.

  2. For your additional certification endorsement in 5-8, the appropriate Middle School Praxis II test is required to be passed.

Professional Field Student Teaching experience

Professional Internship is your traditional student teaching experience which includes an entire semester in a classroom as a practice teacher. Professional Internship students are assigned to a classroom and a cooperating teacher. They also have a university supervisor who will make eight official evaluations of them over the term of the semester. As with the other field courses, there a variety of assessments and evaluations that must be satisfactorily completed, including the Teacher Work Sample.