The TASC for Texas Teachers

As required by the Texas Education Code §21.048, successful performance on educator certification examinations is required for the issuance of a Texas educator certificate. The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) has approved Texas educator standards that delineate what the beginning educator should know and be able to do. These standards, which are based on the state-required curriculum for students — the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) — form the basis for the Texas Examinations of Educator Standards™ (TExES™) program. This initiative, administered by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), affects all areas of Texas education — from the more than 170 approved Texas educator preparation programs (EPPs) to the more than 7,000 Texas school campuses. This standards-based system reflects SBEC's commitment to help align Texas education from kindergarten through college. SBEC and TEA's roles in this K–16 initiative will ensure that newly certified Texas educators have the essential knowledge and skills to teach the TEKS to the state's public school students.

The Texas Assessment of Sign Communication™ (TASC™) is an extension of the TExES program. It is designed for candidates who plan to seek certification as a teacher of students who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. The exam assesses sign communication proficiency within one or more of several sign communication systems or language used in Texas classrooms. An experienced interviewer conducts a 20-minute, one-on-one conversational interview with a candidate. The interview is digitally recorded, and the recording is viewed by scorers who rate the candidate's expressive and receptive sign communication proficiency.

Sign Communication Systems and Language

Sign communication means communication through any sign system as well as the language of American Sign Language (ASL). The TASC assesses sign communication in any of the following systems or language:

• Contact Sign (CS)
• Morphemic Sign System (MSS)
• Signed English (SE)
• Signing Exact English (SEE)
• American Sign Language (ASL)

When you register to take the TASC, you will be asked to identify the sign communication system or language you would like to use during the exam session. During the exam, you can switch between sign systems or language, but the interviewer must conduct the conversation in the sign system you selected when you registered.