Reading Endorsement

Log into Net Connect and click on the transcript tab – then view your transcript in the General view tab and through the reading tab to verify courses already completed.

The hybrid track is an option campuses can elect to implement to give teachers a chance to earn reading endorsement in-service points through a hybrid model.  The hybrid model provides an opportunity for a portion of the course to be job embedded.

Continuing to take the online courses is a teacher decision which should be made based on the courses each individual teacher needs. To meet the requirements of state statutes teachers should plan their pathway accordingly.  Continuing to take classes online is recommended if you need to complete 3 or more of the competencies during the 2019 – 2020 school year and/or the school is not offering the classes you need.

You can choose to take more than one course at a time. It is recommended you take 2 at the most. Competency 5 CANNOT be taken until Competencies 1 – 4 are completed.

Yes, as long as you specific to FDLRS you are taking the course for Reading Endorsement credit. You cannot use the credit for both Reading endorsement and SWD – you must choose one or the other.

If you took courses when Reading Endorsement was a 6 course program, Flare 4 and 5 count together as coverage for Competency 4. If you took Flare 6 it is not equivalent to Competency 5 because it is only 30 points, so you would need to take Competency 5. Competency 5 can only be taken when Competencies 1 – 4 are completed.

No. The statute requires teachers providing Tier 3 intensive reading intervention to be Reading Endorsed or Reading Certified. Reading K-12 on a certificate meets this requirement.

Teacher’s that have earned a master’s in reading must also take the Reading K-12 Subject Area Exam (SAE), and apply to have the certification added to their certificate after receiving passing scores on the Reading K-12 SAE. Once Reading K-12 has been added on to a teaching certificate, the requirement has been met.

The district is required to report to the state the students receiving Tier 2 and Tier 3 reading intervention instruction. Beginning school year 2020-2021 the state will identify teachers as out-of-field if they are assigned to teach Intensive Reading to a student requiring Tier 3 intensive reading intervention and are not Reading Endorsed or Reading Certified. Please keep in mind the district course progression require all secondary Tier 3/Achievement Level 1 students to be scheduled into Intensive Reading.

Tier 3 students are identified by Multi-tiered Systems of Support/MTSS Tier 3 and/or level 1 Florida Standards Assessment English Language Arts score. Please keep in mind a student may begin receiving Tier 3 intensive reading intervention any time within the school year as determined by the school’s MTSS team. Tier 2 and Tier 3 students are reported to the state during state reporting periods through a data element in Focus.

The link to Florida approved teacher education programs is here. Colleges and universities with approved programs are listed. Select the college/university link to view the list of approved programs.

Florida approved teacher programs may include content that covers reading competencies 1-4 and some may include content covering reading competency 5. Please know the state must evaluate and issue or identify outstanding reading competency requirements for any teacher not earning all five reading competency courses through Polk County Public Schools Reading Endorsement program.

Each college and university with a Florida approved teacher program has submitted their programs of study to the state and the state has determined which of the college course(s) meet the content requirements of specific reading competency courses. Only the state is able to evaluate college transcripts to determine what coursework meets which reading competencies. Submitting an application to add the Reading Endorsement to a teaching certificate provides the state the opportunity to evaluate your transcript and officially determine which competencies, if any, remain outstanding. If the state determines all reading competency courses have been satisfied through college coursework, the state will issue an updated teaching certificate with the addition of the Reading Endorsement. The district reading endorsement team members, using the official Statement of Status of Eligibility (SOE), are able to provide appropriate support to teachers when selecting and enrolling in reading competency courses that still need to be taken to complete the Reading Endorsement requirements. Is there a cost associated with add-on applications for teachers that graduated from a Florida approved teacher program in 2006 or later? Yes, there is a $75 fee to add the Reading Endorsement to a teaching certificate. The $75 application fee will be paid directly to the FLDOE at the time the application is submitted. Please know if the state does not issue the Reading Endorsement, then the teacher will receive a Statement of Status of Eligibility (SOE) that identifies the requirements (outstanding competencies) needing to be met. The SOE is valid for three years and the teacher will not have to reapply if the requirements are met and documented at the FLDOE prior to the SOE expiration date.

This recommendation is only for teachers that have graduated from a Florida approved teacher education program in 2006 or later and may have competencies 1-4 embedded in their programs of study. Paying the $75 now ensures teachers ONLY take the outstanding competences identified by the state. Without an official Statement of Eligibility status, there is no guarantee on which competencies remain outstanding and teachers may take more course than required by the state to earn the Reading Endorsement. Please remember the $75 is the cost of adding on a certification. And if the $75 is paid up front, the teacher has three years to complete the requirement before an additional fee is required to add on the endorsement.

Teachers providing intensive reading intervention must be Reading Endorsed or Reading Certified beginning school year 2020-2021. Teachers providing intensive reading intervention in 2020-2021 that are not Reading Endorsed or Reading Certified must sign an Agreement to Earn the Reading Endorsement and earn at least six hours or the equivalent of at least 120 in-service points toward the Reading Endorsement within a 12 month period from the anniversary date on the Agreement to Earn and each 12 months thereafter until all requirements are completed and they have added the Endorsement to their certificate. The teacher may be subject to displacement or termination if he/she is out of compliance.

EPI awards 60 in-service points for Competency 2 when the program is completed. No in-service points nor ESOL credit can be assigned for partial completion of the program. ESOL credit (not in-service points) are awarded for Cross Culture and ESOL Curriculum.