How should the data from the charter schools be viewed?
Because charter schools are established under the statutes of Act 22, they are permitted to employ and assign non-certificated teachers, as long as 75% of their instructional staff is certified. Therefore, specific matching against the TCS database would not reflect with complete accuracy all highly qualified teachers in a charter school. • Can teachers serving on emergency permits be considered “highly qualified” in accordance with the above definition? While most teachers serving on emergency permits could meet the USDOE definition of holding a bachelor’s degree and having a content area major or passing a content area test, Pennsylvania requires the completion of an approved teacher preparation program in order to be eligible for full certification. • How is certification monitored by the state? Every two years, a team from the Department of the Auditor General reviews each public school entity. Part of that review is the certification and assignment of professional staff. An audit
