Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL)

Notice 2: 10/8/2020 MTEL Revisions and Timeline

Since 2017, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has been in the process of revising a subset of the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTELs) based on revisions made to Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and the updated Subject Matter Knowledge (SMKs) Guidelines .

Below please find the timelines for the updates to these MTEL tests. Please know that these operational windows continue to be subject to change due to the ongoing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we will update this table if the operational timelines shift as result.

Please also see MTEL Tests Undergoing Redevelopment to the Evaluation Systems of Pearson site with the timeline information for each test.

Please note that only one version of an MTEL can be made available at any given time. As such, as soon as an updated version of an MTEL is live, the previous version is considered retired and will no longer be made available.

If you should take and pass an MTEL that becomes retired before meeting other licensure requirements, you can still use the retired MTEL passing score towards the earning of your license. There is no expiration date on the validity of a passing score on an MTEL.

MTEL Revisions:

As a result of the updated SMK Guidelines, the content and structure needs to be updated and reflected for many of the MTELs. The content updates are in process according to the timeline outlined above and based on our test development process for the MTELs.

The General Curriculum (GC) MTEL is one test that is changing structurally. The changes to the structure of the test are based on the content shifts in the SMK Guidelines and were made in close consultation with content specialists at DESE and Pearson. Currently the GC MTEL is split into two subtests; 1) Multi-Subject (ELA, STE, and HSS) and 2) Math. This current configuration was based on the subject matter knowledge requirements at the time they were developed (2009), which included a significant emphasis and a separate set of guidelines that outlined the math content expectations. The new GC MTEL set to be operational in winter 2022 will be configured differently to reflect equal distribution of content expectations for Math, ELA, HSS and STE outlined in the SMK Guidelines, and will be split into the following two subtests; 1) ELA and HSS and 2) Math and STE. We believe that this new structure is representative of the content expectations outlined in the SMK Guidelines for elementary and special education teachers.

The revised General Curriculum test is currently scheduled to be operational in the Winter of 2022. Please continue to visit this page on the Evaluation Systems of Pearson website where updated information regarding the test and structure will be posted.