美国ESL教师证书的新规定

US New Regulations in ESL Teacher Certification

摘要: 在美国，没有全国通用的中小学教师证书，教师的证书都是由每个州自己颁发的，只能在本州任教。持有某个州的教师证书的老师，如到其他州任教，必须获得该州的教师证书。多年来有不少教育机构都在呼吁设立全国认可的教师证书机制，但由于各州都有自己的法规，很难实现。不过，在教育证书专业的标准、评估方式及考核方面而言，都有全国通用的趋势，以保障教育质量和证书水平的一致性。本文主要是讨论美国的教师证书的体系、要求、申请程序、ESL教师证书专业的新要求、新规定，尤其是最近几年对教学实习的新要求和教师绩效评估(edTPA )考试。这些新规定对ESL (English as a Second Language)教师证书专业和学生有很大的影响，也对中国英语老师教育有一定的借鉴作用。

Abstract: In the United States, there is no national primary and secondary school teacher certificate, and the teacher’s certificate is issued by each state. Teachers who have a state teacher certification must be certified as a teacher in another state if they want to teach in another state. Over the years many educational institutions are calling for the establishment of a nationally recognized teacher certification scheme, but because each state has its own laws and regulations, it is hard to come true. However, there is a general tendency in the United States in nationalization of standards, ac-creditations, and assessment of teacher education programs to guarantee the consistency of the quality of education and the level of certificates. This article mainly discusses the teacher certifi-cation system, requirements, application procedures, new requirements and new regulations of the ESL teacher certification in the United States, especially the new requirements for teaching practice and the edTPA (Education Teacher Preparation Assessment) in recent years. These new regulations have a great impact on ESL teacher certification programs and students, and also may have some reference to China’s English teacher education.