University of Nebraska Kearney

These direct measurements of assessments utilized a point-scale approach based on a series of rubrics which ensured consistency as instructors either graded or evaluated student work. Only three of the common assessments listed above will be used in this report. These have been chosen because (1) they have been consistently utilized without significant changes to their rubrics and (2) they have been implemented for at least two full semesters for the TE 204 course and three in the case of the two TE 100 common assessments (spring & fall, 2003 and spring, 2004). These three assessments for purposes of this report are as follows: the Morally Responsible Teacher; the Five Looks Case Study of Schools; and the Individual Case Study.

The other common assessments have either been undergoing significant changes in the rubrics or have simply not yet been implemented enough to provide any meaningful data. In the case of the former, the Teaching Dispositions Rubric has undergone a number of changes to the scoring system and to the criteria so as to render any statistical conclusions moot. For example, the rubric has varied from nine to fifteen points. Hopefully, we are close to perfecting it. The Politics of Education assessment has been dropped as unworkable since not all Teacher Education students take Political Science 110. Other common assessments such as the Lesson Plan Case Study and subsequent items related to methods classes and student teaching have not used since most students in student teaching are from the old program. It is anticipated that these common assessments will yield viable data by the end of the 2005-2006 academic year.

Indirect measurements have been addressed through survey work and focus group research with TE 100 students; however, this data is still being compiled and will be available within the next six months. Surveys of partner school participants are being planned for the future.

Clearly, the desired outcomes (#1, #5, and #10) connected to the morally responsible teacher assessment are demonstrably achieved. The mean score of over thirteen during all three semesters shows that the five sub-criteria connected to the rubric for this assessment are achieved. Among these criteria is a demonstration by the student that he or she has identified the grade level and subject areas for his or her teaching career. In addition, these sub-criteria ask the student to make a connection between personal philosophy and his or her future as a morally responsible teacher in a social and political democracy. A bold statement about this personal philosophy and his or her belief regarding the purpose of education is at the heart of this common assessment.

This morally responsible common assessment will be revisited on both Level II in TE 206 and again during Student Teaching in Level IV in TE 400. Follow up on this assessment should provide a strong measure of how well the evolution of the students' philosophical commitment fares during the four years of the program. Of all the common assessments, this one is at the heart of the student's commitment to the teaching profession and bears careful observation.

Five Looks Case Study of Schools 

Table Two displays the means achieved by students on their case study of schools. The five looks or visits to five different schools in Central Nebraska are part of the introductory TE 100 course and highlight the themes of democracy (stewardship, access to knowledge, enculturation of youth in a democracy, and nurturing pedagogy), diversity, and technology. Means were consistently ranging from 23.94 to 25.7 on a 30-point scale. This points to a consistent performance by students.

Of particular interest are some of the sub-score averages found in the appendix for the Five Looks. Belief statements supportive of diversity (sub-score 1.3) improved from 1.8 in the fall of 2003 to 1.9 in the spring of 2004. Belief statements about class management and organization (sub-score 1.1) improved from 1.85 in the fall of 2003 to 1.93 in the spring of 2004. Belief statements scored somewhat higher than Action statements which is what one would expect since these are students in an introductory teaching education class. Students would not yet have the experience to propose a course of action regarding their beliefs. The data demonstrate a steady but progressive improvement of scores over the whole range of belief, support, and action statements.

This assessment does a fine job of showing that the TE 100 course, Teaching in a Democratic Society, provides education majors with the proper kind of structure to help students examine their own beliefs and begin to critically think about how education can be improved. The key themes of democracy, diversity, and technology are explored and placed in a proper perspective through the visits to the five different schools

Case Study of an Individual 

Table Three contains the means for the case studies of individuals which is the major culminating assessment for students completing this TE 204 class, Typical and Atypical Development. Despite the fact that only two semesters are included in this data (a result of the differing point totals from the spring and summer of 2003), the increase of the means from 104.95 (fall, 2003) to 109.64 (spring, 2004) offers evidence that this course is fulfilling its objectives. Also of interest is the fact that the standard deviation for the Fall, 2003 scores is 14.02 as opposed to the deviation of 10.17 in the Spring, 2004 term. This is another indication that students were more consistent in their results.

Students in TE 204 work on developing observation skills regarding children in K-12 settings. These five visits deal with both typical and atypical aspects of child development in terms of physical, behavioral-emotional, social-moral, linguistic, and cognitive development. An examination of the sub-scores finds that the spring, 2004 scores are consistently improved from the fall, 2003 results. Admittedly, this is only a two-semester sample, but the date is most positive. Even the revisited themes of democracy, diversity, and technology show steady improvement from the fall, 2003 to the spring, 2004. Now that the rubric is close to being fine tuned, additional collection of data will be much easier to accomplish.

The TE 100 Five Looks project has had a more stable history and seems to have more focused and appropriate criteria included in its rubric. Likewise, the Morally Responsible Teacher rubric has undergone little change in the past three semesters. It would seem that these two first level common assessments are now locked in. The key for the future then is working with additional common assessments which so far have proved to be somewhat problematic.

Most notable among these is the Teaching Dispositions rubric. This rubric is to be implements on all four levels and hence, is very critical. The greatest challenge with it is the fact that dispositions are emphasize a quality judgment and it has been difficult to quantify this. The data cannot be compared because tinkering with the numbers has made comparisons between semesters complicated. The main criteria do remain the same. So it is anticipated that the final draft of the Teaching Dispositions Rubric will be used in the spring of 2005.

Actions regarding these assessments including modifications and the creation of new assessments is the work of teams which deal with each of the four levels of the renewed teacher education program. The Level Four team is now in the process of creating the three TE 400 assessments (Case Study of a Classroom, Unite Plan Case Study, and Student Teaching). An additional new assessment at Level Four will be an evaluation of the Electronic Portfolio created by all education students which includes their common assessments as well as their work products and vitas. The Level Three team has created prototypes for the two Methods Courses assessments (Lesson Plan Case Study & Pre-Student Teaching Field Experience) and these are have been piloted in the spring and fall semesters of 2004.

The work of Level Two and Level One teams is largely accomplished with the exception of the Teaching Dispositions assessment (as previously mentioned). It is urgent that final modifications be finished since this assessment is across all four levels of the renewed program

Re-evaluation of assessments, objectives, and changes in assessment will be a continuing process as teams from all four levels work together to ensure coherency and quality within the program. It is anticipated that teams on all four levels will meet twice a year to evaluate the assessments and propose changes to the program.