Commission on Teacher Credentialing continues retooling of exams

More flexible entry exams needed to meet new standards

The Aug. 28-29 meeting of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) continued work on evaluating CTC-approved exams, pulling in assessments that meet basic skills requirements and subject matter requirements to join the extensive work that has been going on for the past year on Teacher Performance Assessments (TPAs). Staff also presented the Annual Report on Passing Rates of Commission-Approved Examinations from 2019–20 to 2023–24, which will be covered in an upcoming CSBA blog post.

Implementation of new TPAs

Senate Bill 1263 (2024) directed the commission to review California’s TPAs and broader educator preparation systems. In June 2025, the CTC adopted recommendations from the Workgroup to Review the Design and Implementation of the Teaching Performance Assessment (RDI-TPA) as the foundation for the next phase of this work. CTC staff presented an implementation plan organized around three core components: redesigning the performance assessment system, strengthening program implementation and integration, and developing commission supports for the field.

This proposed implementation plan is organized into five sections. The Legal Foundation outlines statutory requirements for the TPA, including design expectations, implementation conditions, and accountability functions. The Project Areas section organizes the adopted RDI-TPA recommendations into a structure that supports implementation across three areas of work: assessment design, program implementation and commission supports. This section also provides detailed implementation strategies for each area. The Phased Implementation Plan presents a sequenced timeline of major deliverables across four phases, and the Risk and Mitigation Strategies section identifies key risks and outlines actions to support successful implementation. By July 2028, the revised performance assessment system will be fully operational for all candidates entering educator preparation programs.

The CTC voted to approve the implementation plan.

Other exam improvements

Over the past decade, legislative and regulatory changes have expanded pathways for meeting licensure requirements through coursework, a mix of coursework and exams, degrees or integrated undergraduate program models. Staff presenters said this shift warrants a deliberate review of each exam’s “validity, utility and role in maintaining coherence across the licensure system.”

CTC-approved exams are designed to be valid, reliable and aligned to the knowledge and skills expected of educators and students under California’s adopted standards, according to the agenda item. They undergo expert review and bias analysis to help ensure fairness and technical soundness. Despite these efforts, persistent disparities in passing rates by race and ethnicity point to structural barriers that must be addressed.

Updating exams to align with current standards and adopting a modular format would allow components to be revised as standards change and allow integration with other commission-approved options such as coursework, degree programs and performance assessments. Feedback from the field has indicated it takes a large amount of staff time to evaluate transcripts to see if they have covered the skills, and the tests are not currently aligned in a way as to make the comparison logical or easy, especially in California Subject Examinations for Teachers (CSET) subjects.

CBEST and CSET

The California Basic Educational Skills Test (CBEST) has been in place for 30 years, according to Mike Taylor from the Division of Research, Evaluation and Assessment. “During that time, the purpose of CBEST has changed and its usage has changed,” Taylor said. “We’ve updated it here and there but … exams like CBEST and CSET were once the standard. But that’s all changed now.”

For the CBEST, staff proposed to look at off-the-shelf options and existing basic skills tests that can be adapted. CSET is more complicated as the exams are subject matter-specific for the candidate’s credential. “CSETs were designed for a very different credentialing environment than the one we have now,” said Taylor. “We need subject matter exams that are going to be a little bit more nimble, a little bit more flexible … and we need them to be modular so that they can be mixed and matched with coursework and with subtests to be able to meet the subject matter requirement for all our exams.”

Other exams under review include the California Teacher of English Learners (CTEL) Examination and the California Preliminary Administrative Credential Examination (CPACE).

Commissioners approved staff to begin a coordinated initiative to replace the CBEST, CSET, CTEL and CPACE with a coherent, integrated system of licensure examinations. They also approved staff to conduct feasibility analyses and bring back recommendations to modernize the subject matter verification framework.