Teacher Education Committee
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2009
Krista updated the committee on the department’s progress on the Minnesota Board of Teaching (PEPER) requirements. She briefly explained, for those relatively new to the committee, that this is a reauthorization process that the department must go through every seven years to maintain our licensure program. It has been an extremely long and time-consuming process that has taken almost two years. The good news is that six of our eleven licensure fields for Peper II have passed out of the reviewers hands as “recommended for approval”. Although we still have much to do, we definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel. John updated the committee on our student teachers—both fall 08 and soon-to-be fall 09. John is currently teaching the social studies methods course and part of that course is making connections with social studies teachers in the field. The students have presented lesson plans in Sam Wold’s Northfield High School World History class, and many at Lakeville North. John updated the committee on staffing for next year. Deborah will be returning from her sabbatical. We are extremely happy to report that Professor Anita Chikkatur will be at Carleton another year as part of the Consortium for Faculty Diversity. John brought up an issue that just came to the department’s attention yesterday. Carleton is in the process of digitally archiving all Comps and Honors Paper. This is a new policy that was recently voted on and passed unanimously at the January Faculty Meeting. He explained that, although the Educational Studies department is not a major (and therefore does not have Comps or Honors Papers), he felt that the department might want to think about archiving student teacher portfolios. Although student teacher portfolios are not an equivalent work, it would give our department a presence on the library site. These archives would be available to current students and faculty. Students would have the option to “opt out”. Given that we just received this yesterday, the department will look into the policy further and have it on our spring meeting agenda. We had one applicant this term and that candidate was unanimously admitted.
May 2009
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2008
The meeting began with a warm welcome and introductions to our new members of the TEC Committee: Cindy Blaha, Professor of Physics and Astronomy and our student representatives: Amanda DeBoer and Rebekkah Goodman-Williams. John described how the committee functions—the work that the committee does and how often the committee meets.
John updated the committee on the fall 2008 student teachers. He expressed how impressed he is with the level of maturity the student teachers possess. He is very pleased how the group and the student teaching seminar is going this fall. John updated the committee on the department’s progress on the Minnesota Board of Teaching (PEPER) requirements. He explained that for the subject area licensure requirements, the department has hired outside consultants to assist. He discussed how they are helping to zero in on where the subject area courses meet the precise standard. He feels that if there is one true silver lining in this entire process, it is that we are now able to critically look at our requirements and how they match up with the state standards. John introduced our newest member of the faculty: Professor Anita Chikkatur will be at Carleton this year as part of the Consortium for Faculty Diversity. She will be working on her dissertation during the fall and teaching one course during both winter term and spring term. No applicants for this term.
March 2009
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2008
Deborah presented the final placements for the fall 2008 student teachers and explained one will be delaying her student teaching a year due to being awarded a Fulbright Scholarship.Deborah wanted to update the committee on the tremendous growth the department is experiencing at this time. In 2008 the department will have 8 student teachers and in 2009 upwards of 9-10 student teachers as well as 17 concentrators. Although historically the numbers have had peaks and valleys, there seems to be a general upward trend. The number of student teachers and concentrators puts the department on par with some departments with majors. Deborah announced that this Saturday the department, along with Alumni Affairs, is hosting our fourth annual spring symposium for alumni teachers. This year the topic is No Child Left Behind: its limitations, its impact, its future and the active political role that teachers can and should play in helping shape educational policy. Deborah updated the committee on staffing changes for next year. Krista updated the committee on the annual spring teacher appreciation event. Seven candidate applications were considered. Five were approved.
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2008
The meeting began with a warm welcome to our winter 2008 TEC meeting. Deborah enthusiastically announced that Professor John Ramsay is back in the department from a three year commitment in the Dean of the College office. Deborah updated the committee on the progress of the Minnesota Board of Teaching Professional Education Program (PEPER) report. As the committee is aware, the department petitioned for a variance and the Board of Education extended our deadline until June 2009. Deborah updated the committee on the department’s progress in complying with the Minnesota Board of Teaching Reading Statute MS 122A.06. To meet the requirement, the department has added a new three- credit course in the spring titled “Teaching Reading in the Content Area”. This course is required for licensure candidates regardless of their licensure field. We are very excited to have hired a person with a PhD in literacy education. Deborah updated the committee on the department’s tenure track hire progress. We invited three candidates for interviews. Deborah explained that traditionally during spring term Carleton collaborates with St. Olaf on organizing a teacher appreciation event for the Northfield teachers that have opened their classrooms to our educational studies students. This spring it is our turn to organize the event. After the student member of the committee was excused, the rest of the committee reviewed the application of four candidates. Four candidate applications were considered. Three were approved; one was denied.
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2008
The meeting began with introduction of our new student representative, Rafael Estrella. Deborah announced the upcoming Educational Studies/Career Center annual teacher panel. The event brings together alumni teaching in the field, current student teachers, and interested students for lively questions and answers regarding teaching. Deborah updated the committee on the Fall 07 student teachers and their respected placements and licensure fields. She described this year’s student teachers as one of the best she has ever had. Deborah explained that the department is facing a Board of Teaching requirement called PEPER. It is an approval process of all our licensure fields every seven years. This approval process requires an extraordinary amount of documentation of standards and where those standards are met in our courses—both educational courses and in the students’ licensure field. She went on to describe how difficult the process is for such a tiny department. She has met with the Dean of Students and is meeting with the Board of Teaching next week to ask for an extension. Deborah expressed her desire to make sure the committee was aware of the issues. Deborah announced that John Ramsay is coming back in January and the department is in the process of hiring a new tenure-track position. Deborah followed up on our previous vote for changing Carleton’s student teaching from a graded experience to a pass/fail experience. As she looks ahead to submitting the final marks for this year’s students, she expressed her gratitude for the committee taking on this issue. One candidate application was considered and was approved.
October 2008
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2007
The meeting began with introduction and welcome back for Gerald Young. Gerald was on sabbatical for fall term and was not on the committee during that time. Professor Appleman presented the Fall 07 student teachers, their respected licensure fields and most importantly, the finalized placement for student teaching. Professor Appleman followed up on our previously discussed topic and vote for changing Carleton’s student teaching from a graded experience to a pass/fail experience. She discussed how difficult it is to give a letter grade to students just starting their student teaching. She was pleased to announce that the Academic Standing Committee approved our request. Professor Appleman explained that the State of Minnesota has a new requirement for all teacher preparation programs with regards to inclusion of “reading best practices” in the curriculum. There was discussion around ideas to incorporate this requirement into the educational studies curriculum. It was decided that the best option might be to hire a reading specialist to teach a 5-week (3 credit) course titled: Teaching Reading in the Content Area. Two candidate applications were considered: one was approved and one deferred.
May 2007
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2007
The winter meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on February 26. The meeting began with introductions and with Professor Appleman introducing Amber Hollenbeck and Sarena Yospin, our student members of the committee. She presented the Fall 07 student teachers and their respected licensure fields. Professor Appleman took the opportunity to thank the committee members that were able to participate in TEC interviews this term and last term. The committee discussed ways to make the responsibility not feel burdensome and made suggestions on streamlining the process. Professor Appleman opened up discussion regarding an issue brought up by one of our licensure candidates: appropriate departmental expenses vis a vis the student teacher experience. The committee discussed some of the broader issues surrounding costs that students pursuing licensure incur. The committee followed up on our previously discussed topic of the possibility of changing Carleton’s student teaching from a graded experience to a pass/fail experience. The committee was unanimous in its opinion to change Carleton’s student teaching experience from a letter grade to pass/fail. Professor Appleman will write the Registrar and proceed with the process of making the change. Four candidate applications were considered and all were approved.
February 2007
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2006
The fall meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on October 23. The meeting began with introductions and with Professor Appleman discussing the importance of the TEC committee in terms of the committee being mandated by the State of Minnesota to give authority to recommend people to licensure. The committee also works to ensure the continued quality of the program and to offer valuable insight and perspective. Professor Appleman thanked everyone for their role in the recent Board of Teaching Review. The BOT reviews happen every 7 years and the department did great and received an “approved” rating. Professor Appleman presented updates on the five student teachers. She asked the committee to think about whether or not the student teachers should be issued a letter grade or pass/fail for the 12 credits that are issued. After some discussion, the consensus was to gather more information and discuss it at our winter meeting. Four candidate applications were considered and all were approved.
October 2006
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2006
The spring meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on April 24. The meeting began a farewell and thanks to Frank Morral—retiring from the committee and the college—for his support of the program and service on the Teacher Education Committee over the years. Committee members received copies of the two recently updated licensure program handbooks and an update on student teaching placements for the fall, with the note that in the last few years there have been more K-8 placements and that most are in the Minneapolis-St. Paul School Districts. The Minnesota Board of Teaching review was in process during the time of the TEC meeting, and Professor Appleman gave a brief update of its progress. As planned, adult members of the TEC met with Board of Teaching team members following the Teacher Education Committee meeting. Students had already met with them earlier in the day. Four candidate applications were considered. Three were approved; one was denied.
April 2006
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2006
The winter meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on March 8. Topics of discussion included preparations and requirements for the late-April Institutional Review of Carleton College by the Minnesota Board of Teaching, curriculum library renovations and equipment changes and additions, an extensive overview of the program's assessment process, and a new field experience with children requirement for admission to the licensure program. The proposed handbook language for the field experience requirement was approved as: “At least forty (40) hours of documented instructional field experience with children/adolescents in an instructional setting.” One candidate application was considered and approved.
March 2006
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2005
The fall meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on November 8. Topics of discussion included the annual Teacher Appreciation Dinner held jointly with St. Olaf College, faculty staffing in educational studies for the remainder of 05-06 and for 06-07, upgrades to the curriculum library, the Minnesota Board of Teaching Institutional Review coming up in April, requirement of a field experience prior to a student's applying for the licensure program, and the suggestion that web sites of departments for which licensure is offered have links to our licensure area. Seven program applications were considere: five were accepted, 1 denied, 1 deferred.
November 2005
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2005
The spring meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on May 23. Professor Appleman reported on the May 21 mini-conference for alumni with Parker Palmer and Julie Landsman--it was such a success that plans are to make it an annual event. She also reported on student teaching placements for the coming year and completions this term. There was considerable discussion surrounding the issue of the planned library renovation, which was rejected in this year's finalized budget. The Committee asked that the department chair draft a letter to the appropriate office to request an explanation of the decision and allocation processes. Finally, the committee was informed that the college and the department will be making some curricular changes in the near future; these will affect both the licensure program and the concentration. Two program applications were considered; both were approved conditionally.
May 2005
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2005
The winter meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on January 26. Regarding the ongong faculty search, all applications have been received and acknowledged and have received a preliminary evaluation. Several candidates will be selected for telephone interviews, and the top three will then be invited to campus. A planner has provided preliminary floor plans for redesign of the curriculum library and those were shared with the committee. Noted authors Parker Palmer and Julie Landsman will be teaching in educational studies this spring; a number of special events will occur while they're here. Four program applications were considered. Three were approved and one was deferred.
January 2005
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2004
The fall meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on November 8. Curriculum Library renovation has begun with partial culling of materials and some reorganization of space. Campus planners visited in October to assess the current space in light of the department's needs, and a funding request has been submitted to the dean. The current intent is to have the space renovated prior to the fall 2006 program review by the Board of Teaching. Ads have been placed to fill the open faculty position for the next two academic years, with a January 1, 2005 application deadline. Professor Appleman reported on this fall's student teachers and compared the various situations in which our four students are placed. One program application was considered and approved.
November 2004
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2004
The spring meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on May 24. The committee noted early efforts in the library renovation project and made suggestions for additional modifications. The larger and more expensive work will require special funding, which we hope to have in place by next year. Professor Appleman announced upcoming staffing changes, in particularl the absence of John Ramsay for three years while he serves as Associate Dean of the College. Julie Landsman and Parker Palmer will each be teaching one term in 04-05 while the department is recruiting. Instead of the usual spring Teacher Appreciation Dinner thanking local teachers and staff for their work with Carleton and St. Olaf education programs, Carleton elected to send bookstore gift certificates to each person this year. An advance survey of teachers indicated that the gift certificate would probably be a more universal way to reach those who helped us. One program application was considered and approved.
May 2004
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2004
The winter meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on February 23. Discussion centered largely around the library renovation issue. Many suggestions were offered for making the space and contents more appealing as well as comprehensive and usable. Issues ranged from accessibility after hours to composition to aesthetics. One program application was considered and approved.
February 2004
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2003
The fall meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on November 19. The disciplinary records review policy was adopted and will be available in the website and printed versions of the Teacher Education Handbook. The Handbook was then reviewed over all. The committee agreed that the website version will reflect changes immediately, while the printed version will be updated only at the time of each printing. Professor Appleman brought up the fact that the curriculum library is becoming increasingly out of date. She solicited thoughts and suggestions—to be brought to the winter meeting—for a complete revamping of both the configuration and the contents. One program application was considered and approved.
November 2003
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2003
The spring meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on May 28. Department news included reports on two spring events: the visit of Minneapolis Superintendent of Schools, Carol Johnson, and the visit of senior seminar students to a public talk given in St. Paul by Clint Bolick, the prominent proponent of school vouchers. During the Johnson visit, groundwork was laid for future collaborations between Carleton and Minneapolis Public Schools. Revisiting the problems with science licensure, conversations have been held with the Minnesota Board of Teaching and it was determined that 7-12 physical science licensure will still be granted under our established, previously approved program. Additional coursework must be added to these programs to enable granting of general science 5-12 bundled with 9-12 in physics or chemistry, the new categories in force since September 1, 2001. There was a first reading and discussion of the proposed Disciplinary Records Policy draft with guest Mark Govoni, Dean of Students.Work on both science licensure and the Disciplinary Records Policy will be continued into the fall. Three program applications were considered and approved.
June 2003
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2003
The winter 2003 meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on February 24. Professor Ramsay announced that Lance McCready has been hired to fill the new urban generalist postition. Professor McCready '90 is teaching in the department this year on a 1/2-time post-doctoral fellowship. A problem has arisen with the Minnesota Board of Teaching regarding our physical science licensure program. A licensure applicant from fall 2002 was licensed for "Chemistry 7-12" instead of the expected "General Science 5-8, Physical Science 9-12" because some of the course work required by the state for the 5-8/9-12 license is not required by the Carleton program. That is owing to oversights during the program approval process in the spring of 2002. Professor Ramsay will consult with the BOT and the Carleton physics and chemistry departments and report back to the TEC. The Committee also discussed its need to be aware of possible disciplinary records on the part of any of our licensure candidates. Dean of Students Mark Govoni detailed the College's general policy and explained how the presence of records may be determined on a "need to know" basis, as is currently the case with Off-Campus Studies programs. The Committee charged Professor Ramsay and Dean Govoni to draft a statement for discussion at the spring meeting. There were no licensure program applications to consider.
March 2003
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2002
The fall 2002 meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on November 12. New members were introduced and provided with the TEC Folder of materials. Members for 2002-2003 are John Ramsay (ex officio), Eric Johnson, Kate Kennedy, Karissa Kramer, Jan Mitchell, Frank Morral, Bev Nagel, Gail Nelson, Michelle Sonnega, and Gerald Young. Professor Ramsay presented an introduction to the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which could affect the Committee's need to know and liberty to divulge personal information of those intending to license. The Committee will invite Dean of Students Mark Govoni to the winter meeting to explore this issue in greater depth. The search for the tenure-track faculty addition is proceeding apace. Two candidates have already visited campus and a third will soon. Regarding other staffing issues, Professor Appleman has returned from her year in Berkeley but is spending a portion of her time as the faculty mentor of Carleton's second Posse, Lance McCready is teaching half time, Roxane Lehmann has been hired for two years to fill in course hours from the two part-time faculty and to pick up the course load of Professor Ramsay during his leave next year (03-04). Professor Ramsay reported on the progress of the department's efforts to address the visibility issues brought up during last spring's meeting. Among department initiatives were two events for all students, the remodeling of our bulletin board/display area, and preparations for bringing in a prominent speaker later this year. Three licensure applications were considered and approved.
November 2002
Teacher Education Committee, Spring 2002
The spring 2002 meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on May 21. In an update on staffing, Professor Appleman will return in the fall from her year at Berkeley but will be teaching only 1/2 time since she will be serving as mentor for the incoming Posse. Lance McCready will join the department as a post-doctoral fellow 1/2 time, teaching one class per term. A search is ongoing to secure an instructor for educational psychology. A preamble was adopted for addition to the materials provided to candidates and interviewers when preparing for applicant interviews. There was a lengthy discussion of ways in which the department and the Committee can promote the licensure program and increase the visibility and involvement of the department at the college and in the Northfield community. Many suggestions were offered. Next year's Student Department Advisor, Kate Kennedy attended the meeting as a guest and will help implement some of the suggestions during the coming year. One licensure application was considered.
June 2002
Teacher Education Committee, Winter 2002
The winter 2002 meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on February 26. Professor Ramsay reported on the progress of Carleton's application for state re-approval of our teaching licensure programs. Communication Arts, Mathematics, Sciences, Social Studies, and Visual Arts have all been approved. We hope to submit application in World Languages and Cultures (French, German, Russian, and Spanish) in early April. The committee looked at the issue of what the college and the department are doing to encourage students to enter teaching. The discussion broadened into how the department can increase its visibility and presence on campus. Discussion also continued from fall on the interview component of the licensure program application process. Four additional questions were approved for the guide sheet supplied to interviewers and applicants. Professor Buchwald suggested modifying the guide sheet to include a preamble to help bring the purpose of the interview into focus. The Committee expressed support for the idea, and Professor Buchwald volunteered to help draft language to be presented at the spring meeting. One licensure application was considered.
March 2002
Teacher Education Committee, Fall 2001
The fall 2001 meeting of the Teacher Education Committee was held on October 30. Professor Ramsay reported on the progress of Carleton's application for re-approval with the State of Minnesota of our teaching licensure programs: Communication Arts, Mathematics, Sciences, Social Studies, Visual Arts, and Modern Foreign Languages (French, German, Russian, and Spanish). All programs except the languages were submitted between March and June 2001. Of those submitted, the educational studies component has received approval until June 2005. The mathematics program was returned for clarification of several issues. Other program responses have not yet been received. Professor Ramsay hopes to use winter break to address issues noted by reviewers. The committee discussed the interview as a component of the licensure program application process, concluding that, with minor modifications, the interview is valuable to both student and committee and should be continued. Since there were no applicants to the program for the committee to evaluate this term, the meeting adjourned a little early.
October 31, 2001