The NY Post on how absurd the teacher certification tests are in NYS (it's the same in most states), but at least there's progress in the works:

Becoming a public-school teacher has never been easier.

Just 84 out of 17,500 applicants failed the elementary or secondary school test required to become certified as a teacher in New York last year -- the lowest number on record, The Post has learned.

A second test required for certification, the Liberal Arts & Sciences Test, had a similarly ridiculous pass rate of 99 percent last year -- with only 258 out of 17,250 test-takers failing the exam.

The results are only the latest demonstration of a sky-high pass rate that has topped at least 94 percent for the two exams since 2000, and hasn't dipped below 99 percent on either test since 2005.

A third exam required for certification, covering the subject a candidate plans to teach, is the only one with some variability in results, depending on the subject.

While state education officials acknowledged as early as 2009 that the entrance exams can hardly weed out a dandelion, a plan to boost the rigor of the tests -- which were contained in the state's Race to the Top federal grant application -- won't go into effect statewide until 2013.

Only then will aspiring teachers be asked to demonstrate their skills by submitting short clips of their instruction for review.

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