In Texas, educational aide certificates are awarded to professionals who have the education and experience required to provide instructional and clerical assistance to teachers in the classroom. Find out how to acquire one of these certificates and learn about the different certificate levels available.
There are three levels of educational aide certification in Texas. Each certificate requires you to work for a school district before you can apply for it.
You will need to have a high school diploma or its equivalent to qualify for these certificates as well as a final grade of 70 or better in at least two education and training courses. Additional requirements are outlined below, along with the job duties associated with each level.
To qualify as an entry-level educational aide, you will need to have some degree of experience working with either children or their parents. The exact nature of acceptable experience will need to be determined by your local superintendent, but generally you can count experience from:
Job duties for this position typically include preparing class materials and performing clerical tasks under the guidance of a licensed teacher.
Individuals who hold an Educational Aide II certificate are qualified to take on more advanced job responsibilities. For example, these professionals might administer tests and provide assistance to individuals or groups of students completing class assignments or activities.
You can obtain an Educational Aide II certificate if you have worked for 2 years with an Educational Aide I certificate. You can also get this certificate if you are proficient in a skill area approved by the school district where you're employed. Finally, this certificate is available to you if you have completed at least 15 semester hours of college-level classes. These classes must focus on child growth and development or a similar subject area. Be aware that you will also need experience working with kids or parents in order to qualify for this certificate.
You can check out these online courses on Educational Psychology, Human Development and the Foundations of Education to get help with some of the subjects you might choose to study to qualify for this certificate. Because these courses are approved by the American Council on Education, you might also be able to leverage course completion into college credit.
To perform the most complex responsibilities given to an educational aide, such as providing instruction or administering tests with little supervision, you will need to earn this level of certificate.
There are two options for obtaining an Educational Aide III certificate. You can work as an Educational Aide I or II for 3 years. You also have the option of completing 30 semester hours of college-level schooling that deals with child growth and development or other relevant subjects. This level certificate requires you to have relevant work experience as well.