Indiana Approves New Teacher Standards: First to Align with Common Core

Indiana Department of Education Release:

The Indiana Professional Standards Advisory Board, in conjunction with the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE), unanimously approved new developmental and content standards for educators last week. This action makes Indiana the first state in the nation to fully align its teacher standards with Common Core State Standards. Produced in partnership with the Evaluation Systems group of Pearson, the new, rigorous standards are also aligned with the Indiana Academic Standards as well as national standards in each field.

The Indiana educator standards are custom-designed for Indiana and articulate IDOE’s expectations regarding the content and pedagogical knowledge and skills that are important for Indiana educators, including building and district-level leaders. The primary focus of the 46 content area standards is the subject-matter knowledge and skills needed to teach effectively in Indiana classrooms or to provide effective leadership in Indiana schools. The primary focus of the five school setting developmental standards is on the pedagogical knowledge and skills needed to teach in various school settings.

“With the launch of our new teacher standards, Indiana is blazing the trail nationally for preparation and licensure of new teachers and school leaders,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Tony Bennett. “The new standards will ensure all Indiana educators are well prepared to teach the subject areas in which they are licensed, provide leadership for our schools, and contribute to improved achievement for all Indiana students.”

Over 500 Indiana educators and over 100 higher education representatives participated in the rigorous development and review process. Dr. Bennett indicated that other states have expressed interest in the new Indiana standards and their development process.

“Evaluation Systems was honored to collaborate with Dr. Bennett and Indiana educators on this groundbreaking project in support of the Common Core State Standards,” said Dr. William Gorth, president of the Evaluation Systems group of Pearson. “It was a pleasure to work with educators and experts across many fields to develop and review the new standards.”

The Evaluation Systems group of Pearson has more than three decades of experience preparing teacher standards and developing, administering and scoring customized tests for prospective teachers in the United States and has created teacher certification tests for more than 100 content fields, professional teaching skills and the basic skills of college-level reading, writing and mathematics.

For more information on the Indiana Department of Education, go to www.doe.in.gov.

For more information about Common Core State Standards, please visit www.corestandards.org.

For more information about the Evaluation Systems group of Pearson, please visit www.teacher.pearsonassessments.com.