The Tennessee State Board of Education is advancing a proposed amendment to Policy 5.105 that would allow teacher candidates who fail a content-area licensure exam to pursue vendor-developed alternatives instead of retaking the full test. The May 2026 draft of the policy lists four approved alternate scoring opportunities, a change from the May 2025 version which contained no such language.
The four approved alternatives are Pearson Series Flex, a portfolio-based submission; Pearson Testlets, a component-based assessment; ETS Praxis Bridge, a targeted remediation module; and ETS Praxis Steps, another component-based assessment. Under the proposed policy, a candidate must first attempt a standard assessment before using any alternate opportunity. The General Assessment Requirements section was updated to state that candidates must submit qualifying scores on required assessments or on vendor-developed alternate opportunities.
Licensure changes follow edTPA phaseout
The proposal is the second major change to Tennessee's teacher licensure assessments in two years. The State Board phased out the edTPA pedagogical assessment requirement effective July 1, 2026, for candidates completing approved educator preparation programs. The Educator Licensure Review Committee recommended the phaseout in October 2024, determining that the existing pedagogical assessment requirements did not adequately serve teacher candidates, preparation programs, and school districts in Tennessee.
Pearson announced its Series assessment was adopted by the Tennessee State Board of Education on February 27, 2026, effective March 10, 2026, at a promotional rate of $99 per test through August 31, 2026, with free retests provided after three failed attempts. The company's announcement framed the model as a way to reduce financial and persistence barriers to entry but did not cite prior state adoptions of the same approach.
Emergency credentials remain high
The policy change arrives as Tennessee continues to rely heavily on emergency credentials to staff classrooms. The state issued 6,579 emergency credentials in 2024-25, comprising 5,529 temporary permits for unlicensed teachers and 1,050 endorsement exemptions for licensed educators teaching outside their area of expertise. That number rose from 6,007 the previous year.
At the same time, teacher vacancies in Tennessee declined 43 percent, from 1,434 in 2023-24 to 817 in 2024-25. The number of vacancies filled by emergency hires increased by more than 300 percent over the last five years, and rates of new graduates from Tennessee teacher training programs have declined in recent years.
Support and concern over the proposal
J.C. Bowman of Professional Educators of Tennessee supported the proposal. He maintained that the proposal would not reduce standards, as candidates would still need to prove subject-matter competency through an approved method. He also noted that the Praxis exam tests content that is not aligned with Tennessee's own curriculum standards.
At least one State Board of Education member expressed concern about relaxing licensure requirements. Supporters including teacher advocacy organizations have argued the change removes barriers without lowering standards.
The State Board advanced the proposed policy for further discussion at its May 2026 meeting, noting that more changes could be introduced before a final reading.
Update - October 4, 2026
On July 15, 2026, the State Board held a member learning session at which ETS and Pearson presented detailed specifications for their proposed alternative assessment options. ETS disclosed that Praxis Bridge modules would cost $50 each and be available only to candidates who narrowly miss passing—within one standard error of measurement of the state's cut score—with an option for states to adopt three-year retroactive eligibility. Praxis Steps, described as modular testing initially available for the new Elementary Education Fundamentals assessment, would let candidates bank scores from individual sections and retake only the portions they failed [14].
The Nashville Banner reported that the State Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the Policy 5.105 amendment on final reading in November 2026 [13]. The Department of Education noted at the July session that approximately half of states nationwide have adopted some or all of these vendor-developed alternatives as a strategy for addressing teacher shortages [13].