Mississippi just made it easier to become a teacher: Here’s what’s changing

The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) has introduced new pathways for becoming certified elementary and special education teachers, in a move aimed at addressing the state’s ongoing teacher shortage and simplifying its licensure process.

The policy change took effect on Monday.Mississippi’s new rules could fast-track hundreds of aspiring teachers into classrooms sooner than expected. Here’s what the changes mean for those preparing to teach.

New routes to classroom certification

Under the revised framework, education students can now begin teaching in elementary schools with a provisional licence while simultaneously completing a new, free course designed to meet the Foundations of Reading test requirements.The year-long course, developed by the Omaha, Nebraska-based AIM Institute, combines 14 asynchronous learning modules with two in-person training sessions and final testing. Participants must achieve an 80 per cent score by demonstrating progress through quizzes and pre- and post-assessments that measure their knowledge development.In-person sessions are planned across multiple locations in Mississippi, including Jackson, Hattiesburg, Oxford, Meridian, and Gulfport, ensuring accessibility for candidates across the state.

Changes for special education teachers

The MDE has also eliminated the reading test requirement for aspiring special educators who teach students with “mild to moderate” learning needs, those typically integrated within general education classrooms.This revision was partly informed by findings from the department’s 2024-2025 educator survey, which highlighted a need to reassess licensure standards for both elementary and special education teachers.According to the MDE’s Office of Teaching and Leading, the updated criteria are intended to strengthen the state’s teaching workforce and create more opportunities for candidates to move from provisional to full certification.

Addressing persistent licensure barriers

Elementary education has historically been one of the most challenging certification areas in Mississippi. The licensure test for primary education has recorded the lowest pass rate among subject-specific exams, with nearly one in four test-takers between 2015 and 2018 failing on their first attempt, a figure reported by the Associated Press as the most recent available data due to pandemic-related testing disruptions.Education analysts have long questioned whether the existing exams accurately reflect classroom readiness. The Mississippi elementary education test, for example, requires knowledge spanning kindergarten to sixth grade and multiple subjects, from mathematics and science to the arts and social studies.

Strengthening the educator pipeline

The MDE’s new approach reflects a broader effort to stabilise the teaching pipeline in a state where vacancies remain high in both elementary and special education roles.By replacing a costly, high-stakes exam with structured professional learning, the department aims to support aspiring teachers more effectively while maintaining instructional standards. The course model, developed in partnership with AIM Institute, is also intended to build practical teaching competence through continuous assessment rather than one-time testing.The department has expressed confidence that the revised requirements will help more qualified candidates achieve full licensure and remain in Mississippi classrooms, contributing to long-term workforce stability and student learning outcomes.