The Board is "established to govern teacher training and licensing programs." Indiana Code, Sec. 20-1-1.4-2
I. Introduction
II. Redesign of Teacher Preparation and Licensing SystemIII. Legal and External Affairs
IV. Supporting Agency Personnel and Functions
V. Statutory Responsibilities
VI. Questions and Answers about the New Licensing System
VII. Summary
VIII. Board Membership and Staff
I. Introduction
The Indiana Professional Standards Board ("the Board") in fiscal year 1998-99 continued its work to both oversee and reform the preparation and licensing of educators - teachers, administrators, and school services professionals - for the benefit of Indiana children. The challenge is to maintain the operation of the present 20-year-old system, while simultaneously building a standards driven, performance-based system. The Board does so as the sole authority in the state of Indiana empowered to govern teacher preparation and licensing (IC 20-1-1.4).
Such a performance-based system relies on more rigorous standards and increased accountability, while reducing outdated and complicated rules which cause unnecessary paperwork and delay. A performance-based system looks at an educator's on-the-job performance when issuing a new or renewed license and reviews the quality of preservice education using candidate performance data when approving or renewing a teacher education program at an Indiana college or university.
Essential to measuring performance are standards for what Indiana teachers and other educators should know and be able to do to teach effectively. The Board has now adopted 18 of 19 planned sets of standards in 12 teaching content areas, four student developmental levels, and for building level administrators and school services personnel. These standards are based on the state approved proficiencies for what we want our children to learn and know how to do, and upon standards of national learned societies within subject areas, such as the International Reading Association and the National Science Teachers Association.
The Board's staff works in four operating divisions which reflect the areas of reform:
Executive Management
Preservice Education
Induction and Continuing Education
Public and Agency Support Services.
This Annual Report is intended to review the goals and achievements of the Board during the year ending June 30, 1999, and to place those accomplishments in perspective within the ongoing redesign of the educator preparation and licensing system.
II. Reform of Educator Preparation and Licensure System
History
Beginning with the 1990 report of the Indiana Education Certification and Licensing Commission, Indiana educators and others concerned about the quality of education have maintained that Indiana's system of preparing and licensing education professionals could be improved to set more rigorous standards for teaching. The report noted that the rules could be clearer, and could benefit from a stronger linkage with expectations for K-12 student achievement, for performance once a teacher is employed in schools, for teacher candidates for licensure purposes, and for practitioners' continued professional growth.
Purpose of the Reform
The Board aims to eliminate the current gaps in Indiana's preparation and licensure system, so that expectations for student classroom achievement are linked to expectations for teacher performance in classrooms. Teacher performance is in turn linked to expectations for preparation and continuing education in order for a teacher to receive and renew a license.
In addition to the desired linkages among student achievement, teacher preparation, teacher performance, and continued professional growth, the redesign seeks to:
- produce a simpler licensing configuration, with fewer and broader licensing areas;
- produce clear and understandable rules for use by licensure candidates, by those who prepare them, and by those who hire them; and
- encourage innovative and diverse preparation programs by focusing directly on the competence of the candidates they produce, as opposed to state-mandated course requirements which do not directly predict competence.
Reform Process
In August 1994, the Board began the journey to a performance-based system. The design has three essential parts:
Standards: The basis for preparing and licensing teachers and other education professionals so that our children reach the desired levels of achievement.
Assessment: Determine if the standards are being met, to show each educator's competence to practice, and to hold preparation programs accountable for producing candidates who can pass the assessments.
Licensure: Develop the licensing configuration to issue and renew licenses for those whose performance meets the standards as measured by the assessments.
The Board is striving to make Indiana the first state in the nation to use the same standards to measure performance of teacher preparation programs, and of teachers from preparation through initial licensing, gaining their Proficient Practitioner license, and during license renewal.
Once each of the three levels of the redesign has been completed, the concluding step will be to enact necessary statutes and regulations to fully implement this performance-based system.
Redesign Accomplishments to Date
Standards - 18 of 19 sets have been adopted.
During 1998-99, the Board adopted the 18th of 19 planned sets of standards in content and developmental areas describing what education professionals should know and be able to do to practice effectively (and increase student learning) in the classroom. Standards have been adopted in the following areas:
Four student developmental levels:
Early Childhood, Middle Childhood, Early Adolescence, and Adolescence and Young Adulthood.
Twelve teaching content areas:
English as a New Language; English/Language Arts; Exceptional Needs; Fine Arts; Foreign Language; Early and Middle Elementary Generalist; Library/Media; Mathematics; Physical Education and Health; Science; Social Studies, and Vocational Education (proposed to be renamed Career/Technical).
Two other areas:
Building Administration, and School Services.
The standards were drafted by advisory groups comprising 185 Hoosiers chosen from among almost 600 applicants. Drafts were widely distributed to the field for review and feedback. After editing based on the comments received, the Board approved the standards.
A new external committee, sponsored by the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents, was formed and worked during 1998-99 to develop standards in a third general area, for District Level Administration, the 19th set of standards which were to be approved fall 1999.
The Board's Standards Review Cycle Committee worked during 1998-99 to systematize the process for comment on and review of standards, and the Comprehensive Standards Document Advisory Group worked to pull the standards into one document.
Assessments - Pilot programs continued on new assessment techniques.
In 1997, the Board approved the initial design of assessment systems for institutions preparing education professionals and for licensing and relicensing of education professionals. During the past year the Board's Assessment Coordinating Committee further refined the design.
All components of this system must include performance-based assessments: demonstrations by candidates for licensure that they can perform effectively with students in classrooms. Highlights of the new assessment design include:
- Institutions preparing education professionals will design assessment systems that demonstrate to the Board that their students meet Indiana content and developmental level standards for beginning teachers. The assessment system must use information gained from student assessments to improve the preparation programs. Institutions have been developing these systems for two years of a planned 5-year design process.
- Initial licenses (non-renewable) will be granted for a two-year period during which beginning teachers must successfully complete performance-based assessments during their first two years in the classroom; success on this induction performance assessment generates a 5-year renewable license. The performance of beginning teachers will be assessed by highly trained Indiana education practitioners (pre-kindergarten through grade 12 and higher education). Piloting continued in two academic areas during 1998-99, math and English/language arts, on Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) portfolio assessments for beginning teachers.
- Educators will renew their licenses by developing a Professional Growth Plan, and a professional portfolio which will be reviewed by a professional growth team composed of peers at the local level. Pilots were conducted during 1998-99 in five Indiana school districts to assist in developing recommendations for the new continuing education/relicensure system.
Because this assessment design is a major departure from the current requirements consisting solely of course completion and paper and pencil tests, it is being phased in over the next several years to allow institutions and local school corporations the time needed to implement required changes.
During 1999-2000, the Board plans to further develop the assessment system to include assessments for institutions which prepare education professionals; assessments for licensing teachers, administrators, and school services personnel; and assessments for relicensure of educators. This system will be based on recommendations made to the Board by the Assessment Coordinating Committee (ACC). During this period, institutions will submit to the Board their plans for putting a new institutional assessment system into place; three assessment demonstration sites for beginning teacher induction portfolio assessments in six subject areas (mathematics and English/language arts, science, middle childhood (elementary), exceptional needs (special education), and social studies) will be established; ten more local corporations will begin to develop models for implementing the proposed relicensure assessments; and the external committee for building-level administrators and the school services work group will complete their work on an assessment process for their respective groups and make recommendations to the Board. In addition, the Board will continue its participation in the development of the INTASC Test for Teaching Knowledge. Dissemination of the ACC recommendations will occur through pilot and focus groups, the web site, and workshops.
Licensure - A new framework for issuing licenses.
During 1998-99, the Board adopted a licensing framework that is consistent with the Board's performance-based standards and assessments. It results in a system where each educator will receive a license which confirms demonstrated competence in one or more developmental level and one or more content area, as measured against the relevant standards. The license will show the school setting(s) and content area(s) for which the educator is licensed.
In addition to licenses, the framework identifies two other types of credential:
- For instructional areas for which there are no standards (and thus no license), certificates can be issued to an educator who already holds a license. Certificates will be issued jointly by the Board and another qualified organization (including but not limited to a college or university) and will indicate competence in an area of teaching which is not a licensing area. An example would be a teacher licensed in the elementary school setting (having shown competence to teach children to read) adding a certificate in reading to indicate additional preparation to teach children with reading problems.
- Permits will be issued for limited duration, non-licensed areas that relate to staffing shortage areas, or may be helpful for an educator with an expired license who wishes to renew it. Likely permit areas will be substitute teaching, and the equivalent of the present limited license. Work will continue in 1999-2000 to identify any additional areas.
Changes in Rules and Statutes
To implement the new performance-based system, new rules for teacher preparation, testing, induction, and continuing education must be promulgated. In addition, the current statute for the Beginning Teacher Internship Program must be amended to implement the proposed new performance assessment for beginning teacher interns, and other statutory changes may be needed. As the Board approves recommendations for the new assessment system, new rules will be developed for its approval and published for public hearings. In 1998-99, the rules for teacher preparation (Rule for Accreditation of Institutions Preparing Educators) and teacher testing (Rule for Qualifying Scores for the Pre-Professional Skills Test) took effect.
National Recognition for Indiana's Redesign of Educator Preparation and Licensing
Because of the careful, thoughtful process used by the IPSB for all aspects of the Redesign and its remarkable progress since 1992, the Board has achieved the following national recognition:
- The 41-state National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education has chosen Indiana as one of six partner states to develop models for uniting the standards for accreditation, licensure, and relicensure for education professionals;
- The National Commission on Teaching & America's Future has chosen Indiana as one of 14 partner states to develop models for improving the teacher development continuum (standards, preparation, professional development, recruitment, rewards, school structure);
- The U.S. Department of Education featured the Board's licensure redesign process in Promising Practices: New Ways to Improve Teaching Quality;
- The 30-state member Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium has involved Indiana in its presentations and deliberations;
- The Executive Director and the Board Chair were invited presenters at the annual conference of the National Commission on Teaching & America's Future in August 1998
- Indiana applied for and received a $1.33 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education. It will assist in the first year of a three-year project to build K-16 partnerships and other activities to speed development of IPSB's new system; to help recruit teachers in critical shortage areas; and to help teachers and principals support the new system, especially the induction program. State funds bring this year's grant budget to more than $2.7 million. If state funding is available for the second and third grant years, grant activities will continue into 2002.
III. Legal and External Affairs
The Board's effectiveness in governing teacher preparation and licensing for the benefit of Hoosier children depends on input and cooperation from many education stakeholders: parents, teachers, administrators, school board members, higher education students and faculty, legislators, state agencies, business and industry, and the public at large. Clear communication of the need for rigorous standards for teaching is essential in serving those stakeholders now and in implementing the redesigned system in the next few years. It is also critical for the Board and its staff to effectively liaise with the decision makers from each of these stakeholder groups.
Part of that process is to clearly express the intent of the Board through adopting and amending regulations, and to assist the Indiana General Assembly in understanding the impact of any proposed statutory changes. The Director of Legal and External Affairs is responsible for rule promulgation and advising on the legislative process and for seeing that any administrative hearings or other adjudications are conducted properly.
Goals and accomplishments during 1998-99 in Legal and External Affairs included:
- Proposed rules for teacher preparation (Rule for Accreditation of Institutions Preparing Educators) and teacher testing (Rule for Qualifying Scores for the Pre-Professional Skills Test) became final..
- Ongoing activities for Board communications include handling media inquiries and issuing press releases, preparing mandatory and requested reports for the Indiana General Assembly and Budget Agency, mailing agendas and minutes, disseminating standards and position statements of the Board, and preparing presentations by Board members and staff to stakeholders.
IV. Supporting Agency Personnel and Functions
During 1998-99 the Board employed 29 staff members, who were organized into five divisions (Administration, Teacher Education, Teacher Induction, Teacher Licensing and Teacher Testing, and Continuing Education). The staff assisted the Board with fulfilling its action plan for redesigning preparation and licensure for educators. At the same time, the staff maintained current programs of preparation and licensure as mandated through statute and rule. To meet these extensive obligations, staff received support from budget and human resources staff, as well as agency technical consultants. This support provided opportunities for reclassifications as work responsibilities increase, the provision of time-saving technology, and thorough annual reports to the General Assembly, Governor's Office, Budget Agency, and Joint House-Senate Budget Committee. These reports include the 1998-99 Management Plan and Budget, an agency performance plan, and legislative and budget presentations about the redesign.
The staff set the following goals for 1998-99:
- To revise and implement the Board's action plan;
- To create and implement an agency strategic plan;
- To implement a budget process based on agency priorities;
- To facilitate the integration and coordination of agency programmatic efforts;
- To instill an ethic of professionalism and pride on the part of agency staff;
- To document Board positions and funding requests;
- To instill respect for the Board and its work based on the quality of the service and products furnished by Board and staff members;
- To produce the 1996-97 IPSB Annual Report to the Legislature; and
- To produce the 1998-99 Management Plan and Budget.
Staff achieved the following toward the goals:
- Completed 70 of 121 action items from the Board's 1998-99 Action Plan, (58%); made considerable / moderate progress on another 15 items (12%); and limited progress on eight (7%);
- Restructured agency into four divisions (Executive Management, Preservice Education, Induction and Continuing Education, and Public and Agency Support Services) to match agency structure with Board redesign goals and create a more coherent and effective divisional structure;
- Reclassified 21 of 29 positions as part of the agency restructuring;
- Expended 85 percent of 1998-99 budget in support of statutory/regulatory responsibilities and the redesign of preparation and licensure for educators; and
- Prepared the 1996-97 IPSB Annual Report to the Legislature, and the 1998-99 Management Plan and Budget.
V. Statutory Responsibilities
A. Teacher Education (now part of the Division of Preservice Education)
The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) standards and guidelines are used for state approval of teacher education programs. Although NCATE accreditation is strongly encouraged, it is not mandatory for institutions. Currently, 32 Indiana teacher education institutions are NCATE-accredited or are seeking NCATE accreditation whereas four professional education units have sought state-only accreditation. Also, Teacher Education prepares and provides information regarding accreditation procedures and standards, the accreditation status of Indiana institutions, and preparation programs for education.
General goals and accomplishments for 1998-99 included:
- Assistance to institutions in obtaining and maintaining NCATE accreditation;
- Facilitation and coordination of nine accreditation visits throughout the state;
- Administration of three institutional sessions to provide technical assistance for implementation of the new system;
- Collaboration with Teacher Education Committee to prepare assessment tools for use in determining the quality of unit assessment systems; and
- Provision of feedback to institutions, through special consultants, on the development of unit assessment systems.
Regarding accreditation, the Board reviews each institution in the state at least once every five years. Accreditation visits and other aspects of the review are staggered over the five-year periods so that the work is spread evenly. During the past year, staff completed nine accreditation visits (e.g., continuing and re-visits), including pre-visits as well as "warm-up" sessions.
During 1998-99, the following institutions were granted initial or continuing accreditation at the initial (undergraduate) and advanced (graduate) levels:
- Franklin College was granted continuing accreditation at the initial level;
- Indiana University South Bend was granted continuing accreditation at the initial and advanced levels;
- University of Indianapolis was granted continuing accreditation at the initial and advanced levels; and
- Hanover College was granted continuing accreditation with stipulations at the initial level.
The Board also approved one experimental program during 1998-99, designed to offer graduate programs that reflect changes regarding Indiana's new system of performance-based preparation and licensure:
Oakland City University - An experimental program with three options was approved. The options are: Option I - designed for persons who have already acquired a Baccalaureate degree in a content area other than teaching, and have decided that they want to change to a career in teaching; Option II - designed for persons who have completed a Baccalaureate degree in a teaching field. It is designed to be an induction model for new teachers and a continuing professional education model for experienced educators; and Option III - designed for persons who have completed a Baccalaureate degree in a teaching field who are seeking advanced study and administrative licensure.
B. Teacher Testing (part of the Division of Preservice Education)
Teacher Testing applies rules to insure that all candidates for initial licenses are tested for minimum competency. Validation studies for proposed exams and test score recommendations for those tests are vital activities of the program. Additionally, the program maintains test score data and prepares a yearly report to the Board on the pass/fail rates of examinees. Higher education institutions receive essential information about exam requirements from this program, which also assists candidates who have testing problems requiring special accommodations. The annual test data report is available upon request.
A major task for fall 1999 was to implement a new basic skills test: Praxis I for all initial license candidates. Praxis I: The Pre-Professional Skills Test prepared by the Educational Testing Service, ETS, assesses reading, writing, and math skills.
Goals and accomplishments for 1998-99 included:
- Recommended Praxis I: the Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST) and cut-off scores for adoption and implementation in the fall of 1999. The recommended cut-off scores for the three parts of the PPST, ranked against those required by 14 other states using it, would rank Indiana second highest in reading, third in math and fourth in writing;
- Began necessary work to prepare for the implementation of Praxis I: the PPST in the fall of 1999;
- Participated in the pilot test for the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) Test for Teaching Knowledge (TTK).
C. Teacher Licensing
The Division of Public and Agency Support Services (PASS) provides the financial and human resources that the IPSB needs to perform to fulfill its mission and meet the needs of its customers. PASS is composed of three areas: budget and personnel services, licensing services, and general and technical services.
During 1998-99, the IPSB saw large increases in the number of beginning teachers and in the total number of licenses issued. Total license transactions increased 22 percent to 27,476. Details of types of licenses appear below. The number of beginning teachers registering for the Beginning Teacher Internship Program under IC 20-6.1-8 rose 31 percent to 3,438. The agency strove to serve these applicants under its fixed appropriation from the General Assembly.
The Division of Public and Agency Support Services established the following goals for 1998-99:
To attempt to standardize all agency operations, using technology where resources permit and establishing performance benchmarks;
To prepare an agency operations and procedures manual;
To train staff to implement agency operations and procedures;
To revise and implement the agency policy manual (budget and personnel);
To design and implement an agency help desk, identifying and training staff to fill this role;
To provide the public as much information as possible about agency procedures and functions through the IPSB web page;
To process applications efficiently, issuing licenses and substitute certificates promptly;
To handle application fees collected by the division responsibly;
To evaluate candidates for licensing who completed school personnel preparation programs outside the state of Indiana;
To provide timely written and verbal response to requests for information, clarification, or assistance regarding licensing issues;
To maintain accurate records of licenses, substitute certificates, evaluations, revocations and appeals;
To maintain necessary paper and electronic databases as necessary to legally document all aspects of the agency's programs, to allow for financial audit, and to provide research information to the Indiana Professional Standards Board, and other education agencies as needed or requested.
The Division of Public and Agency Support Services had the following accomplishments in 1998-99:
Implemented IPSB server with agency e-mail, file sharing, and LAN;
- Upgraded computers, software, and peripheral devices;
- Ensured that IPSB-controlled technology is Y2K compliant;
Implemented agency help desk, automatic caller distribution system, and voice mail;
Trained staff for agency e-mail, help desk, travel and voucher procedures, and voice mail;
Designed and implemented IPSB web page;
Deposited $94,836 in agency fees (14.1% increase);
Expended 99% of base budget;
Integrated quality assurance measures into license issuance process;
Trained licensing section staff in evaluation procedures and related processes;
Implemented performance bench marks for all positions within the agency;
Purged and microfilmed 1993 licensing records;
Evaluated 1,553 out-of-state applications (5.7% decrease)
Issued 7,028 original licenses, includes limited licenses (7.6% increase)
Issued 6,211 license renewals, includes limited licenses (18.8% increase);
Converted 942 standard licenses to professional licenses (27.1% increase);
Issued 278 duplicate licenses (58.9% increase);
Issued 1,630 license additions (data not previously collected);
Issued 9,834 substitute certificates (20.8% increase);
Issued 1,256 limited licenses, which are emergency licenses issued on a school district's request. This was a 9.3 percent increase. More than 86% percent were issued for teaching of students with disabilities. Limited licensed teachers represent about 2.2% of all Indiana employed teachers. Of the 1,256 limited licenses, 748 were new and 508 were renewals.
D. Revocations and Adjudications
The Board is obligated to act upon any petitions received from the Indiana Department of Education recommending the revocation of teacher licenses and to conduct adjudications on certain administrative matters according to Indiana law.
Goals for 1998-99 included:
- To conduct any required actions in a timely, efficient manner pursuant to law;
- To seek a surrender of a license if revocation is recommended and to proceed with a revocation hearing if the license is not surrendered; and
- To assist Board members in conducting hearings, either as Administrative Law Judges or at the Board level, in compliance with statutory responsibilities.
Accomplishments for 1998-99 included:
- Prepared and processed adjudications within required time frames;
- Obtained license surrenders in 83 percent of revocation actions filed; and
- Prepared evidentiary files and recommendations to assist Board members in adjudicative hearings, and represented the Board's position at such hearings.
E. Teacher Induction
The purpose of the Beginning Teacher Internship Program (BTIP) is to provide for professional formative experiences and support to teachers in their initial endeavors, to assess performance during this period, and to utilize assessments for feedback to enhance the quality of teaching, of teaching preparation programs, and new teacher professionalism.
Indiana law requires that the Board assess beginning teachers in the performance of their duties, have school principals evaluate the performance of beginning teachers, and use that performance to evaluate the quality of teacher preparation programs.
Teacher Induction also has an active program underway developing the method by which beginning teachers will be assessed in the future. Under the Beginning Teacher Induction Performance Assessment Program (BTIPAP), staff, pre-kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, and higher education faculty volunteers designed the process that will be used to evaluate beginning teachers during their first two years in the classroom, leading to a Proficient Practitioner license.
Teacher Induction had the following goals and accomplishments for 1998-99:
- Conducted orientation programs for beginning teachers and their mentors, familiarizing them with the legal components of the program and assisting them in the performance of the objectives outlined in the internship program rules;
- Enhanced stakeholder collaboration in the internship and induction process;
- Monitored local internship plans as established by law, and reported results to the Division of Performance-Based Accreditation, Indiana Department of Education;
- Monitored the performance of beginning teachers through the Beginning Teacher Assessment Inventory and maintain records of teacher success;
- Conducted two sessions for Indiana teacher preparation college and university programs, to familiarize those who prepare teachers with the way new graduates will be evaluated during their first two years in the classroom;
- Began trial scoring of actual portfolios developed by beginning teachers from around Indiana participating in the field test, and used data from the scoring to develop benchmarks of performance to be used in future scoring;
- Recruited additional groups of scorers and trainers for elementary education, English/ language arts, mathematics, science, social studies and special education induction portfolios. Conducted additional training sessions to build the necessary numbers of Indiana scorers to accurately assess induction portfolios developed by beginning teachers;
- Held several support seminars to develop the systems supporting first- and second-year teachers as they move through the beginning teacher performance assessment process; and
- Continued an agreement with the state of Connecticut to share information derived from that state's pioneering use of portfolios in assessing beginning teachers.
F. Continuing Education
The Continuing Education Program responsibilities are based on 1984 legislative action requiring continuing education for educators. Continuing education presently takes the form of additional college-level course work or Certification Renewal Units (CRUs). The current continuing education function of the Board is to review and approve proposed CRU programs, to provide guidelines for program development, to issue the form for CRU certificates, and to maintain a database of certificates issued.
Goals and accomplishments for 1998-99 included:
- Staff approved 85 new Certification Renewal Unit Programs. Letters of approval and other pertinent documents were mailed to program sponsors.
- Re-approval was granted to 56 former programs, and letters of re-approval and other pertinent documents were mailed to renewing sponsors;
- The CRU database was maintained; and
- Staff fielded questions from CRU sponsors and answered questions about program approval, and mailed copies of program application forms, guidelines, and continuing education information upon request.
VI. Questions and Answers about the Board's Proposed Licensing System
Q: Is the new system more rigorous?
A: Yes. The current 20-year-old system relies merely on completion of course work and achieving a minimum overall grade point average to enter and graduate from a teacher preparation program. The new system requires teacher preparation institutions to provide evidence that students know their content and how to teach it prior to becoming eligible for a teaching license, something a grade simply cannot tell you.
Q: Will schools be able to hire newly licensed teachers who know the content of the subject to be taught?
A: Yes. A new teacher will have to know the content of the area of the license to be licensed. However, the IPSB does not control the hiring process. The public should expect schools to hire only those teachers who are qualified and licensed in the area of their teaching assignment.
Q: Do the new standards have requirements for knowledge of content?
A: Yes. Every set of standards begins with knowledge of content! The core standards require that teachers know their content and how to teach it. What the standards do not do is to prescribe the exact content for each subject area. The Board expects that Indiana kindergarten through grade 12 teachers and higher education faculty who are experts in the content areas will work together to ensure that the proper content is included in preparation programs. The Board's new assessment system requires that type of partnership in the design and implementation of preparation programs.
Q: What role do arts and sciences faculty play in a teacher preparation program?
A: Arts and sciences faculty play a vital role in teacher preparation programs and are required to participate in the development and implementation of such programs. Because the new system does not prescribe course work at the state level, it gives all faculty an opportunity to design the very best possible programs to ensure that teachers know their content and how to teach it. The new system then goes one step beyond program design by requiring that institutions provide evidence to the Board that their teacher candidates actually do know their subject and how to teach it.
Q: What protections exist to ensure that teacher preparation programs prepare qualified teachers, teachers who know content and how to teach it?
A: Instead of prescribing course work, which provides little if any evidence of student accomplishment, the Board will institute a comprehensive assessment system composed of the following elements:
- a description of how students are prepared to teach according to standards in content and developmental areas;
- a description of how students are assessed throughout their preparation programs to provide feedback on their subject matter and teaching competence and to make decisions based on those assessments regarding whether or not the students should progress to the next level of their preparation programs;
- evidence of student mastery of content and the ability to teach it;
- a description of how program quality has been assessed, including evidence of candidate achievement, and a description of how that evidence has been used to improve programs;
- annual reports with data on student achievement;
- accreditation visits every five years, or sooner, if there is a problem as noted by the annual reports; and
- the licensing assessment for beginning teachers will be used in part to determine whether institutions' preparation programs should continue to be state-approved.
Q: Why aren't state-prescribed courses the way to prepare better teachers?
A: State-prescribed course requirements allow weak institutions to hide behind minimums, and prevent strong institutions from developing programs which effectively integrate content knowledge and teaching skills through course work, field experiences, and the like. State-prescribed course requirements also presume that all teacher candidates and all teacher preparation institutions are alike--one box fits all. We know that is not accurate, that candidates come with a great variety of experiences and expertise, and that institutions serve a variety of communities throughout Indiana. The new approach enables these institutions the flexibility to tailor programs to meet the needs of their students and communities.
Q: Will teacher preparation institutions continue to have course requirements for prospective teachers?
A: Yes. Institutions must submit a plan to the Indiana Professional Standards Board describing how they will prepare their students to teach in specific content and developmental areas. All plans will describe required course work and field experiences as well as evidence used to ensure that students have mastered specific knowledge and skills.
Q: How will the number of content area courses differ under the new system?
A: Under the new system, teacher preparation institutions will determine course requirements. As a result, candidates may be required to take more, the same, or fewer courses in their content areas, as long as they can demonstrate that they know the content and how to teach it.
Q: How will the new system encourage career changers and others who have special expertise to enter the teaching profession?
A: Because the new system is based on evidence that prospective teachers know their content and how to teach it, teacher preparation institutions will have the flexibility to match course requirements to the experience and expertise that their students possess, as long as an assessment system is in place to ensure competence in content and content-specific teaching skills.
Q: Which other college/university programs have state-prescribed curricula?
A: In other professions and discipline areas, the profession determines what the curriculum should require. The Board is moving to a similar system whereby preparation institutions must show that their programs are based on the professional standards for each discipline area and are consistent with Indiana's K-12 proficiencies in the subject area. In this way, programs are based on the most current information known about teaching specific subject areas. In this manner, state-mandated curriculum based on out-of-date information is not guiding the preparation of teachers who must meet the needs of today's students.
Q: Why is knowing how to teach important, in addition to knowing what to teach?
A: Think about the children you know. How are they alike and different from each other? How do they differ from children in other parts of the state, the country, the world? Does their age make a difference? Is discipline sometimes required? All these factors and more require that teachers understand how children learn and possess multiple strategies for working with a great variety of students. All the content knowledge in the world is useless unless it can be conveyed in a meaningful way to those who need to understand and use it.
Q: To whom is the Indiana Professional Standards Board accountable?
A: The Indiana Professional Standards Board was created by the State Legislature to govern preparation and licensing of teachers, administrators, and school services personnel, who teach in accredited schools in Indiana. The Board is accountable to the citizens of Indiana and the children who are required to attend accredited Indiana schools.
Q: What process has the Board used to develop the new system and how has it solicited feedback?
A: The Board's meetings are public and comply with Indiana's Open Door Law. All agendas and minutes are posted on the Board's web site: www.state.in.us/psb. All standards and recommendations for the new system have been developed by Indiana K-12 and higher education experts who serve on advisory groups and committees and who have been appointed through a statewide application process. All recommendations are disseminated statewide for feedback and revision purposes. This development, dissemination, and editing process explains why the new system has been developed over a lengthy period of time, beginning in July 1994.
Q: Why change?
A: The Board believes that many good teacher preparation programs currently exist, and that most teachers are knowledgeable and committed to their students' learning. However, teacher preparation institutions face a huge challenge if they are to meet the needs of all students in today's changing world. We can no longer depend on minimums, on state-prescribed course work that can quickly become out-of-date, to meet the needs of Indiana's schools and students. We must develop a system that enables teacher preparation institutions, in concert with local schools, to prepare teachers who are equipped to teach all students and meet Indiana's content expectations, and who are themselves lifelong learners. That is the system the Board, in concert with all stakeholder groups, is developing.
VII. Summary
During 1998-99, the Indiana Professional Standards Board strove to serve the citizens of Indiana by efficiently licensing teachers and other educators and approving qualified preparation programs at 39 Indiana college and universities. At the same time, the Board, its committees and advisory groups, and professional staff worked diligently on the redesigned system of standards, assessments, and licensing to ensure the quality of teaching our children need and deserve in the future. The Board invites participation by all concerned with these vital tasks.
VIII. Board Membership and Staff, 1998-99
Executive Committee Members, 1998-99 (Elected by Board from Board membership):
Chair: Mr. Philip Metcalf, Mathematics Teacher, Wawasee High School
Vice Chair: Ms. Ann England, Director of Human Resources, Richmond School Corporation
Secretary: Mr. Joseph Weaver, English/Foreign Language Teacher, Oak Hill High School
At-Large: Ms. Judith Briganti, Elementary Teacher, Mary Beck School
At-Large: Dr. Lewis Ciminillo, Professor of Education, Indiana University Northwest
Members, 1998-99 (18 appointed by Governor, plus Superintendent of Public Instruction):
The Executive Committee members, and
Dr. Rex Bolinger, Principal, Angola High School
Mr. David Cooper, Science Teacher, LaPorte High School
Ms. Albertine Dent, School Board Member, School City of Hammond
Ms. Connie Griffith, Special Education Consultant, Madison Area Special Services
Ms. Constance Hardy, Teacher-Vocal Music, John Marshall Middle School
Dr. Marilyn Haring, Dean, School of Education, Purdue University
Mr. Michael Horvath, Special Education Director, Monroe County Schools
Mr. John W. Marsteller, Early Childhood, Miami Elementary School
Mr. Daniel E. Miller, Sr., Building Trades Teacher, Area 30 Technology Center
Dr. Suellen Reed, Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction
Dr. Ena M. Shelley, Early Childhood, Elementary Professor, Butler University
Mr. Lee (Linas) Slavinskas, Business/Industry, River Bend Hose Specialty, Inc.
Mr. Richard Therrien, School Psychologist, Independent Consultant
Dr. Steve Yager, Superintendent, Northwest Allen County School Corporation
Agency Directors, 1998-99:
Dr. Marilyn M. Scannell, Executive Director
Ms. T.J. Oakes, Deputy Director
Dr. Richard Frisbie, Director of Induction and Continuing Education
Mr. Thomas D. Hansen, Director of Legal and External Affairs
Ms. Bet Kotowski, Director of Preservice Education
Mr. John H. Baker, Director of Public and Agency Support Services
Indiana Professional Standards Board
101 W. Ohio St. Suite 300, Indianapolis IN 46204-1953
Phone: (317) 232-9010 Web site: www.state.in.us/psb
Fax: (317) 232-9023 E-mail: licensinghelp@doe.in.gov