GACE key terms

An official outline that specifies the content areas, number of items, and weighting a certification test will cover, so candidates know which knowledge and skills are measured.

A test question answered by choosing from provided options, such as multiple choice, rather than by writing an answer; it is scored objectively by machine.

A test question that asks the candidate to write a short or extended answer, scored by trained raters using a scoring guide rather than by a machine.

A converted score placed on a common scale so results from different test forms or administrations can be compared fairly, instead of reporting the number of items correct.

The minimum scaled score a candidate must earn to pass a certification assessment, established by the state licensing agency through standard-setting studies.

The score reported for one content section of a multi-part assessment, showing performance in that specific domain separately from the overall total.

An estimate of how much a candidate's reported score might vary because tests are not perfectly reliable, often shown as a band around the observed score.

Evidence that a test measures the knowledge and skills it claims to measure, usually shown by aligning items with state standards and job-related competencies.

The ability to notice and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words, such as blending or segmenting them, without relying on printed letters.

The understanding that letters and letter patterns represent sounds, along with instruction that teaches students to use those relationships to decode words.

Reading accurately, at an appropriate rate, and with suitable expression, which frees a reader's attention for understanding the meaning of the text.

Understanding of word meanings, including how words relate to one another and how context shapes meaning, which strongly supports reading comprehension.

The process of extracting and constructing meaning from text by combining word knowledge, background knowledge, and the text's structure and ideas.

A judgment about how demanding a text is to read, based on quantitative measures such as sentence length, qualitative features, and the reader's purpose and background.

Teaching the reading, writing, and reasoning conventions unique to a subject such as science or history, so students read the way practitioners in that field do.

A Georgia credit used to document continuing education for educators, typically earned through approved courses or activities and applied toward certificate renewal.

A change that raises an educator's certificate level, such as moving from a bachelor's level to a master's level, usually requiring new coursework or an assessment.

An added authorization on a certificate showing preparation to teach a specific area, such as reading or ESOL, without becoming a full new teaching field.

An additional teaching field added to an existing Georgia certificate after the educator meets that field's requirements, such as coursework or a content assessment.

The practice of guiding teaching and learning by setting learning goals, supporting instruction, and examining evidence of student learning, rather than only managing buildings and schedules.

A team of educators who meet regularly to examine student evidence, improve instruction, and hold themselves collectively accountable for results.

Using student achievement, survey, and process data systematically to identify needs, choose strategies, and check whether changes actually improved outcomes.

A written, state-required plan naming a school's measurable goals, strategies, timelines, and evidence for raising achievement and closing gaps.

Sharing leadership responsibilities across teachers, staff, and administrators so expertise, not only position, drives decisions about instruction and improvement.

Purposefully involving families, staff, students, and community members in decisions and communication so school plans reflect and gain support from those affected.

Georgia's standards of professional conduct for certificate holders, covering legal compliance, conduct toward students, and responsibilities to the profession and the public.

Appropriate limits in relationships with students and families that keep interactions focused on education and avoid favoritism, secrecy, or personal intimacy.

The legal duty of educators to report suspected child abuse or neglect to designated authorities, without attempting to investigate the concern themselves.

The obligation to keep student and family information private, sharing it only with people who have a legitimate educational need to know.

A situation in which an educator's personal, financial, or family interest could improperly influence a professional decision, requiring disclosure or withdrawal from that decision.

The first Georgia certificate issued to an educator who has completed required preparation, assessments, and a background check, allowing employment in a certified role.

The periodic process of keeping a Georgia certificate valid by completing required continuing education or equivalent activities before the certificate's expiration date.

A process by which Georgia issues a certificate based on an educator's valid certificate from another state, often with additional state-specific requirements attached.

A required review of criminal history records, including fingerprinting, used to decide whether an applicant is eligible to hold a certificate or work in schools.

A school employee who supports instruction or student services under the direction of a certified educator and does not hold full independent teaching responsibility.

Assistance a paraprofessional gives to teachers and students, such as tutoring small groups, preparing materials, and reinforcing lessons the teacher has planned.

The certified teacher's responsibility to plan the work, direct activities, and monitor a paraprofessional's performance, since the aide may not independently design instruction.

Federal rules requiring instructional paraprofessionals in Title I programs to hold at least a two-year degree, 60 semester hours, or a passing score on a formal assessment.