What you need:
All Florida teachers must earn 6 semester units (credits) or the equivalent of 120 in-service points. At minimum, you will need to take one credit focused on students with disabilities, but other requirements may also be necessary. Read further on to learn more about additional requirements.
What Type of Training Can You Take?
Florida teachers can use in-service points or semester units/ credits in order to renew their license. If you are not currently in the classroom, you will need to take credits to fulfill your renewal requirements. You can take any coursework that you feel is related to your area of certification or your work in the classroom. However, there are also two requirements you must consider: all individuals must take 1 credit pertaining to students with disabilities, and individuals with a reading certification must take 2 credits pertaining to evidence-based reading. You can learn more about the requirements below.
Learn more about our credit bundles to earn all of your coursework at an affordable price.
What Required Courses Do Florida Teachers Need for Renewal?
SWD
Florida requires that one of your 6 credits must include at least one (1) semester hour of college credit in teaching students with disabilities (SWD).
Model Teaching recommends two courses that satisfy the requirement for students with disabilities:
More courses are currently in development!
Evidence-Based Reading Instructions and Interventions
Florida now requires that educators earn two credits, or 40 in-service points, in courses specific to evidence-based reading support, specifically designed for students with characteristics of dyslexia and including specific instructional and intervention approaches to reading.
You can find the specific language required by the Florida Department of Education below:
An educator whose certificate has a beginning validity date of July 1, 2020, or thereafter, must have earned at least two (2) college credits, forty (40) inservice points, or a combination thereof, in evidence-based instruction and interventions grounded in the science of reading per Rule 6A-6.053, F.A.C., specifically designed for students with characteristics of dyslexia, including the use of explicit, systematic, and sequential approaches to reading instruction, developing phonological and phonemic awareness, decoding, and implementing multisensory intervention strategies if the educator is renewing any of the following coverages: Elementary Education (K-6), Prekindergarten/Primary Education (age 3 through grade 3), Elementary Education (grades 1-6), Primary Education (grades K-3), English (grades 1-6), Middle Grades English (grades 5-9), Middle Grades Integrated Curriculum (grades 5-9), English (6-12), Exceptional Student Education (grades K-12) (renewal beginning with a validity date of July 1, 2025), Reading (K-12), Reading (Endorsement), and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) (grades K-12).
*Source: FL DOE
So what courses can you take? Although you should always check with your State Board of Education to ensure that the courses you choose will satisfy their specific requirements, Model Teaching has designed several courses to address the reading requirements:
More courses are currently in development!
You can also buy a 6-credit bundle, and select your SWD or Reading courses in your bundle package.
How and Where to Renew
Model Teaching helps make the renewal process easy for you. After completing one or more Model Teaching credit courses, you will pay for your credits using the detailed instructions we provide to you within your course. We will do all the processing work for you and register your course(s) with your chosen university partner. You will then need to complete two steps.
First, you will request that your transcript be sent to the Florida Bureau of Educator Certification. The address is below, or you can find it at the link here: https://www.fldoe.org/teaching/certification/
Bureau of Educator Certification
Room 201, Turlington Building
325 West Gaines Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0400
You will also need to submit your renewal application and the associated processing fees:
From the Florida Educator Certification requirements Renewal Page:
- The Renewal Application must be submitted through your Certification Online account. It will be available under the heading titled “It Is Time to Renew!” [You can find instructions for accessing your account by clicking on the “apply” button in the left pane of this page]
- The application must be received in the Bureau of Educator Certification prior to the expiration date of the Professional Certificate.
You can log into your Certification Online Account here:
https://www.fldoe.org/teaching/certification/on-line-application-status-lookup-site.stml and click the “Apply Here” button.
Questions
For more information about your certificate or how to submit your transcript, go here: https://www.fldoe.org/teaching/certification/
To contact the Florida Department of Education, go here:
https://www.fldoe.org/teaching/certification/staff-contact/
For questions about Model Teaching’s easy-to-use and low-cost professional development for Florida teachers, contact us via the chat option below or email us at courses@modeltaching.com.
Note: Model Teaching has provided this summary of FL DOE’s renewal policies based on information and documentation provided by the FL DOE public website. This article is a summary we have prepared for educational purposes only, to help our current and future Model Teaching students understand their requirements in a summary form, and will be maintained to provide the most current information to the best of our ability. Model Teaching is not affiliated with FL DOE but provides graduate-level credit courses in partnership with regionally-accredited university partners, accepted by FL DOE. We strongly recommend that you confirm your specific teaching license renewal needs before registering.
Article publication date: May 2025
View the original article and our Inspiration here