The Idaho State Department of Education has added a useful link to its website.
This link gives Idahoans the opportunity to look up the professional backgrounds of educators and teachers in our state. You only need to input the first and last name of the educator to gather information about that particular teacher/educator.
The website will tell you:
- If their credentials are valid.
- Their area of expertise (look for the drop down menu).
- Their past and present teaching contracts.
I looked up a few of my children’s teachers and was surprised to learn that an elementary teacher is also a certified bilingual teacher, a high school teacher is certified to teach two different AP classes, and a middle school teacher is certified to teach, 5 different languages (including American Indian), math, science, history, drama, writing, public speaking, dance, theatre, music, art, physical education, computers, journalism and pre-engineering (and several other subjects!). It was very interesting and informative.
The next time I have a child complain about a teacher’s knowledge about a particular subject, I plan on checking their credentials.
Thank you, Idaho State Department of Education, for providing tools that allow parents to be more involved in our children’s education.
