Unit: Institute for Teacher Education
Program: Secondary Education (BEd), Secondary Education (Post-Baccalaureate Cert.)
Degree: Bachelor's
Date: Thu Oct 15, 2009 - 10:15:11 am

1) List your program's student learning outcomes (SLOs).

The goals of the Secondary Teacher Education Program supports and reinforces the mission of the College of Education as it prepares teacher candidates to fulfill the roles and responsibilities of becoming: knowledgeable teachers who understand the foundations of the education profession, content implications for curricula, and the characteristics of diverse learners; effective teachers who plan and implement curricula grounded in pedagogical and psychological theory; and caring teachers who are reflective, collaborative and responsive decision-makers that serve as role models within the classroom, school, community and global environment. The Secondary Teacher Education Program prepares teacher candidates to be:

  • knowledgeable of the disciplines they will teach and make learning meaningful to a diverse group of students;
  • effective classroom teachers who are culturally sensitive and reflective of their practice; and
  • caring educators who promote social justice and principles of a democratic society in their classrooms and meet the standards of licensure in their content with professionalism.

The College of Education offers teaching majors in the following fields: agriculture, English, English as a second language, foreign languages (Chinese, French, German, Hawaiian, Ilokano/Tagalog, Japanese, Latin, Russian, Spanish), health education, home economics, industrial arts, marketing, mathematics, music, office education, physical education, science (biology, chemistry, physics, earth science), social studies (with concentrations in American studies, anthropology, economics, geography, Hawaiian studies, history, political science, psychology, or sociology), technical education, and trades and industry. Additionally, the Secondary Program must meet and support the standards of the Specialized Professional Associations (SPAs), such as the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), National Council for the Teachers of English (NCTE), National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) or the Hawaii Teachers Standard Board. All of the content areas of the secondary program have received full recognition by the national content organizations or by the Hawaii Teachers Standard Board.

The Secondary Teacher Education Program is standards-based. Its standards are the Student Learner Outcomes (SLOs) and are embedded in all the courses in the program. The standards are aligned with all the required courses in the program as well as aligned to the two program assessments.

The attached matrix identifies the major focus of each of the course to ensure all students in meet the program standards or SLOs. The standards of the program are public, balanced, coherent and articulate the expectations for teacher candidates’ knowledge and skills. Each component of the assessment is part of the whole and determines the degree the teacher candidates have integrated knowledge and skills across the curricula and institutional practice. The standards are aligned with 1) the College Conceptual Framework; 2) Hawaii Teachers Standards; 3) Interstate New Teacher Assessment Standards (INTASC) and the Teacher Work Sample (TWS).

 Program Standards (Student Learning Outcomes)

      Teacher candidates in the program will be knowledgeable, effective, and caring teachers as demonstrated through their strong foundation in:

 Knowledgeable

1. Professional, Legal and Ethical Responsibilities - The teacher candidate demonstrates an understanding of and ability to apply and model ethical and legal responsibilities expected of professional educators. The teacher candidate is reflective, assesses the effectiveness of choices and actions on others, and actively seeks professional growth.

2. Foundations of Secondary Education - The teacher candidate can articulate the history and role of public education and contemporary school issues in Hawai‘i and the nation.

3. Philosophical Theories of Education - The teacher candidate understands the ideas and beliefs that have influenced the purpose of education and have shaped contemporary teaching and learning,

4. Psychology of Learning - The teacher candidate demonstrates an understanding of current theories of human learning and development and research in those areas. The candidate demonstrates an understanding of how to apply theoretical concepts in these areas to education.

 Caring

 5. Adolescent Development - The teacher candidate understands adolescent culture and how they learn and develop in order to actively engage students in learning opportunities that support the intellectual, social, and personal development.

6.  Inclusion, Equity and Democracy -The teacher candidate acknowledges the diversity of students and schools (e.g., ethnic, cultural, language, religion, disabilities) and uses this understanding to create equitable learning opportunities that facilitate social justice.

 Effective

7.  Content of the Secondary Curriculum - The teacher candidate understands the purpose, structure, and organization of the high school and middle school curriculum, and the major concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the content/subject areas to create meaningful learning experiences for all students.

8.  Planning and Instructional Strategies - The teacher candidate uses long and short-term curriculum planning to create a variety of instructional strategies and resources that support the intellectual, social, and personal development of diverse learners.

9.  Assessment and Accountability - The teacher candidate understands and uses developmentally appropriate formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and ensure continuous intellectual and social development of the learner.

10.  Educational Technology - The teacher candidate uses technology effectively to enhance their productivity and professional practice and implements curriculum plans that include methods and strategies for applying technology to maximize student learning.

11.  Communication and Relationships - The teacher candidate models effective speaking, writing and listening skills that enable communication and fosters relationships with multiple and diverse audiences.

12.  Classroom Learning Environment - The teacher candidate uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior. The candidate creates a safe, healthy learning environment and develops a learning community.

2) Where are your program's SLOs published?

Department Website URL: www.coe.hawaii.edu/ite/bed-secondary
Student Handbook. URL, if available online: www.coe.hawaii.edu/ite/bed-secondary
Information Sheet, Flyer, or Brochure URL, if available online: www.coe.hawaii.edu/ite/bed-secondary
UHM Catalog. Page Number:
Course Syllabi. URL, if available online:
Other:
Other:

3) Upload your program's current curriculum map(s) as a PDF.

Curriculum Map File(s) from 2009:

4) What percentage of courses have the course SLOs explicitly stated on the course syllabus, department website, or other publicly available document? (Check one)

0%
1-50%
51-80%
81-99%
100%

5) State the SLO(s) that was Assessed, Targeted, or Studied

All of the program SLOs are assessed through two portfolios in a systematic and continuous way to measure all the degree teacher candidates’ learning. Assessing the teacher candidates is shared by the secondary program faculty. A specific portfolio artifact and rubric are required for each standard. The rubrics for each course artifact have been developed for each course in the Secondary Program can be accessed at: http://wiki.coe.hawaii.edu/index.php?title=Academic_Departments/Secondary%2C_ITE

The Secondary Program requires the completion of two portfolios – developmental and exit. Artifacts for the developmental portfolio are created within program courses and in the Teacher Work Sample.

Developmental Portfolio

The developmental portfolio matrix aligns the program standards to individual courses and assesses how students have met the standards of the program through their knowledge, skills and dispositions. The rubric for each artifact is provided in each course in the Secondary Program. This portfolio must be completed by all teacher candidates before they can proceed to student teaching and is one of the assessment points required by National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Assessing the teacher candidates is shared by the secondary program faculty. The rubrics for each course can be found at: http://wiki.coe.hawaii.edu/index.php?title=Academic_Departments/Secondary%2C_ITE

Teacher Work Sample -Exit Portfolio

      The Teacher Work Sample (TWS), exit portfolio is a carefully developed teaching unit planned and implemented during the student teaching semester. Through the TWS, teaching residents demonstrate their ability to apply in practice the teaching skills they have developed and demonstrated in their previous teacher education course work. In the teacher work sample, teaching residents move through the steps involved in best teaching practice and engage in a process for ongoing professional improvement that, ideally, continues throughout their careers. All of the program SLOs are integrated and assessed through the TWS. Each student is given a handbook that describes and explains the requirements for each step and a descriptive rubric. The handbook is also accessible on the department website.

http://wiki.coe.hawaii.edu/@api/deki/files/2056/=TWSf08.pdf

The exit portfolio is completed during the student teaching semester and is an exit requirement of the program. The artifacts for this portfolio will be based on the principles of the Teacher Work Sample (TWS) and the standards of the Secondary Program.

The TWS model requires teacher candidates to plan and teach a standards-based unit consisting of five components:

               1) Description of Educational Context

               2) Long-Term Unit Plan

               3) Design for Assessments and Lesson Plans

               4) Unit Implementation and Analysis of Student Learning

               5) Self-Evaluation and Implications for Professional Growth

6) State the Assessment Question(s) and/or Goal(s) of Assessment Activity

The assessments for the Secondary Program are the developmental course-based portfolio and the Teacher Work Sample. These assessments answer the questions: “What should teacher candidates know and be able to do?” and “How well did our teacher candidates master the standards of the program?”

Artifacts for the developmental portfolio are created within program courses. Each course in the Secondary Program has an identified major focus of the course that supports a specific SLO. A menu of assignments that best supports a program standard along with a scoring rubric was developed for each course. The “standardization” provides assurance that all students in the Secondary Program are held to the same standard and consistency in assessing student knowledge essential to a particular course.

7) State the Type(s) of Evidence Gathered

The program assessments and data for both the Developmental Portfolio and Teacher Work Sample were kept on Tk20 Electronic Portfolio System. The College did not renew their contract with TK20 and plans were made to pilot Live Outcomes for gathering and storing program assessment data. When Live Outcomes went out of business, the College began to build their own electronic system for data collection and storage. Since the College-built system was not completed for the 2008-2009 academic year, hard copy of the data was turned into the Dean’s Office.

The secondary program is not cohorted. Faculty representing four departments teaches courses required in the program. Currently the data from the developmental portfolio does not represent 100% of our students. Many students have taken foundational courses prior to their being admitted to the Secondary Program which has resulted in gaps in student performance data. When the College-built electronic data collection system is completed, it should be able to track and provide consistent data for all Secondary Teacher Education students.

All (100%) of program completers completed the TWS portfolio and is assess by ITE Secondary content area faculty. Data for academic year 2008-2009 can be accessed at TWS Data.pdf

8) State How the Evidence was Interpreted, Evaluated, or Analyzed

Faculty review the Teacher Work Sample data collected each semester as well as the range of performance the criteria for each step and sub-step of the TWS. To ensure the validity of the program assessments, the department engages in a continuous Assessment Cycle for Program Improvement.

At the end of each academic year, a student survey is conducted on the Teacher Work Sample and anecdotal notes of seminar faculty observations taken. This information along with the data from the TWS is reviewed each summer and modifications to the TWS steps and rubrics are done. At the beginning of the fall semester, the program faculty analyzes the TWS data and selects a goal for the coming year to improve the TWS. Selection of the goal is decided upon and agreed to by the faculty. 

9) State How Many Pieces of Evidence Were Collected

If applicable, please include the sampling technique used.

All (100%) of program graduates complete the Teacher Work Sample assessment. For year 2008-2009, the total number of TWS completed by B.Ed. teacher candidates was forty-seven (47).

10) Summarize the Actual Results

See also: TWS Data.pdf

The TWS is scored on a Target, Acceptable, and Unacceptable rating. This is the terminology required for national accreditation. The data indicates the percentage of students who scored Target, Acceptable, or Unacceptable for each step and sub-step of TWS.

Teacher Work Sample Step 1 – Description of Context for Learning

  1. All students scored Acceptable or Target on each component of Step 1
  2. Sub-step Student Learning Approaches were the lowest scores; 36.17% Acceptable; 57.45% Target
  3. Sub-step Community and School Factors were the highest scores; 17.02% Acceptable; 82.98% Target

Teacher Work Sample Step 2 – Long Term Unit Plan

1.  All students scored Acceptable or Target on each component of Step 2

2.      Sub-step Pre-Assessment and Planning Implication were the lowest scores; 42.55% Acceptable; 57.45% Target

3.      Sub-step Unit Rationale and Connection to Context were the highest scores; 25.53% Acceptable; 74.47% Target

Teacher Work Sample Step 3 – Design of Assessments & Lesson Plans

1.        All students scored Acceptable or Target on each component of Step 3

2.        Sub-step Limits of Student Learning were the lowest scores; 27.66% Acceptable; 72.34% Target

3.        Sub-step Overview of Unit Topics and Strategies were the highest scores; 17.02% Acceptable; 80.85% Target

Teacher Work Sample Step 4 – Unit Implementation and Analysis of Student Learning

1.      All students scored Acceptable or Target on each component of Step 3

2.      Sub-step Impact on Subgroups or Pairs were the lowest scores; 27.66% Acceptable; 72.34% Target

3.      Sub-step Impact on Whole Class were the highest scores; 19.15% Acceptable; 80.85% Target

Teacher Work Sample Step 5 – Self Evaluation and Implications for Professional Growth

1.      All students scored Acceptable or Target on each component of Step 5

2.      Sub-step Limits of Student Learning were the lowest scores; 27.66% Acceptable; 72.34% Target

3.      Sub-step Professional Development Needs/Goals were the highest scores; 19.15% Acceptable; 80.85% Target

11) Briefly Describe the Distribution and Discussion of Results

The learning outcomes of the program have not been published for the public. This data is shared with faculty and for the NCATE accreditation.

12) Describe Conclusions and Discoveries

The department Assessment Cycle provides the setting for discussion of data and suggestions for further program changes. (AssessmentCycle.pdf)

Example of Assessment Cycle Goals:

2006 Pilot Year:          Study lesson group to determine inter-rater reliability. Modification of TWS Steps and rubric language.

 2006-2007:                 Development of TWS Toolkit for faculty.

                                    Modification of TWS Steps and rubric language, reduce TWS Steps from 6 to 5.

2007-2008:                  Sharing department development and implementation of portfolio artifacts.

Modification of rubric language and reduce Steps from 5 to 4.        

2008-2009                   Revision of Step Two Unit Planning by various content areas to meet the criteria of the Specialized Professional Associations (SPAs) for national accreditation

13) Use of Results/Program Modifications: State How the Program Used the Results --or-- Explain Planned Use of Results

We used information from the data to revise assessment criteria or rubrics. The Assessment Cycle will continue to assist faculty for revise the assessments and rubrics and to evaluate the effectiveness of the assessments.

14) Reflect on the Assessment Process

Policy, procedure and electronic system to ensure all student assessment data is store must be established and maintained. National accreditation for teacher education requires assessment data in the accreditation process.

15) Other Important Information

16) FOR DISTANCE PROGRAMS ONLY: Explain how your program/department has adapted its assessment of student learning in the on-campus program to assess student learning in the distance education program.

17) FOR DISTANCE PROGRAMS ONLY: Summarize the actual student learning assessment results that compare the achievement of students in the on-campus program to students in the distance education program.