Program: Elementary Education (BEd)
Degree: Bachelor's
Date: Thu Oct 10, 2013 - 7:48:10 pm
1) Below are your program's student learning outcomes (SLOs). Please update as needed.
Our goal as a college is to employ and prepare educators who are knowledgeable, effective, and caring professionals who contribute to a just, diverse, and democratic society. Specifically, the EECE program learning outcomes are aligned with the standards of the Association of Childhood Education International (ACEI), upon which our accreditation with the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) is based. We received national recognition as an accredited program in 2007, continuing through 2012. The NCATE Institutional Report (IR) was submitted August 5, 2013 and the NCATE Onsite visit is scheduled for April 13-15, 2014. The ACEI Standards are aligned with both the Hawaii Teacher Performance Standards and Interstate Teacher Assessment Support Consortium (InTASC). The Hawaii Teachers Standards Board mandated the incorporation of InTASC standards into our elementary teacher initial licensure programs, no later than July 1, 2014 so our programs are in the transition process. In addition, the specific learning outcomes of each content area course is based on the National/International standards for that area.
ACEI Standard: I. Development, Learning, and Motivation: Candidates know and understand, and use the major concepts, principles, theories, and research related to development of children and youth to construct learning opportunities that support individual students’ development, acquisition of knowledge, and motivation. (HTPS 1: Focuses on Learner or InTASC Standard 1. Learner Development)
ACEI Standard: II. Curriculum: Candidates demonstrate a high level of competence in their knowledge and application of the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of content for students across the K-6 grades in the areas of English language arts, science, mathematics, social studies, the arts, health education, and physical education. (HTPS 5: Demonstrates knowledge of content or InTASC Standard 4. Content Knowledge)
ACEI Standard: III. applying knowledge for instruction—Candidates plan and implement instruction based on knowledge of students, learning theory, subject matter, curricular goals, and community. (HTPS 2: Creates/maintains a safe & positive learning Environment, 3: Adapts to learner, 4: Fosters Effective Communication in the Learning Environment, 6: Designs & provides meaningful learning experiences, 7: Uses active learning strategies or InTASC Standard 2. Learner Differences; Standard 3. Learning Environments; Standard 5. Application of Content; Standard 7. Planning for Instruction; Standard 8. Instructional Strategies)
ACEI Standard: IV. Assessment: Candidates know, understand, and use formal and informal assessment strategies to plan, evaluate and strengthen instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social, emotional, and physical development of each elementary student. (HTPS 8: Uses Assessment strategies or InTASC Standard 6. Assessment)
ACEI Standard: V. Professionalism: Candidates understand and apply practices and behaviors that are characteristic of developing career teachers. (HTPS 9: Demonstrates professionalism, 10:Fosters parent and school community relationships or InTASC Standard 9. Professional Learning and Ethical Practice; Standard 10. Leadership and Collaboration)
2) Your program's SLOs are published as follows. Please update as needed.
Department Website URL: http://eecehandbook.weebly.com/national-standards.html Student Handbook. URL, if available online: http://eecehandbook.weebly.com/eece-program.html Information Sheet, Flyer, or Brochure URL, if available online: http://eecehandbook.weebly.com/
UHM Catalog. Page Number: Course Syllabi. URL, if available online: Each course has specific learning outcomes based on the national standards fro that content area, and are included in each course syllabi. Other: Other: 3) Select one option:
- File (03/16/2020)
4) For your program, the percentage of courses that have course SLOs explicitly stated on the syllabus, a website, or other publicly available document is as follows. Please update as needed.
0% 1-50% 51-80% 81-99%
100%5) Did your program engage in any program assessment activities between June 1, 2012 and September 30, 2013? (e.g., establishing/revising outcomes, aligning the curriculum to outcomes, collecting evidence, interpreting evidence, using results, revising the assessment plan, creating surveys or tests, etc.)
Yes No (skip to question 14)6) For the period June 1, 2012 to September 30, 2013: State the assessment question(s) and/or assessment goals. Include the SLOs that were targeted, if applicable.
Our program is focused on continual improvement and we use assessment results for that purpose. We gathered data from multiple sources to identify strengths in our programs as well as areas in need of improvement. Our main questions follow:
To what degree do our graduates perceive they were prepared for teaching, with respect to the Teacher Standards and ACEI Standards (which reflect our SLOs)?
To what degree do the school principals (our graduates' employers) perceive that our graduates are effective teachers, with respect to the Teacher Standards and ACEI Standards (which reflect our SLOs)?
What are areas of strength and what needs to be improved?
7) State the type(s) of evidence gathered to answer the assessment question and/or meet the assessment goals that were given in Question #6.
Both online surveys listed below included categorical and likert-scaled items as well as open-ended questions requiring constructed responses.
1. Data from the Spring 2013 administration of our alumni survey for initial licensure program graduates (Alumni Satisfaction Survey, Spring 2013 - Initial Licensure) from 2011-2013 were collected. The COE was able to obtain from the Hawaii DOE (HIDOE) a list of our program completers and their placement in DOE schools for the first time in Spring 2013. Based on the list provided by the HIDOE, we were able to create the distribution list for our alumni survey.
2. The “UHM COE Employer Satisfaction Survey” assessed principals' perceptions of our teacher preparation program graduates and their satisfaction with the UHM College of Education. Survey results will be used to enhance the quality of the COE Teacher Education Programs. The survey was conducted via SurveyMonkey in May – June 2013. An e-mail message with the survey’s URL was individually sent to 232 principals at the end of the Spring 2013 semester. Reminders were sent to principals who did not complete the survey. As of June 16, 2013, 72 principals responded to the survey online, resulting in a return rate of 31%.
8) State how many persons submitted evidence that was evaluated. If applicable, please include the sampling technique used.
The population included all UH COE EECE graduates who have graduated between 2011-2013 and have been teaching in Hawaii public schools, and the principals at their schools.
N=32 EECE Graduates
N=72 Principals
9) Who interpreted or analyzed the evidence that was collected? (Check all that apply.)
Course instructor(s) Faculty committee Ad hoc faculty group Department chairperson Persons or organization outside the university Faculty advisor Advisors (in student support services) Students (graduate or undergraduate) Dean/Director Other: COE Assessment Coordinator10) How did they evaluate, analyze, or interpret the evidence? (Check all that apply.)
Used a rubric or scoring guide Scored exams/tests/quizzes Used professional judgment (no rubric or scoring guide used) Compiled survey results Used qualitative methods on interview, focus group, open-ended response data External organization/person analyzed data (e.g., external organization administered and scored the nursing licensing exam) Other: 11) For the assessment question(s) and/or assessment goal(s) stated in Question #6:
Summarize the actual results.
To what degree do our graduates perceive they were prepared for teaching, with respect to the Teacher Standards and ACEI Standards (which reflect our SLOs)? Areas of strength and need for improvement?
In general, our graduates were satisfied with the coursework and field experiences that contributed to their development as teachers. About 32% were very satisfied and 51% were satisfied. About 86% of our graduates would recommend our programs to people interested in becoming a teacher.
More specifically, most of our graduates felt that the COE programs prepared them to meet the Hawaii Teacher Performance Standards (HTPS) as well as those set out by ACEI, which correspond with our global SLOs. The area that emerged where our graduates were least satisfied was HTPS 8, "Use of assessment strategies," with 32% of graduates not feeling adequately prepared. In addition, HTPS 4, "Fostering effective communication with students, parents, colleagues, and community members," 25% selected neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree.
With respect to ACEI Standards, our graduate felt less prepared to "work with children with disabilities" (40%, selecting neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree), "work with students who don't speak English as their first language" (68%), "Foster parent and school community relationships (37%), and "Use technology effectively in the classroom" (32%).
To what degree do the school principals (our graduates' employers) perceive that our graduates are effective teachers, with respect to the Teacher Standards and ACEI Standards (which reflect our SLOs)? Areas of strength and need for improvement?
About 17% of Principals are "Very Satisfied" with our Teacher Education programs; 68% are "Satisfied"; About 13% are "Neutral" and 3% are "Dissatisfied."
When asked, 93% of the principals said (agreed or strongly agreed) that our graduates are Knowledgeable; 87% said they are Effective; 91% said they are caring. These attributes are central in our College of Education mission statement.
Ratings of our graduates with respect to the HTPS were genreally high. Some areas rated lower include "Adapt to learner
diversity" HTPS 3, "Use active student learning strategies" (HTPS 7), and Foster parent and school community relationships
(HTPS 10): About 27% of Principals responded "Neutral" or "disagree" for the three constructs.
About 42% of Principals responded "Neutral" or "disagree" for this construct: "Work effectively with students who do not speak English as their first language." 36% thought our graduates need to better "Work effectively with students who have disabilities" and 21% needed better preparation to "Work effectively with students from different cultures."
Praise for our graduates: "UH COE graduates are more skilled to meet the demands of Hawaii's public schools than other local college graduates including online programs." "The majority are passionate about thir craft and want to continuously learn." "The COE graduates are knowledgeable in planning , implementing, and evaluating standards-based
unit/lesson plans."
One principal stated: "Please do not pass on "marginal" teacher candidates to the schools. If the teacher candidate is not ready, please continue to work with them." Clearly, there is a need to follow up with our graduates to assist them with the transition to teaching. They need guidance and practical skills and not just theoretical knowledge.
Getting feedback from school Principals has highlighted our strengths and has pointed us in several directions for continuous improvement.
12) State how the program used the results or plans to use the results. Please be specific.
Based on recurring and consistent findings that our graduates need more assistance and guidance in teaching diverse learners, co-teaching and developing collegial relationships among professionals, learning how to manage IEP paperwork, processes, and meetings, and incorporating culturally relevant pedagogy, we have designed a new Merged Dual Preparation Program.
We have just started piloting a new Merged Dual Preparation Program in Elementary and Special Education during the Fall 2013 semester. Last year, course content and syllabi were created to reflect the principles of Response to Intervention and courses are co-taught by GEN and SPED instructors. Technology, evidence-based practices, and discussions of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy are interwoven in all courses. We are also teaching most of our courses in the Webster 101 Collaborative Classroom, capitalizing on the technology available to maximize active learning and engagement.
We are collecting data on our teacher candidates and the co-teaching teams of instructors and hope this new merged program better prepares our graduates to meet the needs of diverse students. We will share preliminary findings next year.
In order to strengthen our Teacher Candidates’ assessment skills, faculty teaching the required Educational Psychology course have agreed to bolster the instruction on student assessment so our future teachers can use the data to plan for meaningful, relevant, and developmentally appropriate learning opportunities.
In response to our graduates’ need to be able to work with families and communities, some College of Education faculty have developed modules focused on this topic that we will integrate into our program in 2014.
The edTPA is a rigorous performance-based assessment of teacher candidates which aligns with our SLOs, ACEI, and InTASC standards. Some faculty, including all Merged Program faculty teams, are piloting its use with our Teacher Candidates.
We are working toward ensuring that all of our Teacher Candidates are meeting the needs of English Language Learners (ELL). We hired our first Assistant Professor in ELL last year, a Graduate Assistant in this area this year, and we have been given approval to hire a second ELL Assistant professor next year. We also offered three professional development ELL workshops for faculty last year, so that they can integrate meeting the needs of ELLs into their own courses. This year we are continuing the PD for faculty with 4 scheduled "faculty conversations" with the Assistant Professor of ELL and the GA. We are also examining the possibility of integrating the CREDE (Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence) standards to promote ELL and multicultural understanding that will influence instruction. The teacher candidates do seem to understand the needs and experiences of ELL children in the classroom so they don't need theory as much as they need practical, feasible strategies to work with the children. Faculty members were also provided with two books on this topic and we have included discussions of these books in our faculty meetings this year.
This year, we are offering our Teacher Candidates a sequence of ELL courses for the first time. Candidates who complete this sequence will receive a COE endorsement in this area. In 2014, we will require all of our candidates to complete a course focusing on curriculum and instruction for ELLs.
We need to continue supporting our graduates as they transition to teaching in their own classrooms through induction programs. We will begin a new mentoring program this spring in which faculty will provide assistance and support to our graduates. We have been given approval to hire a Specialist to dedicate full time work to this endeavor, while other faculty will participate as partial fulfillment of their workload.
13) Beyond the results, were there additional conclusions or discoveries?
This can include insights about assessment procedures, teaching and learning, program aspects and so on.
Co-Teaching courses is a new experience for most of the teaching faculty in the Merged Dual Preparation Program. We are finding that while our content and objectives are cohesive, some are philosophically in opposition. Through conversations, we are working together to bridge gaps, focus on teaching strengths, and minimize "weaknesses." Collaboration has been an invaluable professional development exercise for us, and our graduates will experience similar opportunities when they teach, co-teach, and collaborate with the many people in schools to focus on children and their academic, social, and emotional development. In addition, our mentoring and induction programs will help support our graduates as they transition as teachers into their own classrooms and will build relationships between the COE and the elementary schools we serve.
14) If the program did not engage in assessment activities, please explain.
Or, if the program did engage in assessment activities, please add any other important information here.
We have just started piloting a new Merged Dual Preparation Program in Elementary and Special Education. Course content and syllabi were created to reflect the principles of Response to Intervention and courses are co-taught by GEN and SPED instructors. Technology, evidence-based practices, and discussions of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy are interwoven in all courses. We are also teaching most of our courses in the Webster 101 Collaborative Classroom, capitalizing on the technology available to maximize active learning and engagement.
We are collecting data on our teacher candidates and the co-teaching teams of instructors and hope this new merged program better prepares our graduates to meet the needs of diverse students. We will share preliminary findings next year.