Provisional Professional Teaching License

The Provisional Professional Teaching License (PPTL) is a three-year, provisional Educator license issued to an experienced professional for the purpose of teaching on a part-time or full-time basis as teacher-of-record in an Arkansas public school.

To obtain a Provisional Professional Teaching License for middle childhood grades (4-8) Math, Science, Language Arts, Social Studies or secondary grades (7-12) content areas, and K-12 content areas a candidate must:

  • Provide an official transcript reflecting a Bachelor's Degree from an institution of higher education that is regionally or nationally accredited by an accrediting organization that is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
  • Document a minimum of three (3) years of working experience in the specific content area of the class to be taught. Verification should be completed by previous employer listing specific job duties and dates.
  • Submit a statement of justification expressing the relevance of the applicant's specific experience/credentials to teach the content subject area.
  • Have two (2) professional letters of recommendation relating to content area experience submitted by references to the Office of Educator Licensure.
  • Pass the appropriate state required content knowledge exam(s) for the content area to be taught.
  • Clear the required Arkansas State Police, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Child Maltreatment Central Registry background checks.
  • Submit an application requesting the Provisional Professional Teaching license.
  • Submit the pre-service professional development training. The Arkansas History program of study must also be completed when licensing in any Middle Childhood or Secondary Social Studies area.

The holder of a Provisional Professional Teaching License shall complete twelve (12) hours of training in pedagogy as determined by the ADE each of the three years of licensure. These twelve (12) hours of training in pedagogy shall be in addition to and not considered a part of the professional development required for teachers by state law or by their employing public school district. The Provisional Professional Teaching License shall be rescinded if the professional fails to obtain the required training within one (1) year of the date of licensure. Training provided on the Frameworks for Teaching may count as the pedagogy hours.

Conversion to a Standard Teaching License

The Provisional Professional Teaching License will be converted to the standard, five-year educator license upon providing documentation of:

Application for Provisional Professional Teaching License

Applicants for the Provisional Professional Teaching license are encouraged to contact the Office of Educator Licensure at 501-682-4342 for information on the required testing for any licensure area they may be interested in or for clarification on the required background checks.

All applications along with the required documentation will be sent to the Office of Educator Licensure.  Please submit the application, official transcripts, letter of justification and verification of content-specific work experience for evaluation before proceeding with additional requirements.

The Provisional Professional Teaching License is not available for elementary, special education, adult education or school counselor.

For more information, please go to Rules Governing Educator Licensure.