When I was hired 18 years ago, I ran into a girl I knew at happy hour on a Friday who said her school was looking for anybody with a pulse and a bachelors degree. I interviewed on Monday and started on Wednesday.
Now I had put my application in with the district a few weeks earlier but there had been little movement as they kept talking about ten and twenty day counts, but all in all it wasn't that difficult.
Fast forward to 2018, a para at my school who had been subbing with her masters degree was offered a job several months ago and she is still waiting for the state to give her a temporary certificate.
Then in years past as I have had to re-certify, all I did was fill out an application, take a print out of my points and a check for fifty six bucks, to one of several school based drop off points and a few weeks later my renewal would arrive in the mail. It was easy-peasy.
Well now it just got a lot more challenging.
IMPORTANT Florida Educator Certification Changes
Now I had put my application in with the district a few weeks earlier but there had been little movement as they kept talking about ten and twenty day counts, but all in all it wasn't that difficult.
Fast forward to 2018, a para at my school who had been subbing with her masters degree was offered a job several months ago and she is still waiting for the state to give her a temporary certificate.
Then in years past as I have had to re-certify, all I did was fill out an application, take a print out of my points and a check for fifty six bucks, to one of several school based drop off points and a few weeks later my renewal would arrive in the mail. It was easy-peasy.
Well now it just got a lot more challenging.
IMPORTANT Florida Educator Certification Changes
The Florida Department of Education launched its new Educator Certification System on November 20, 2017. PLEASE NOTE: There are significant changes to the renewal/addition process and payment process. Therefore, you must follow the listed steps detailed on the DCPS Certification website to ensure your application is processed. It is possible you have already completed some of the steps; however, you must ensure you have completed ALL steps listed. Failure to follow these steps will delay the processing of your application for renewal and/or addition of a subject/endorsement.
STEP 1:
You must establish a new online user account at the following link: https://flcertify.fldoe.org/datamart/mainMenu.do
- Click Begin Here for Sign-up to create a new online user account and retrieve your temporary password sent via email.
- Enter your User ID and password then click Sign In to access this secure site.
- Once successfully signed in, educators will be prompted to complete an Initial Onboarding process to match your account to existing Florida certification records. Your social security number and date of birth are required to complete the onboarding process.
- The Quick Start Menu provides you a choice of options available based on your current Florida certification record.
STEP 2:
· Visit the DCPS Certification website for instructions to add a subject and/or endorsement to your Florida Educator Certificate.
· Visit the DCPS Certification website for instructions to upgrade from a Temporary to a Professional Certificate.
Great googly moogly, I read above three times and I still have no clue about what to do, but that's not the worst of it.
A colleague undergoing the process wrote:
Trying to renew my teaching certificate. We used to just go to a location, pay them and we'd get a certificate mailed to us. Now I have to go online, scan a bunch of documents (if I can figure out which ones and then round them up) in and try to figure out all this nonsense they are discussing on here. Then they'll take the money out of my paycheck. smh...why is everything so difficult? computers are supposed to make things easier...but with DOE involved...yeah???????
Couple above and how they have changed the certification tests so more and more people fail
and I would ask what the heck is going on, except I already know. The state of Florida is doing all it can to handicap the profession.
We have a teaching shortage that isn't going to get any better and where I am not for dumbing down the qualifications, private schools already don't have to have certified or even degree'd teachers, but at some point the evidence of how they are trying to destroy the profession becomes overwhelming.
Aint' technology grand 'cause it makes our lives a lot easier. Hmm, in this case, NOT. But basically you fill out (or rather, confirm) all the selections you picked when you first applied for a certificate, scan the printout you got from your bookkeeper for your PD points, and then you have to fill out and scan the payroll deduction.
ReplyDeleteThat last item is not from the state, it's how DCPS decided to roll. Other districts let you use a credit card or some other means.
I reupped this year, and while the scan etc. process was a pain, it wasn't too bad. It saved me a trip to Prudential or some other site.
With the current high teacher shortage, the State of Florida needs to change the requirements to teach in the classroom. The basic requirement should be to allow those with a degree from any University in the the State of Florida to begin teaching in the classroom. Do away with the General Knowledge Test, the Professional Education Test, and the Florida Educational Leadership Examination. The only test that should remain is the Subject Area Examinations. If you want to teach English, then take the Subject Area Exam in English to prove you know the rules of English Grammar. And that should be it! A college degree and one exam.
ReplyDeleteThey aren't just trying to handicap the profession - I think the intent is to take the whole public education down. My husband has been saying it for years and I am starting to think he may be right.
ReplyDelete