Students from the Teacher Education Department at St. Mary’s University were perfect in passing the 2013 teacher certification examinations.

The Texas State Board recently released the 2012-2013 Accountability System for Educator Preparation (ASEP) report for Educator Certification, and St. Mary’s scored an initial pass rate of 100 percent, with 32 students passing 61 tests. The statewide pass rate was 92 percent.

Scores were broken into demographic groups. St. Mary’s had 21 Hispanic students passing 41 tests, outdistancing the statewide rate of 83 percent.

“True to our University mission, the Teacher Education Department effectively prepares teachers who are ready to make a difference in the lives of young people,” said Janet Dizinno, Ph.D., Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at St. Mary’s.

St. Mary’s students have exceeded the state average every year since 2000 and have never had an initial pass rate below 94 percent.

“Also, in tight hiring market, our students are getting teaching jobs,” said Department Chair Dan Higgins, Ph.D., praising his faculty.

Aspiring teachers must take a Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities exam as well as tests in content areas they plan to teach. Those range from Generalist – Early Childhood-Grade 6 to secondary subjects such as Mathematics, Science, History, English, Spanish, Art, Health and more.

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