Teacher Education Report Card
Submitted April 7, 2004
SECTION I. Pass Rates
Nebraska does not have an exit test required for licensure. The PPST (PRAXIS I) is used as an admission requirement to Nebraska teacher education programs. Therefore, the completer rate is 100% since a student cannot complete a program without successful passage of the PPST.
SECTION II. Program Information
A. Number of students in the regular teacher preparation program at your institution:
Please specify the number of students in your teacher preparation program during academic year 2002-2003, including all areas of specialization.
1. Total number of students enrolled during 2002-2003: 1054
B. Information about supervised student teaching:
2. How many students (in the regular program and any alternative route programs) were in programs of supervised student teaching during academic year 2002-2003? 228
3. Please provide the numbers of supervising faculty who were:
Appointed full-time faculty in professional education: an individual who works full time in a school, college,or department of education, and spends at least part of the time in supervision of teacher preparation students. 14
Appointed part-time faculty in professional education and full-time in the institution: any full time faculty member in the institution who also may be supervising or teaching in the teacher preparation program. 3
Appointed part-time faculty in professional education, not otherwise employed by the institution: may be part time university faculty or pre-K-12 teachers who supervise prospective teachers. The numbers do not include K-12 teachers who simply receive a stipend for supervising student teachers. Rather this third category is intended to reflect the growing trend among institutions of higher education to appoint K-12 teachers as clinical faculty, with the rights and responsibilities of the institution's regular faculty. 7
Supervising faculty for purposes of this data collection includes all persons who the institution regards as having faculty status and who were assigned by the teacher preparation program to provide supervision and evaluation of student teaching, with an administrative link or relationship to the teacher preparation program.
Total number of supervising faculty for the teacher preparation program during 2002-2003: 24
4. The student/faculty ratio was (divide the total given in B2 by the number given in B3): 1/9
5. The average number of hours per week required of student participation in supervised student teaching in these programs was: 40 hours. The total number of weeks of supervised student teaching required is 15. The total number of hours required is 600.
C. Information about state approval or accreditation of teacher preparation programs: attached
6. Is your teacher preparation program currently approved or accredited by the state? Yes
7. Is your teacher preparation program currently under a designation as “low-performing” by the state (as per section 208 (a) of the HEA of 1998)? No
SECTION III. Contextual Information
Description of UNK, mission and enrollment
As part of the University of Nebraska, the University of Nebraska at Kearney is charged to provide comprehensive educational programs for the people of the State; to seek, discover, interpret and communicate knowledge; and to put knowledge to work through public service programs. Its distinctive contribution within that framework lies in its primary emphasis on scholarly teaching. The University of Nebraska at Kearney is further committed to serving the State and to close cooperation with other campuses of the University of Nebraska and other post-secondary institutions. The enrollment for academic year 2002-2003 is 6395 undergraduate and graduate students.
Description of Teacher Education Program, mission and enrollment
Professional education programs at the University of Nebraska Kearney are based upon an enduring commitment to quality public education. This commitment recognizes the role of public education in the American democratic experience. Central to the instructional program is the belief that all students can be successful learners. Graduates understand the disciplines they teach; create learning experiences and make subject matter meaningful; use their knowledge to work effectively with all students; use assessment strategies to continually improve learning and teaching; deal proactively with issues of diversity; and work effectively with parents and other educators to enhance students' achievement.
The Teacher Education Program at UNK has three components: 1) General Studies courses from the disciplines of English, humanities, math, natural sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and personal development; 2) Professional Sequence classes for all teacher education students; and 3) Field and Subject Endorsement programs. All students complete a minimum of 100 hours of pre-student teaching field experience. Student teachers spend an entire semester in a school system under the supervision of a cooperating teacher and a UNK supervisor.
Specific requirement decision points in teacher education:
There are three decision points in the UNK teacher education program: admission to the program, admission to student teach, and successful completion of student teaching.
1. To be admitted into teacher education, students must have:
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Complete with grade of C or better:
- English 101GS
- English 102GS
- SPCH 100GS
- TE 100
- TE 204 OR TE 206
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Maintain GPA of 2.5 or higher
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Successfully complete all 3 components of PRAXIS I Skills Test
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Completion of Community Service Learning Project
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Approval by department(s) offering the proposed endorsement(s)
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Declare teaching program at Academic Advising Center
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Absence of any criminal conviction that would prevent teaching certification
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Provide evidence of emotional or mental capacity
2. To be admitted to student teach, the teacher education student must have:
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Admission to Teacher Education Program
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Submission of Application to Student Teaching
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Overall UNK GPA of 2.5 or higher
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A grade of “C” or higher in TE 204 and TE 206
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Grade of C or higher in all teaching methods courses
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Satisfactory performance in all Level III field Experiences
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Completion of a minimum of 80% of all general studies coursework
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Completion of a minimum of 80% of all discipline-specific “content coursework” within program of study
3. To successfully complete student teaching, the teacher education student must have:
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Complete a mid-term self-evaluation
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Satisfactory completion of Classroom Case Study
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Satisfactory completion of Unit Plan Case Study
- Satisfactory completion of Student Teaching Rubric Evaluation
- Subject matter and knowledge of discipline
- Pedagogy and skills
- Dispositions
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Satisfactory completion of Electronic Portfolio
- Submit Final Draft of "Morally Responsible Teacher" Statement
Programs offered by the unit and the number of 2002-2003 completers: 34 Undergraduate Teaching endorsement programs, 238 students completed 314 programs.
Elementary Education - 111
Early Childhood Education - 34
Middle School Education - 13
Special Education - 35
Secondary Education programs - 95
Basic Business - 5
Business - 7
Biology - 0
Chemistry - 0
Ed Media – 0
ELL - 12
English - 5
Family and Consumer Science - 1
French - 0
Geography - 0
German - 0
Health - 2
History - 9
Journalism - 0
Math - 3
Physical Education - 26
Psychology - 1
Physical Science - 3
Physics – 0
Political Science - 2
Social Science - 10
Sociology - 0
Spanish - 9
Speech – 0
Theatre - 0
K-12 Education Programs - 25
Health & PE – 13
Art – 5
Music - 7
Graduate Degrees Leading to Additional Endorsements - total 102 students:
Elementary Reading - 10
Special Education - 2 (separated by program)
Behavioral Disordered - 0
Gifted - 0
Learning Disabilities - 0
Mild and Moderate - 2
Administrator - 45 (broken down as follows)
Principal K-6 - 15
Principal 7-12 - 20
Superintendent - 8
Supervisor - 2
School Counselors - 18
School Psychologist - 9
Speech Pathologist - 18
Graduates in Graduate Programs not leading to additional endorsements - total 39 students:
Art - 1
Curriculum and Instruction - 33
Early Childhood - 1
Math - 0
Middle School - 1
Physical Education - 0
Science - 1
Spanish – 0
Music – 1
ESL -1
Collaborative Efforts through NACTE, NCTE, and NeNER.
The College of Education is an active member of the Nebraska Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (NACTE). This organization, which includes representatives from each of the 17 teacher education programs in Nebraska, considers educational issues and provides programs and resources to meet common needs. UNK has a voting delegate on the Nebraska Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), as well as a member on the NCTE Executive Committee. The NCTE is an educational advisory group to the State Board of Education about certification and endorsement requirements.
UNK is a member of the Nebraska Network for Educational Renewal (NeNER), a consortium of two Nebraska institutions of higher education and their partner schools. The NeNER is a member of the National Network for Educational Renewal (NNER), which was founded by Dr. John Goodlad to promote simultaneous renewal of schools and the education of educators. UNK has received funding from the NNER to promote diversity efforts and efforts to link higher education, K-12 schools and their respective communities. UNK faculty and partner school educators have participated in numerous NNER, NeNER and UNK Leadership Institutes that provide professional development related to the moral responsibilities of educators in a democracy.
Partnerships with K-12 schools
The UNK/K-12 Partner School Network is a formal partnership relationship between and among UNK and 15 school districts and 47 partner schools. The goals of this partnership are to: strengthen K-12 student academic achievement; strengthen preparation of future teachers; provide targeted professional development for K-16 educators; and study the effectiveness of the partnership efforts. The Network involves K-12 educators and administrators in the preparation of future teachers through guided practice in extensive field experiences.
Accreditation
UNK teacher and professional education programs are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), Nebraska State Board of Education, Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology (ASHA), Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). The North Central Association (NCA) accredits the University of Nebraska at Kearney.
Unique information about the UNK teacher education program:
- The University of Nebraska at Kearney has a 98-year tradition of preparing teachers, school counselors, school psychologists, speech pathologists and administrators. Teacher preparation has been a primary mission of UNK since inception and the institution continues to graduate more education professionals than any other major.
- A new College of Education Building opened in Spring 2002, bringing together faculty members who had been located across campus. The building fosters collaboration among faculty members for research and interdisciplinary programming efforts, and has state-of-the-art technology that enhances teaching and learning.
- A Future Teacher Learning Community program was initiated in Fall 2001 that features a cohort of 25 freshman students living and learning together. In its third year, this program has been successful in helping freshmen education majors make a successful transition from high school to university, and has resulted in retention to sophomore status of 90% or more.
- Selected courses in the teacher education program are a part of the UNK First Year Program, which began in Fall 2002. This effort seeks to strengthen freshman students’ transition to UNK through special programming within these selected courses.
- With a focus on scholarly teaching, faculty members value teacher/student relationships and continually assess and evaluate teaching/learning practices. A renewed model of undergraduate teacher education began Fall 2001.
Unique characteristics of the renewed Teacher Education Program include:
- A cohort format that encourages collaboration and support between students as well as students and faculty;
- A freshman education course;
- Interdisciplinary classes that block English and political science classes with education classes;
- Field based experiences in schools and/or community agencies that are connected to all professional sequence courses;
- Utilization of partner schools with diverse characteristics; and
- Focused learning experiences concerning literacy, diversity, assessment and technology.
The renewed program was created to meet the College of Education’s goals in the areas of diversity, technology and preparing students to live in a democratic society.