At Least They’re Culturally Competent!
by James A. Bacon
A couple of days ago I skewered New Jersey for enacting a law, effective Jan. 1, that removes a requirement for teachers to pass a reading, writing and mathematics test for licensure. Noting that Virginia teachers seeking initial licensure must pass the Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment (VCLA), I expressed the hope that the General Assembly “progressives,” who have done everything in their power to make Virginia more like New Jersey, didn’t get any ideas.
Too late.
It turns out that Virginia beat New Jersey to being New Jersey. In April the General Assembly passed — and Governor Glenn Youngkin signed — a similar bill, HB 731, introduced by Del. Briana Sewell, D-Prince William.
That bill requires the Board of Education to eliminate the requirement “for any individual to take and receive a passing score on the Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment as a condition of the initial award or renewal of a renewable license as a teacher in the Commonwealth.”
You can’t make this up.
According to Richmond Sunlight, the bill sailed through both the House and Senate with nary a dissenting vote. While exempting minimum literacy standards from the requirements for licensure, the law preserves requirements for study or training in:
attention deficit disorder,
gifted education, including the use of multiple criteria to identify gifted student,
methods for improving communication between schools and family
recognition of child abuse,
first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation,
positive behavior interventions, crisis prevention and de-escalation, methods to reduce the need for the use of physical restraint and abuse, and
cultural competency.
Yes, there is a teacher shortage in Virginia. I get it. But of all the ways to lower the bar to qualify more job seekers, Virginia chose to eliminate minimum literacy standards?
It’s all too insane to believe. Surely I’m overlooking something. If you can make sense of this, please let me know.
