Developing Educational Leaders Who Create Tomorrow’s Opportunities: Issues for Partner Instructors in the College of Education April 10, 2008

Session Overview: Conceptual Framework: What, Why and How? The Increasing Role of Assessment Using Task Stream, the electronic portfolio system Questions and Answers

The NAU Conceptual Framework What? “the underlying structure in a professional education unit that gives conceptual meanings through an articulated rationale to the unit’s operation, and provides direction for programs, courses, teaching, candidate performance, faculty scholarship and service, and unit accountability.” Why? The conceptual framework guides decisions and activities with a way of thinking about our role, a target for our work, and a research-based justification for the programs we develop.

Vision: We develop educational leaders who create tomorrow’s opportunities. Mission: Our mission is to prepare competent and committed professionals who will make positive differences for children, young adults, and others in schools.

Guiding Image: Learning professionals committed to student success in changing environments. Dispositions: Confident (efficacy) Open to new ideas/cultures Ethical Caring (empathic)

Core Values: Learner-centered education, commitment to diversity, innovation and inquiry, advocacy, lifelong learning. Goals: Knowledge Skills Dispositions

Program Purposes: 1. Prepare candidates who will serve as professionals in existing organizations. 2. Prepare candidates who will lead ongoing improvement. 3. Develop knowledge through the relationship between programs and inquiry. 4. Serve organizations with personnel and knowledge. Full document:

The Role of Assessment Key question: how do we know our graduates are prepared with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to be effective in their chosen fields? Program assessment requires features shared by all students, regardless of the section or instructor they experience. Thus, we rely on SIGNATURE ASSESSMENTS to provide the key ongoing data. Signature assessments are important as learning tasks for the particular course objectives (developed by faculty), but also give the program- level perspective.

Task Stream: The COE electronic portfolio project. Melissa Geiselhofer

Questions and Answers? Participant Feedback

On behalf of the faculty and staff of the College of Education and the members of the University Professional Education Unit Steering Committee, THANK YOU