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Acceptable continuing professional education activities

If you obtained a teacher certificate on or after Sept. 1, 1999, or you have voluntarily “opted in” to the certificate renewal system, you are required to obtain continuing professional education (CPE) every five years from an SBEC-approved provider in order to renew your certificate. For the most part, existing school district-provided inservice should count toward the CPE requirement, as may other activities such as college coursework, professional seminars, serving as a mentor and self-directed study. TCTA is an SBEC-approved provider and members can earn CPE hours online through TCTA’s free online seminars. SBEC counts the following for purposes of CPE:

One semester credit hour earned at an accredited institution of higher education is equivalent to 15 CPE clock hours.

At least 80 percent of the CPE activities should be directly related to the certificate(s) being renewed and focus on the standards required for the initial issuance of the certificate(s), including:

  • (1) content area knowledge and skills;
  • (2) professional ethics and standards of conduct;
  • (3) professional development, which should encompass topics such as the following:
    • a. district and campus priorities and objectives
    • b. child development, including research on how children learn
    • c. discipline management
    • d. applicable federal and state laws
    • e. diversity and special needs of student populations
    • f. increasing and maintaining parental involvement
    • g. integration of technology into educational practices
    • h. ensuring that students read at or above grade level
    • i. diagnosing and removing obstacles to student achievement
    • j. instructional techniques

The list of acceptable CPE activities is quite broad. For more information on the CPE requirements and a list of SBEC-approved providers, see the SBEC Web site.

Separate and apart from CPE requirements are mandates in some districts for professional development as a condition of employment in the district. The district can decide what it will and won’t count for local employment purposes, but the district cannot decide what will count for CPE purposes.