I. Overview and Conceptual Framework
I.1 Institutional Overview
Chadron State College, which began as a Nebraska State Normal School in 1911, remains the only four-year institution of higher education in western Nebraska. In 1964 the institution enhanced its mission and the name was changed to Chadron State College (CSC). The college has experienced numerous changes and continual growth over their century of history.
Though small in number, early graduates represented education to a young, rugged, and rural society. Today, the college prepares students for much more than teacher education. The institutional role, mission, and objectives cover comprehensive college curricula which includes basic and advanced programs. Teacher education remains, however, a central component. In 2010, for example, almost 30% of our student-body pursued degrees in teaching. These students are primarily from Chadron State’s expansive rural service region which encompasses 26 counties and approximately 34,700 square miles.
Total institutional enrollment, as of fall 2010 is at 2,759 students, of which 64% are full-time. The majority of these students, approximately 61%, are Nebraskan's. Traditional students, students under 23 years of age and single, make up the majority of the enrollment. Generally, students are first-generation and are from small rural high schools, graduating classes of 100 students or less. Non-traditional students, students over 23 years of age or married, comprise 41% of our full-time undergraduate enrollment, the majority of which are women.
Due to the expanse of the coverage area, Chadron State offers its courses, via interactive telecommunications, to two locations, Scottsbluff and North Platte, Nebraska in addition to face-to-face instruction at these sites.
Figure 1: Chadron State College Expanded Service Area
I.2 Institutional Charge, Vision and Mission Statements
Statutory Charge
Priorities for Nebraska State College System of which Chadron State is a part, as established by Nebraska State legislature and reported in the 2006 Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education, Comprehensive Statewide Plan for Postsecondary Education (CCPE). http://www.ccpe.state.ne.us/PublicDoc/CCPE/
The priorities identified by the CCPE are:
· First instructional priority is the provision of baccalaureate general academic, occupational, and education degree programs;
· Second instructional priority is to provide master's programs in education and other disciplines authorized by statute or by the Commission;
· Third priorities are applied research, public service activities, and continuing education activities that serve their geographic service areas.
Institutional Vision and Mission Statements
The vision and mission as established by the faculty, professional staff, and administration at Chadron State College are:
· Vision
Chadron State College aspires to be a premiere institution of higher education in the western high plains states, innovatively pursuing excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service.
· Mission
Chadron State College will enrich the quality of life in the region by providing educational opportunities, research, service, and programs that contribute significantly to the vitality and diversity of the region.
The vision and mission set the focus for the future of the institution and aid in the development of the strategic plan which will guide us into a continuous state of improvement, and are designed to meet the needs of the region we serve. The strategic plan is located at: http://www.csc.edu/documents/president/re-imaginingCSCstrategicplan.pdf
I.3 Education Unit and Significant Changes since NCATE Visit
Description of the Education Unit – Organization and Structure
The Education Unit is comprised of the Education and other campus departments offering teacher certification endorsement coursework at the initial and advanced levels. Campus departments offering endorsements are: Applied Sciences; Business; Counseling, Psychology, and Social Work; Education; English and Humanities; Health, Physical Education, and Recreation; Mathematical Sciences; Music; Physical and Life Sciences; Social and Communication Arts; and Visual and Performing Arts. (CSC Organizational Chart)
The Department of Education houses the initial programs for elementary education, early childhood education, unified early childhood education, and special education—mild/moderate, as well as, advanced programs in reading specialist, Education Administration, and Curriculum and Instruction. (Curriculum and Instruction is not an endorsement program but rather an advanced, professional master’s degree.) The Education Department holds the major responsibility for providing professional teacher education curriculum.
The Education unit is led by the unit head, the Academic Dean for Professional Licensure. The responsibilities of the academic dean include administrative oversight for program licensures and education programs. The Dean serves as Chair of the Teacher Education Committee which includes teacher educators from each of the endorsement areas (departments housing the content for secondary and middle grades certification requirements, and specialized content endorsements at the elementary level, such as K-8 music) and faculty teaching the professional teacher education programs (this faculty include content teacher educators housed within various departments). This committee is at the frontline for recommendation of policy, curriculum and procedures, and, also reviews assessment data and makes recommendations for change in curriculum, program, and assessment processes. Membership of the Teacher Education Committee also includes students and public school representatives.
Changes since NCATE Visit
The following changes have been made since the last on-site, regular visit:
Unit
· The conceptual framework is reexamined regularly and up-dated to assure that the concepts are relevant and based on latest research.
· All evaluation instruments have been realigned to better address the conceptual framework.
· All instruments have been changed to a 4-point rating scale, allowing comparison of data across instruments and to the Grade Point Average.
· An in-house electronic data collection/analysis assessment system, Education Assessment System (EAS), was developed and was web-based and accessible by unit faculty. The 2006 visit indicated this as an “area for improvement”. Faculty/staff were trained in entering assessments into EAS. Now, the in-house EAS has been transferred to the commercial Tk20 system. The data from the in-house system has been migrated into Tk20. All assessments and procedures have been re-examined prior to the upload to the Tk20 system. This process continues as assessments are rolled out into Tk20. CSC, as an entire institution, has adopted Tk20 for assessment of performance of academic programs and other entities.
Initial Level Program
· The instrument for assessment during the candidate internship (student teaching) has been refined so that it is clearer to the evaluators and the candidates. This change was made primarily at the suggestion of P-12 cooperating teachers.
· Unit faculty members have been trained on how to evaluate Teacher Interns using the Teacher Intern Checklist instrument, to ensure inter-rate reliability.
· An additional instrument has been developed for assessing the dispositions throughout the initial program both by the candidates and faculty. This addressed one of the “areas for improvement” mentioned in the 2006 accreditation visit. Similarly, the faculty felt a need for an instrument that aided the candidates in reflecting on their dispositions.
· Additional credit hours were added to the professional teacher education program for the topics of special education and differentiated instruction for diverse classrooms. This includes special populations associated with mental and physical disabilities and English language learners.
· The core professional courses for the initial level are offered on-line. These include: Introduction to Teaching, Educational Psychology, Observation and Participation, Differentiated Instruction, Introduction to the Exceptional Learner, and Multimedia Instructional Techniques.
· The special methods instructional portion of the professional semester has been reorganized to assure that all candidates received specific information in a uniform manner (this addressed an “area for improvement” from the 2006 visit). See CSC General Bulletin, 2011-2013 . The Praxis II is now required for all initial endorsement programs.
· Field Experience Director has started a focus group of area school administrators to assist with placement and candidate concerns.
· Because many of the partnership schools require background checks prior to working with P-12 students, the unit has required candidates to obtain a background check and present the documentation to the Field Director prior to field experiences. This process was started the spring of 2012.
· Data indicated that the regional and academy candidates did not have the same knowledge and skill with the Teacher Work Sample. Regarding elementary education Teacher Work Sample (TWS) findings in the areas of Methodology/Technology and Assessment, the Unit Head and Education Department Chair will ensure that continuity of instruction is provided to both the Academy and Regional Block students with regard to candidate knowledge and expectations pertaining to their Teacher Work Sample performance. Elementary, middle grades, and secondary Block candidates will all be provided with in-class curricular examples, illustrations, and instructions as to how the TWS is to be completed.
· A Sakai site has been developed to collect teacher internship candidate specialized assignments (Guidebook and Teacher Work Sample). Faculty provides feedback and assessments to teacher internship candidates (student teachers) during the teacher internship semester. (Piloted fall 2011).
· The initial level endorsement programs for industrial technology education and for the skilled and technical science endorsement have been dropped from the program offerings due to a decrease in number of majors selecting these programs.
Advanced Programs
· Instruments have been developed for assessing the dispositions throughout the advanced programs both by the candidates and the supervisors. Education Administration, Curriculum and Instruction, and School Counseling are in various stages of utilizing disposition assessments.
· Programming for Educational Administration, Curriculum and Instruction, and School Counseling are primarily offered on-line.
· An increase in the use of technology is seen in internship/practicum experiences, oral examinations, and advising at the advanced level.
· The oral examination data indicated that the Education Administration and Curriculum and Instruction candidates were weak in their knowledge of assessment. As a result, EDUC 539 Advanced Performance Assessment course was developed. Curriculum and Instruction candidates are required to take the course; while program advisors are now highly encouraging Education Administration candidates to take the course as an elective to the program. Additionally, assignments were added in other courses, such as EDCI 635-- Curriculum Development course that focus on the use of data to improve instruction and school improvement planning.
· In Curriculum and Instruction program, faculty members are emphasizing written communication skills in class assignments and portfolio development.
· Education Specialist has been dropped from the program offerings. This decision, although a difficult one, was made due to the decreased number of candidates in the program.
I.4 Conceptual Framework
Framework, Standards, and Proficiencies
The conceptual framework model for Developing Visionary Leaders for Life Long Learning is depicted by three interlocking circles, each representing an interrelated area of the curriculum: General Studies (now Essential Studies), Specialty Studies, and Professional Studies. The General Studies/Essential Studies curriculum is designed to provide candidates with a broad background in communication, composition, fine arts, global and social/cultural awareness, government, health/wellness, history, humanities, mathematics, physical activities, reason and values, and science. Specialty Studies are comprised of the content course work in each teaching endorsement area offered at Chadron State College. Professional Studies are those core education courses taught by Education Department faculty. These Professional Studies courses emphasize the pedagogical knowledge, skills, and dispositions candidates use to effectively teach P-12 students. At the graduate (advanced) level, the Visionary Leader model continues to build on the pedagogical knowledge, skills, and dispositions developed for the candidate’s academic and professional career. The General Studies representing the core master’s program (research and inquiry); Specialty Studies covers the content necessary for the degree; and the Professional Studies encompasses the practical and field based learning demonstrated by the candidate.
The Professional Studies circle of the model embraces the seven components that make up the conceptual framework for the Unit. These components are: Assessment, Communication, Human Relations/Diversity, Methodology/Technology, Professionalism, Thinking Skills, and Leadership. These seven components are interwoven throughout the professional preparation programs and form the basis of the constructivist approach in preparing candidates to become Visionary Leaders. The seven components are introduced and developed within the first three years of the initial candidate’s educational program, and serve as the basis for each of the Unit’s key assessments. Advanced level candidates receive their introduction to the components during the EDCI 631: Introduction to Graduate Studies course. Following are the seven components of the Visionary Leader Model and their respective student outcome statements:
· For Assessment successful candidates, whether from the initial or advanced program, will be able to design and assess learning activities (with sequential goals and objectives), utilizing the data collected from those assessment measures to make appropriate instructional and/or curricular decisions to improve student outcomes. To achieve these professional knowledge, skills and dispositions,
· For Communication, teacher, counselor and administrator candidates, and other professional personnel need to be able to demonstrate and promote effective communication skills (with students and adults), while respecting diversity and engaging students in the learning enterprise through motivation and constructive learning applications. This ability to communicate is developed to meet the many demands for effective teaching-learning interactions by Visionary Leaders.
· For Human Relations/Diversity, successful candidates, whether from initial or advanced programs, will know, understand, and respect the value for developing and maintaining a physically inclusive and emotionally safe classroom environment conducive to effective learning that encourages voicing student concerns, embraces elements of diversity, and exhibits an understanding of child growth and development.
· For Methodology/Technology, successful candidates, whether from initial or advanced programs, will embrace the value for planning and delivering teaching-learning activities that are consistent with identified learning objectives, ability level of students, while using a variety of instructional methodologies/strategies to prescribe for individual differences.