Learn why you would like to join the Accreditation, Assessment & Program Evaluation in Ed Prep SIG. Not only will you find valuable information on how to commit to a culture of continuous improvement, but you will also create contacts and friendships with people interested in this work. This work can include valuable scholarship. Come to discuss how to combine continuous improvement study with scholarship. Join us for an evening of learning and connecting.
Abstract: Through content analysis and literature review, the study examines how accreditation standards advance college access and equity and their actual impact on creating change. Findings indicate that the accreditation agencies do address equity and access in their standards and accreditation movement has a positive impact on improving equity and access.
Abstract: While the implementation of social education within teacher education programs has the potential to better prepare teacher candidates for their first classroom assignment, it is unknown how visible it is in current accreditation pathways. This study evaluates the presence of social education—a field defined by critical/cultural pedagogies, cultural/media studies, social studies education, and constructivist practice—in teacher educator accreditation standards used by faculty and schools of education. Using qualitative content analysis, CAEP, InTASC, NBPTS, and ATE standards were analyzed for social education characteristics. Findings showed that social education was indirectly addressed by standards, often referenced in standard components. It was also found that only ATE standards directly named social education pedagogical concepts.
Abstract: This research examines how advocacy is conceptualized in the standards for aspiring educational professionals (AEPs). Preparation standards for eleven certification areas were collected and analyzed for instances of advocacy language. Across these documents, four themes emerged which communicate the beneficiaries, topics, collaborators, and audiences to which AEPs are expected to direct their advocacy work. Although the standards, when considered collectively, identified advocacy as necessary for aspiring educators, the ambiguous and diverse ways advocacy was conceptualized across the documents presents challenges for professional organizations, educator preparation programs, and the AEPs they serve. These emergent themes can inform the review and revision of standard language by professional organizations and offer guidance to educator preparation programs as they serve and educate AEPs.
Abstract: This self-study used a mixed methods research methodology to examine ways that teacher educators engaged in crucial conversations during their accreditation process. Faculty first examined quantitative findings related to a key assessment tool. Findings revealed a significant discrepancy in faculty-wide understandings of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP). Faculty then met in small and large groups to take a deep look at the way their school of education took up, taught, and measured CRP. Meeting transcripts, notes, and email correspondence were analyzed qualitatively to locate ways that faculty acknowledged the problem, recommitted to the core ethos of CRP, and found ways to bring enhanced understandings of and appreciation for CRP into their teacher education programs.
Abstract: Considering the low proficiency rates in reading for fourth and eighth graders (NCES, 2022), state policy mandates are requiring evidence of teacher preparation in the Science of Reading to impact literacy learning. We examined how our graduates as new teachers describe literacy teaching and learning in urban settings and factors that helped/hindered them within restrictive policy contexts. Findings indicate that some novices presented a narrow, skills-based view of literacy mandated within a prescribed curriculum. Others, having more autonomy, described a comprehensive conceptualization of literacy. Teacher concerns associated with new/multiple curricula and little preparation suggest the need for increased university-school partner collaborations connecting teacher preparation to first-year experiences, including professional learning, follow up, and ongoing coaching during the induction years.
Abstract: This research attends to the call for more equitable practices of sensemaking in science education, with a specific focus what it means to honor and sustain multilingual youth’s repertories of practice as a part of the learning and assessment process. Guided by the principles of Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (CSP) and Culturally Sustaining Assessment (CSA), our research examines alternative methods of assessment of learning in the context of fluid dynamics. The findings emphasize the centrality of culturally sustaining assessment practices for enriching learning experiences and supporting diverse student groups. The value of the study is found in its commitment to foregrounding equity, inclusivity, and empowerment in science education.
Abstract: Most pre-service educator preparation programs spend little to no time properly educating their teacher candidates about working with advanced learners (Rinn et al., 2022). Is there any hope their graduates will be prepared to work effectively with high-ability students? To explore this question, we are evaluating how common tools used in undergraduate teacher preparation programs to evaluate students, completers, and the programs as a whole address advanced learners. Specifically, we seek to examine the constructs and processes of formative assessment and differentiation, as these are common ways general education practitioners claim to meet the needs of high-ability learners. Through this work, we aim to explore how well the current use of these assessment frameworks prepares teachers to challenge all students.
Abstract: This study seeks to highlight the fact that program evaluation is situational, and in our work to support graduate students enrolled in program evaluation coursework, program providers, and the communities they serve, we must offer students opportunities to practice (Buser & Gibson, 2023; Dotger & Chandler-Olcott, 2022) and strengthen their program evaluation skills. A virtual simulation activity, using the Mursion platform (https://www.mursion.com/) was developed in order to provide graduate students the opportunity to practice program evaluation skills. Specifically, the virtual simulation activity was designed for students enrolled in a master’s level introductory program evaluation course to interview a program manager. The goal of the interview was to gather information needed to develop a logic model for the program of interest.