I'm a Sp. Ed teacher who's just moved to CA. What is this CSET I have to take?

Question

I'm a Special Ed. teacher with an MA in my subject. I've moved to California and now I'm expected to take additional classes and something called the CSET for multiple subject teaching.

If you've taken the CSET, would you please give some advice about it?

Or, is there any way to avoid all this? I've got years of solid experience in S.D. teaching in elementary, and a Masters in Sp. Ed.

Apart from the expense, I don't know how I'll find the time to study for all this. I've just spent my summer getting the CLAD qualification. I feel like giving up and returning to Connecticutt, but my children's father is here. Even so -- I might just go back because I'm tired of the poor way Sp. Ed is treated in California.

Answer 1

Welcome to crazy California. It's almost impossible to know what to take--it is never enough. Not even the credentialing folks in the Dept of Ed in Sacramento seem to know. This is nothing new for California. You'd think that with all the extra hoops we have to jump through, that we'd all be highly paid for the length of education we need. H ha ha.
I've had some colleagues in sec. ed. get around some of this NCLB stuff by having their principal sign off on things, like getting some sot of credit for having taught X number of years--but sill other principals say they can't, or won't, do that. It's a ploy to get rid of higher paid longterm teachers.

I do know that all this extra testing is not producing better teachers, and it is discouraging people from entering the field.

As for spec. ed., they are asking way too much for what they're paying. I gave up on Sped when San Francisco State would not honor sp.ed. classes I'd taken there a year earlier. They claimed that the courses were not in the new program. All they wanted was for me to pay for even more courses. Universities are all about making money of their students.

Good luck, you'll need it.

Answer 2

I'm not sure what the reciprocity between SD and CA is, but I ran into similar difficulty years ago, when I came to CA with Special Ed credentials from PA and WV. I jumped through the various hoops and have been teaching special ed for 10 years here now.
Basically, the CSET is one of the ways that "new" teachers in CA (and you will be "new" by their standards) prove their compliance with the Highly Qualified Teacher standards of No Child Left Behind. If you completed your HQT in SD, you should be able to circumvent some of this, because Title 5 regs allow out of state teachers to transfer their NLCB compliance to CA. But if you don't have some document verifying that you completed it in SD, you will have to do something to "prove" that you are "highly qualified."
I fortunately was able to prove myself NLCB compliant without the testing. CSET is to demonstrate your competence in subject matter. Since most of us in special ed teach classes in all core subject areas, you are expected to demonstrate competence in all of them. You can get a lot of info, including a practice test, at www.cset.nesinc.com. Good luck!

Answer 3

i am currently in a special ed program in ca. i have subject matter competency in my degree, social science, and i still ended up having to take it. seems like all the education that we get matters not at all. special ed programs do not require you to take it to get in the program, but reg ed yes. so, you can get a special ed credential without it here in cali.

it is a test that i hear that is rather difficult. i just bought the study guide, a giant book that supposedly covers all areas. you have to take the entire thing if you want to teach in this state. or, if you are single subject, just the pertinent parts if you dont have competency. i am finding there is no way out of it. the only way for me is to get my credential in social science.

the difficulty i am finding is that SCHOOL DISTRICTS are requiring it to make sure their teachers are compliant. does it make sense for a university to be handing out degrees and credentials but you still CANNOT teach school? is it me, or what? am getting my masters and credentials, special ed and multiple, at the same time and even with that, i am still not qualified. seven years of college, not to mention the clad, praxis and cset tests that have to be passed does not qualify you to teach? something is wrong here and its no wonder its hard to get and keep good teachers. they quit because of all the obstacles that are thrown at them. many times, i have just wanted to quit because of it and i am still of a mind to.

go here and see if you can get info and good luck!

http://www.ctc.ca.gov/

Answer 4

you need to take the multi-subject, however you might be able to get away with taking it in your subject/health or p.e. The health CSET is extremely easy and most university special education programs except this..... the multi-subject is easy enough but if you are weak in any area (history including california history/science/math up to like alegebra and geometry and language arts) you might have a hard passing it..... if you can take the health