• New elementary school teachers. New elementary school teachers must hold a bachelor's degree, be fully licensed, and demonstrate (through a rigorous state test) subject knowledge and teaching skills. States set their own standards on how well teachers must do on these state tests to demonstrate subject matter competency.
  
  
• New secondary school teachers. New secondary school teachers must also hold a bachelor's degree, be fully licensed, and demonstrate their subject matter competency. New secondary school teachers have several avenues for establishing their subject competency, including: (1) completing an academic major, graduate degree, coursework, or advanced certification; or (2) passing a rigorous state academic subject test. States have the flexibility to determine how well teachers must do on these state tests to demonstrate subject matter competency.
  
  
• Current teachers. Current teachers must also hold a bachelor's degree, be fully licensed and demonstrate subject-matter competency. In determining subject-matter competency, states have the flexibility to determine the status of current teachers through the use of the "high, objective, uniform state standard of evaluation" (HOUSSE). Factors such as college coursework, advanced credentials, professional development, involvement in curriculum-related activities, student achievement and years of experience may be included as components of the HOUSSE model.
  
  
• Certification requirements. In all instances, states have full authority over certification requirements. They may redesign these at any time according to state law. States may use alternate certification programs and other non-traditional routes towards achieving state certification. The American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence (ABCTE) has also been designated as another path towards certification that states may use if they wish. The ABCTE project allows teachers to achieve full certification by passing a rigorous assessment. Pennsylvania and Idaho are using the ABCTE process to help more teachers meet certification requirements.

Improving the number of highly qualified teachers. States were asked to establish a plan for improving the quality of teachers and increasing the number of highly qualified teachers. This information was submitted to the U.S. Department of Education during the consolidated application process in June 2002. Under the statute states have the flexibility to develop these plans in accordance with previous state reform efforts and existing state law. One way of increasing the number of highly qualified teachers is to implement more alternate paths towards teaching.

Parent notification of teacher quality. At the beginning of each school year, a district that accepts Title I funding must notify parents of students in Title I schools that they can request information regarding the qualifications of their child's teacher. Title I schools must let parents know if their child has been taught for four consecutive weeks by a teacher who is not highly qualified. States and districts may determine the content of this parental notification.

Use of Title II and other funds. States may use their Title II funds to ensure that all teachers meet the highly qualified teacher provisions. These funds provide considerable flexibility in terms of what may be offered to teachers, including professional development, stipends for professional development, bonuses, and recruitment and retention efforts. Other funds (such as Title I, Title V local technology funds) may also be used to meet these requirements. Funds from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act may be used to help special education teachers meet these provisions; similarly funds from Title III may be used to help teachers of English language learners meet these provisions.

State definition of qualified paraprofessionals. NCLB requires that paraprofessionals funded with Title I funds and who provide instructional support meet certain standards.

Qualified paraprofessionals must have completed two years of study at an institution of higher education; obtained an associates degree; or met a rigorous standard of quality and demonstrate knowledge of certain core subjects. States have the flexibility to define the rigorous standard of quality and means for demonstrating knowledge of core subjects. New paraprofessionals must meet these requirements prior to being hired, and current paraprofessionals have until January 2006 to meet these requirements.

From January 2004 - Charting the Course: States Decide Major Provisions Under No Child Left Behind, U.S. Department of Education.