Section I- CONTEXT



Section I- CONTEXT

1. State and Institutional Policies

The Utah State Office of Education (USOE) adopted the INTASC standards in August 2002 for the standards for new teachers to meet in order to move from a Provisional to a Professional Educator License. The Weber State Teacher Education program then adopted these standards as program standards in the Fall of 2002 and began work restructuring the program to align with these standards.

The USOE has not required beginning teachers to test for licensure. They will begin requiring Praxis II content tests as of July 2005. The teacher education program will require all students to test in their major and minor areas beginning this fall 2004.

Weber State University’s special education program is housed within and is an integral part of the Teacher Education department. The special education program prepares individuals to teach pupils with mild to moderate disabilities. Under the Utah guidelines, pupils with mild to moderate disabilities participate in the general curriculum according to an individualized program and are not in need of a functional or life-skills curriculum.

2. FIELD EXPERIENCE

One of the strengths of the WSU Teacher Education programs is the integrated field experience component associated with each of the professional levels. These provide opportunity for teacher candidates to be in classrooms where they will observe, assist, and teach individuals, small groups, or whole classes. Each field experience is valuable for candidates to see and experience actual application and implementation of learning from the perspective of a teacher.

In the WSU special education program, field experience occurs in special education practica and prestudent teaching, in the professional teaching levels, and culminates in general education and special education student teaching. The level of complexity increases with each course as students are asked to build on skills from previous course work and field experience combined with new skills acquired in each successive course and field experience.

General Education Field Experiences.

The general education course work is divided into four levels for elementary composite majors and three levels for secondary content majors. Students are required to complete field experiences in four courses in each level. Field experience begins with classroom observation in Level I. Level II students develop and adapt lesson plans to meet the needs of all students in the classroom and deliver instruction in several subjects. Level III elementary composite students spend 40 hours in practicum experience in elementary content areas. Level IV elementary and Level III secondary comprise student teaching experience. Students are required to put into practice all of the skills learned in the preceding three levels. Because exceptionality is one of five strands in the elementary program, students are required to spend a portion of their time developing assignments that take into consideration planning for the needs of diverse learners.

Special Education Field Experiences

The following practica comprise the special education field experiences:

Practicum in Special Education. Students must complete this practicum after completing or while concurrently enrolled in Educ 4510, Foundations in Special Education and Educ 4520, Planning and Managing the Special Education Learning Environment. They are required to spend 30 clock hours in the community, school and on the internet completing a life span case study project on elementary and secondary age pupils with disabilities. This is an unstructured experience designed to help the prospective teacher to learn what it is like to be a person with a disability. In addition, students build on the interview skills gained in Educ 4510 and the observation skills learned in the elementary level courses to build consultation and collaboration skills by observing and interviewing teachers in order to understand the complexity of the role of special educators. Students also interview parents of special needs students and write a paper summarizing their findings.

Pre-student Teaching. This experience follows Educ 4530, Assessment in Special Education, Educ 4540, Behavior Management in Special Education, Educ 4550, Content and Methods for Elementary Special Education Students, and Educ 4580, Content, Methods and Transition for Secondary Special Education Students. Students spend a minimum of 60 hours in a public school under the supervision of a licensed special educator while they complete four specific assignments related to the course material they have learned.

1. Assessment. Students work with cooperating classroom teachers in administering tests, evaluating data, and originating IEP goals based on these data. Students practice both formal and informal assessment procedures.

2. Behavior Management. Students conduct an environmental assessment of the classroom, charting undesirable behaviors and social skills deficits in a Functional Behavior Analysis and develop a Behavior Intervention Plan based on observation and charting. Results of this assignment are reported in a case study report detailing any mismatch between the classroom expectation and the environment, results of the charting and a plan to remediate the charted behavior.

3. Planning Instruction. While in the special education setting, students practice effective instruction methods and procedures applicable to the education of students with mild to moderate disabilities. Students assess the classroom environment, practice adaptive instructional techniques, adapt curriculum, and collaborate with a classroom teacher. Students may choose to teach an academic instructional unit or a unit on social skills.

4. Planning for Transition. Students assess student needs, develop and teach cognitive strategy units, adapt curriculum, and collaborate with the classroom teacher and other professionals. Students also examine post secondary transition programs and practice developing transition plans for students with disabilities.

Clinical Practice: The student teaching experience is the culminating learning experience in the program. Candidates must apply for clinical practice the semester before they plan to do their clinical work. The rigorous experience is carefully planned, guided, assessed, and evaluated. Candidates spend between 70 and 100 days (minimum 400 hours) in the classroom for their clinical practice; this time is split equally between a general education setting and a special education setting. Clinical practice assignments are determined according to the license requirements, concentration, major and minor, and abilities of the candidates, with the resources available at the university and the district schools. The Department of Teacher Education has collaborated with the local school district partners to develop a plan and process for the selection and training of collaborating teachers, as well as for placing student teachers. During clinical practice candidates are assessed on progress by the university supervisor, collaborating teacher, and the special education supervisor. A final evaluation by these supervisors is completed at the end of the student teaching assignment. All candidates have the opportunity to assess the program and those supervising their clinical practice. In addition, all candidates for licensure in special education complete comprehensive, cumulative portfolios in special education; these portfolios are assessed prior to completion of the student teaching experience.

Student teachers are required to attend on-campus seminars corresponding to times when the public schools are not in session. Senior synthesis seminars are held at the completion of the clinical practice. Candidates completing additional endorsements will do clinical practice in their specific area for a minimum of five weeks.

3. Program Admission, Retention, Exit

The teacher education program is a competitive admissions process. A limited number of applicants are admitted in March for Fall Semester and in October for Spring Semester. Admission to the teacher education program is a separate process from Weber State University admission. Candidates are initially admitted to the program on a provisional basis. Upon successful completion of Levels 1 and 2, they become fully admitted candidates for licensure. Provisional admission to a specific program is valid for a period of five years. Candidates not completing the program within the five-year period are required to seek readmission under the current admission standards.

Prerequisites for application to the program are current enrollment in or completion of the following classes: English competency (grade C or above in EN1010 and EN2010 or equivalent); Quantitative literacy (grade C or above in MATH QL1050 or equivalent); Communication proficiency (grade B- or above in COMM HU1020, COMM 1050, or equivalent); Computer and Information Literacy.

Undergraduate students are considered for admission based on a 100-point system: 30 points maximum for GPA; 30 points maximum for the Collegiate Assessment of Academic Proficiency (CAAP); 40 points maximum for the interview. Points are awarded based upon the following criteria.

1. Completion of at least 40 semester hours of general education or relevant prerequisite courses and (a) have an overall GPA of 3.00 or higher, or (b) 3.25 GPA or higher on the last 30 semester hours.

2. Achieve minimum scores on the Collegiate Assessment of Academic Proficiency (CAAP) standardized assessment designed to show achievement levels in reading, writing and mathematics. Current minimum scores required for admission to the teacher education programs are: Writing- 61, Writing Essay- 3.0, Math- 54 and Reading-59.

3. Successful completion of a formal interview with a three-member faculty committee. In preparation for the interview students are asked to prepare a two-page statement detailing their (a) reasons for wanting to become a teacher, and (b) past teaching experiences. Interview questions focus on the student’s interest/commitment to teaching, understanding of education issues, ability to relate past experiences to their role as a teacher, interpersonal skills, communication abilities, professionalism, and preliminary evidence of course dispositions. Students who do not obtain the required interview score are not eligible for admittance and may reapply for a subsequent semester. If the second interview score is also below the minimum, students must wait at least one year to reapply.

Students who already hold a baccalaureate degree and elementary or secondary teaching license may be admitted to the special education program licensure-only program, and they are not subject to the above criteria.

Retention in the program is based upon the following conditions.

1. Completion of a background check as soon as admitted and before being placed in a public school for field experiences. Candidates cannot enroll in Level 1 or EDUC 2890/4890 courses until cleared. Admission to the teacher education programs will be immediately revoked for those with a criminal record which has not been cleared by the Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission.

2. Candidates are expected to maintain high professional and academic standards. Quality of work and timely progress through the program are two (2) criteria considered as evidence of professional competence.

3. Candidates must maintain a GPA of 3.00 in all university course work, not receiving a grade lower than a B- in any professional education course work. A professional education course may be repeated once.

4. Documented violations of the WSU Student Code of Conduct will be considered grounds for suspension or dismissal from the teacher education program.

5. Provisional status is revoked by an informal hearing organized by the Teacher Education Admission and Retention Committee. Candidates may appeal the ruling by following WSU Student Rights and Responsibilities policy.

A minimum of 34-38 credit hours is required in special education courses (in addition to specific elementary or content major requirements), with a minimum of 120 credit hours required for university graduation. To graduate from the program candidates must meet these graduation requirements, successfully complete clinical practice, and participate in an exit interview for completion of licensing materials and graduation clearance.

4. Relationship of the program to the unit’s conceptual framework.

The Special Education program is housed within and is an integral part of the Teacher Education Department and shares the vision of the Conceptual Framework: Student Achievement: Teachers, Students, and Communities Working Together. The foundations of the Conceptual Framework are national and state standards that incorporate professional knowledge, skills, and disposition necessary for teacher candidates to be successful in their classrooms and to improve student performance. Such standards have been thoroughly researched and described in the professional literature and are incorporated into the Unit’s knowledge base.

5. Program assessments and relationship to unit’s assessment system.

The Special Education program has defined six specific assessments (see Section II). All programs in the unit require four of the six assessments; Praxis II, minimum GPA, Teacher Work Sample, and Portfolio. However, the Special Education program requires two unique assessments; Case Study, and Comprehensive Evaluation in Clinical Practice. While all six assessments relate to the program, these unique assessments permit candidates to demonstrate more clearly the specific knowledge and skills required of Special Educators as outlined by the Council for Exceptional Children.

6. Program description.

Weber State University offers only one program in special education, and it is housed within and is an integral part of the Teacher Education department. The special education program prepares individuals to teach pupils K-12 with mild to moderate disabilities using three different routes; Elementary Education/Special Education Composite major, secondary teaching minor in conjunction with a content area teaching major, or postgraduate licensure program for licensed elementary or secondary teachers. Under the Utah guidelines, pupils with mild to moderate disabilities participate in the general curriculum according to an individualized program. This term includes pupils with learning disabilities, mental retardation/developmental disabilities, or emotional/behavioral disabilities who are not in need of a functional or life-skills curriculum.

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