Supporting the Needs of Experience-Base Licensed CTE Teachers

By Deanna Schultz, Associate Dean, University of Wisconsin-Stout

School districts are hiring industry experts under Experience-Based Technical and Vocational Education Subject licenses at an increasing rate. In 2018-19, 213 experience-based licenses (EBL) were issued to 185 people, nearly double the number of license endorsements by all Wisconsin educator preparation programs for CTE teachers, including non-traditional route programs. The benefit of hiring EBL individuals is that they bring industry experience with them to the classroom. And while they bring knowledge from a specific industry to the classroom, they may lack the breadth of content knowledge identified in state standards for each CTE discipline area. For example, state standards for family and consumer sciences include human development; food, nutrition, and wellness; housing and interior design; consumer economics; and textiles and apparel. An EBL teacher may have culinary experience from working in the hospitality industry yet have limited or even no knowledge in the other areas within the discipline, thus limiting the course offerings within a school’s family and consumer sciences area if they are the sole teacher within that discipline.

The other gap EBL teachers have compared to Tier II licensed teachers is in pedagogical knowledge. The Wisconsin state statute that guides educator preparation programs, PI-34, requires pedagogical knowledge and content knowledge in the subject area as well as requiring all teachers to have knowledge and understanding of equity (minority group relations), conflict resolution, working with children with disabilities, and other professional responsibilities (PI 34.022). Within the CTE disciplines, those other responsibilities include supervising work-based learning and career and technical student organizations (CTSOs). Filling these gaps for EBL licensed teachers falls to the local school district and varies from district to district, depending on resources available.

The University of Wisconsin-Stout, with over 100 years’ experience in preparing vocational/career and technical educators, has responded to the call from school districts to provide options for EBL teachers to obtain pedagogical knowledge and discipline-specific knowledge. UW-Stout offers three options to address the needs of these teachers.

1. Experience-based License Teacher “Boot Camps”: School districts contract with UW-Stout to provide a series of four seminars designed to help the participants become effective CTE teachers. The seminars are delivered over two years in a hybrid format, with two days of face-to-face instruction with faculty who have expertise in the content as well as K-12 teaching experience. The seminars address classroom management and inclusion; teaching methods; assessing student learning; and foundations of career and technical education, including work-based learning and CTSOs. Following the seminars, participants engage in online interactions and assignments over the remainder of the semester. These “boot camps” have been offered since 2017 for Kenosha and Racine Unified School Districts which partnered to offer them to their EBL teachers. These boot camps provide professional development that allows a Tier I licensed teacher to renew and maintain that license.

2. Practical Skills for Beginning K-12 Career and Technical Educators Certificate: This certificate is based on courses offered in UW-Stout’s CTE teacher preparation programs to meet the professional development requirements for EBL teachers, allowing them to renew and maintain their Tier I license. The certificate is 15 credits with courses offered entirely online at both the undergraduate and graduate level, and it can serve as a pathway into one of the Tier II licensure programs.  

3. Career and Technical Education Online Degree Programs: For adults choosing to change their career and become a Tier II licensed family and consumer sciences education, marketing and business education, or technology education teacher, UW-Stout offers programs that lead to certification. Pedagogy courses are offered online and technical coursework can be completed at the local technical college if not available online from UW-Stout. The programs are designed for working adults, especially those hired as EBL teachers, so they can continue working while completing the coursework. Obtaining a Tier II license creates opportunities for individuals to host student teachers, pursue administrator licenses, and move into K-12 education leadership roles.

Research conducted with 2017 boot camp participants indicated that their confidence and knowledge related to teaching increased, particularly in assessing student learning and adjusting instruction based on assessments. School administrators also indicated that the EBL teachers improved their practice and gained better understanding about their role as a teacher.

For more information about these EBL options provided by UW-Stout, you may contact Cheryl Kothe, Project Manager, at [email protected]