Highly Qualified Teachers

All teachers in Alcoa City Schools are properly certified by the state of Tennessee to teach the courses to which they are assigned. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has introduced some additional requirements for teachers to be considered “highly qualified” under the new legislation.

All of our teachers currently meet these requirements. The NCLB legislation requires school systems to notify parents of any situation where their child has been instructed by a teacher not meeting the “highly qualified” requirements for a period of four or more weeks.

As of January 8, 2006, all paraprofessionals who work directly with students must meet specific No Child Left Behind quality guidelines. Specifically, each assistant must have either two years of college, an associate’s degree, or pass a content-specific exam in reading, math and writing.