Teachers

Highly Qualified and USOE Qualfied

 

Highly Qualified (HQ) is a term used to define whether teachers have met specific teacher professional development standards.  It is a term that is most closely associated with the provisions in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), more commonly referred to as No Child Left Behind (NCLB).  Quite often excellent, veteran teachers with years of experience and wonderful pedagogy are still not deemed HQ under the provisions of this law.  Nevertheless, there are a number of steps teachers can take to become HQ in social studies.  

Sometimes teachers can be HQ from the standpoint of NCLB for part of what they are teaching, but not qualfied under USOE guidelines for all of their teaching assignments. This may occur, for example, when a teacher has a history background with a history major and a history endorsement and is assigned to teach geography. In this case, even though the teacher is HQ in history, without the endorsement in geography the teacher will not be HQ or USOE qualified to teach geography. Here is what to do if you have been told you are not USOE qualified:

  • My Principal Just Told Me I’m “Not Qualified.” - PDF Version

 

 

 

 

 

For further information, contact Robert Austin, State Social Studies Specialist - 801.538.7708; FAX 801.538.7769
This page last updated September 22, 2006