Performance-Based Licensure

Which grade levels and/or subject areas are eligible for PBL?

The Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License would require placement within a Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) growth component subject area or areas in grades 5-8. An educator can teach the subject of endorsement two (2) grades below but only in the subject of endorsement.  For example, a teacher with an English 7-12 endorsement can teach English Language Arts 5th or 6th grade (departmentalized) but cannot teach any other subjects. By offering the English 7-12 (119) and Mathematics 7-12 (154) endorsements under PBL, districts will have the benefit of a pathway for growth component subject areas while candidates will have the greatest grade level licensure span possible, pending completion of all requirements for the Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License.

Are aspiring special education teachers eligible for PBL?

Not at this time. Federal requirements stipulate that public school special education teachers must either: (1) obtain full State certification as a special education teacher (including certification obtained through an alternate route to certification as a special educator, if such alternate route meets minimum requirements, or (2) pass the State special education teacher licensing examination and hold a license to teach in the State as a special education teacher, except in the case of a teacher teaching in a public charter school. The minimum federal requirements for certification obtained through alternate route preparation require passage of the State teacher licensing examination. Meanwhile, state law requires that charter schools comply with applicable federal laws, rules and regulations regarding the qualification of teachers and other instructional staff. 

Are aspiring fourth grade teachers who contribute to the growth component eligible for PBL?

The Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License would require placement within a Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) growth component subject area or areas in grades 5-8. While fourth grade MAAP assessments are used for the calculation of growth, districts shall only request endorsements for English 7-12 (119) and Mathematics 7-12 (154). An educator can teach the subject of endorsement two (2) grades below but only in the subject of endorsement.  For example, a teacher with an English 7-12 endorsement can teach English Language Arts 5th or 6th grade (departmentalized) but cannot teach any other subjects. By offering the English 7-12 (119) and Mathematics 7-12 (154) endorsements under PBL, districts will have the benefit of a pathway for growth component subject areas while candidates will have the greatest grade level licensure span possible, pending completion of all requirements for the Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License. 

Are aspiring high school teachers who contribute to the growth component eligible for PBL?

The Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License would require placement within a Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) growth component subject area or areas in grades 5-8. While high school level assessments in English Language Arts and Mathematics are used for the calculation of growth, those assessments may be banked for as many as three years as in the case of a student who takes Algebra I in the seventh grade. Therefore, the high school level assessments in English Language Arts and Mathematics would not provide an accurate assessment of a PBL candidate’s impact on the grade-level to grade-level growth of their students.

To qualify for the Performance-Based Teacher License:  

1. An applicant shall meet the following requirements:

   Note: Documentation may verify a combination of lead teaching and classroom experience provided that the total equals at least three (3) years with two (2) years of classroom experience (possibly as a teacher assistant) equating to one (1) year of lead teaching experience.

   1. Standard Mississippi Licensure Application; and
   2. Local District Request; and
   3. Letter of Request and Justification; and
   4. Vita or résumé; and
   5. Official, sealed transcript(s) showing completion of at least bachelor’s degree from an institution of higher education that was regionally/nationally accredited at the time the degree was conferred; and
   6. Documentation verifying at least three (3) years lead teaching experience (possibly as a long-term substitute, emergency, special non-renewable licensed teacher, or licenses out-of-content teacher) OR six (6) years of classroom experience (possibly as a teacher assistant) in an accredited public, private, elementary, or secondary (N-12) school; and
   7. District assurance of previous positive student learning impact on existing pre-/post- assessments offered in the district.
2. An applicant shall submit appropriate documentation indicating cleared criminal background check.

   Validity. The Performance-Based Teacher License is valid for three (3) years, with the following exceptions:

   1. Obtainment of a standard five (5)-year renewable license
   2. Rescinded if an individual withdraws, transfers or is removed as a Performance-Based Licensure Candidate.

   Requirements for a Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License.

   1. Standard Mississippi Licensure Application; and
   2. Local District Request; and
   3. Letter of Request and Justification; and
   4. Official, sealed transcript(s) showing completion of at least bachelor’s degree from an institution of higher education that was regionally/nationally accredited at the time the degree was conferred; and
   5. Documentation verifying at least three (3) years lead teaching experience (possibly as a long-term substitute, emergency, special non-renewable licensed teacher, or licensed out-of-content teacher) OR six (6) years of classroom experience (possibly as a teacher assistant) in an accredited public, private, elementary, or secondary (N-12) school; and

      Note: Documentation may verify a combination of lead teaching and classroom experience provided that the total equals at least three (3) years with two (2) years of classroom experience (possibly as a teacher assistant) equating to (1) year of lead teaching experience.

   6. Evidence of previous positive student learning impact on existing pre-/post- assessments via district assurance; and
   7. Placement within a Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) growth component subject area in grades 5-8; and
   8. Opportunities for PBL teachers to engage in ongoing professional learning experiences as aligned to the area of endorsement via district assurance; and
   9. Training on the Mississippi Educator Code of Ethics, Standards of Conduct and hold Performance Based Licensure candidates accountable under the Code throughout the local school district placement via district assurance.

      Note: The Three-Year Performance Based Teacher License is non-renewable but may be converted at any time during the three (3) year period once all requirements are met for the Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License. The Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License will only be granted in the licensure endorsement areas of English (7-12) or Mathematics (7-12).

   Requirements for Converting to a Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License.

   1. Standard Mississippi Licensure Application; and
   2. Local District Request; and
   3. Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License; and
   4. Evidence of teacher effectiveness as demonstrated by a summative Professional Growth System observation rating of 3.00 or higher during the Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License; and
   5. Evidence of teacher performance as demonstrated by the candidate meeting or exceeding the statewide average percentage of assigned students that have a growth score greater than zero in a MAAP assessed 5-8 subject area during the Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License; and
   6. District recommendation documenting completion of all requirements.

   Specific restrictions apply:

   • The license is not transferable between Districts or eligible nonpublic schools, and a candidate shall be employed one (1) year with the local school district prior to transferring. If a candidate is employed one (1) year and wishes to transfer to another school district, the license is no longer valid, unless a new Local District Request is received by the Division of Educator Licensure from the local district to which the candidate is transferring. If the educator is nonrenewed by the local school district during the three-year license, the educator will not be issued a license for another district for the remaining years.
   • The completed application packet shall be received by the Division of Educator Licensure within six (6) months of the PBL candidate meeting all requirements for the Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License.
   • Additional endorsements that may be added to the Performance-Based Teacher License by way of the acceptable coursework credit hours option or obtaining a qualifying passing score on an MDE-approved licensure subject assessment shall be requested by the candidate only.
   • The Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License will only be granted in the licensure endorsement areas of English (7-12) or Mathematics (7-12).

How do I apply for the Performance Based License?

The PBL is a district-requested license type, and the application can only be started in the Mississippi Educator Career and Continuum Archive system by an employing local school district or an eligible nonpublic school in Mississippi. The PBL application contains a built-in checklist of all elements required to submit the request. The elements include the following items.

To be completed by the district user:

• Endorsement Selection Element 
• Online District Assurance Element (to be electronically completed and signed)
• Experience Element (can be completed within the Experience page of the applicant’s account by any applicable district user or by completing the PBL-Experience Verification.pdfand attaching the form within the Experience element)

To be completed by the applicant:

• Degrees Element  
  • All transcripts from all institutions must be submitted directly by the university or college electronically in a secure electronic format via National Student Clearinghouse, Parchment, or any other transcript exchange service provider. For efficient document-to-applicant verification, please request that the institution include the following information as part of the official transcript: 1) your date of birth 2) the last four digits of your social security and 3) your first and last name as it appears in your educator management system account. Transcripts uploaded in your educator management system account will not be accepted for licensure review. Electronic transcripts may be transmitted by the university or college to transcript@mdek12.org. This email address is used for the purpose of submitting official transcripts only.
  • Please note that academic transcripts submitted to any other MDE email inbox will not be processed and applicants should only use the above designated email address to avoid delay of receipt of transcript and application processing.
  • Applicants are responsible for having all transcripts representing degrees and/or coursework earned outside of the United States, as well as any other correspondence, translated and evaluated by an evaluation agency prior to submission of a licensure application to the Mississippi Department of Education. Please submit a detailed course-by-course foreign credential evaluation report. Information regarding acceptable evaluation agencies may be accessed at NACES (click on “Choose An Agency” to gain access to contact information for those listed as “Current Members”). The Office of Educator Licensure currently accepts electronic evaluation reports from World Education Services (WES) and International Education Evaluations (IEE).
• Resume Element
• Affidavit for Verification of Lawful Presence Element (attachment of appropriate verification of lawful presence is required)
• Character Determination Element (to be electronically completed and signed)

When would PBL take effect?

The Division of Educator Licensure will begin processing local district requests for the Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License for the 2023-2024 school year. The earliest that a PBL candidate could then meet all requirements for the Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License will be the 2024-2025 school year due to the Professional Growth System (PGS) and MAAP data that must be collected from the 2023-2024 school year. 

Are districts required to offer PBL?

No. PBL is a district-requested licensure type. If a district does not want or has no need to offer PBL, then it will not be required to submit a request. 

Does Performance-Based Licensure (PBL) require completion of an educator preparation program? 

Not at this time. PBL is a district-requested licensure type. However, to qualify for a Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License applicants shall provide an official, sealed transcript(s) showing completion of at least bachelor’s degree from an institution of higher education that was regionally/nationally accredited at the time the degree was conferred. Additionally, documentation verifying at least three (3) years lead teaching experience (possibly as a long-term substitute, emergency, special non-renewable licensed teacher, or licensed out-of-content teacher) OR six (6) years of classroom experience (possibly as a teacher assistant) in an accredited public, private, elementary, or secondary school shall be provided.

Can candidates transfer districts or be nonrenewed with PBL?

The license is not transferable between districts or eligible nonpublic schools, and a candidate shall be employed one (1) year with the local school district prior to transferring. If a candidate is employed one (1) year and wishes to transfer to another school district, the license is no longer valid, unless a new Local District Request is received by the Division of Educator Licensure from the local district to which the candidate is transferring. If the educator is nonrenewed by the local school district during the three-year license, the educator will not be issued a license for another district for the remaining years. 

If a candidate transfers after one year into the Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License, will they be issued a new Three-Year license? 

No. The Three-Year Performance-Based Teacher License is non-renewable but may be converted at any time during the three (3) year period once all requirements are met for the Five-Year Performance-Based Teacher License. 

How will information about PBL be shared?

This FAQ will be updated based on questions received. Additionally, MDE will offer information on PBL during upcoming sessions and will provide guidance to assist with application procedures. 

What is the research base for PBL?

The PBL pilot study was approved to be conducted during school years 2019-2020, 2020-2021, and 2021-2022. As conducted through a data sharing agreement with Harvard University, the study found that students assigned to PBL candidates perform about the same on required state assessments as students assigned to comparable teachers, across all years and comparison groups. The study also found several marginally statistically significant positive impacts on student attendance when assigned to a PBL candidate. The study subsequently found statistically significant positive differences in educator effectiveness through Professional Growth System scores for PBL candidates as compared to other non-renewable licensed educators.