UW-System Teacher Quality Initiative PK-16 Grant  2004-2005

Enhancing Educator Quality through Content Standards ( revised)

 A. Statement of the Need

While UWSP teacher preparation programs have met the DPI approval for alignment with PI34 mandates, there remains significant work to be done in addressing Wisconsin Teacher Standard One related to knowledge of subject matter.  Teacher Education at UWSP is distributed campus-wide.  The School of Education is the center for the foundations courses, Early Childhood, Exceptional Education and Elementary Education and Field Experiences with the majority of the PK-12 and secondary methods faculty housed within the program area, academic departments.   All program area faculty have considered the DPI Content Guidelines and have completed preliminary work in identifying where each guideline is addressed, how it is assessed and when students encounter this work in their course of study.  This work engaged the faculty from all disciplines at a cursory level of working with the content guidelines.

One goal of this proposal is to provide opportunities for a more thorough examination of these university-level content guidelines as they are addressed throughout the student’s course of study for each program area...   A second goal is to consider the implications of the Praxis II exam as it relates to the university-level content guidelines and students’ course of study.   This examination and discussion will engage UWSP faculty from Education and Arts and Sciences, along with UW-Marathon faculty.   The third goal is to identify performance tasks representing students’ content knowledge, to be included in their exit portfolios.  This work will result in significant progress toward UWSP compliance with the PI34 rules.

B.  Description of Project Outcomes and Activities

Enhancing Educator Quality through Content Knowledge will result in three primary outcomes:

Consideration of correlation between content guidelines and Praxis II

• Review of expectations for pre-service teacher knowledge base in academic areas of instruction as a result of PI34
• Examination of Praxis II requirements and implications for teacher preparation programs
• Examination of content guidelines and implications for teacher preparation programs
• Creation of diagrams indicating correlation between content expectation in both Praxis II and content guidelines

Evaluation of course of study and curriculum for each program area

• Examination of  university curriculum as related to content guidelines and Praxis II expectations
• Enhanced quality of student teaching evaluations by cooperating teachers and university supervisors based on a solid understanding of content  knowledge expectations based upon university-level content guidelines
• Improved post-secondary curriculum mapping based upon consideration university-level content guidelines and Praxis II categories
• Recommendations for curricular revision as needed to align with content guidelines/Praxis II

Identification of content knowledge performance tasks

• Engagement in development of guiding questions for  exit portfolio,  performance tasks and units of instruction university-level to represent knowledge related to content guidelines 
• Identification of sample performance tasks to be recommended for inclusion in the Professional Education Portfolio exit requirement to reflect subject knowledge related to university-level content guidelines
• Creation of rubrics to support content knowledge performance tasks

C.  Workplan

4. Assessment/Evaluation

Evaluation of the grant work will consist of three components:  surveys given to Program Area Team members, agendas/minutes re: work of Program Area workshops and meetings, and structured interviews with each of the Program Area Teams.  Survey components will include questions related to the specific goals and outcomes for following the regional Colloquium.  Additionally evaluation evidence will include curricular diagrams, recommendations for curricular revisions, performance tasks and rubric expectations.

5. Dissemination

Progress toward the goals of the grant will be communicated as agenda items at the Teacher Education Committee, a standing committee of UWSP and at the Central Wisconsin PK-18 Council meetings...  Additionally, progress will be shared with UWSP Deans, Vice-Chancellor as well as the Dean of the two-year campus.  On-going dialogue will be conducted between the Program Area Team members and program area faculty during the academic year.  This dialogue will be constructed in an effort to collect information and to build awareness across program areas. Results from the work of this grant will be disseminated through the regional Colloquium to be offered in the spring of 2005.  This regional Colloquium will be open to cooperating teachers in the Central Wisconsin area, university-level faculty teaching in the six certification areas of focus.   The model for this work will be replicated with the remaining 6 certification areas in 2005-06.

F.   Budget and Budget Narrative

Funds requested to support the activities and outcomes of this grant fall into the categories of personnel, travel and services and supplies.

Personnel 

Coordination.  The grant activity will be coordinated by Leslie McClain-Ruelle, Associate Dean and Head of the School of Education, UW-Stevens Point.  McClain-Ruelle.  McClain-Ruelle will receive stipend of $1,000 for coordination of the grant.  Total cost will be $1,000 plus $415 for fringe rate.

Program Area Team Members.  Each of six certification areas (Elementary Education, Special Education, Foreign Language, Social Science, Music and English) will be represented UW educators to include:

·         One arts and sciences faculty member for each  area

·         One methods faculty member for each area

·         Three arts and sciences faculty members from UW-Marathon representing general degree requirements in  English, Social Science and Science

Program Area Team members will receive a stipend of $1,000 each.  This will involve 15 Team Members at $1,000, who are UW employees.  Total costs will be $15,000 plus 6,225 for fringe rates.

                                 Program Area Team Members

Elementary             JoAnne Katzmarek, Elementary Education; Science rep.

English                    Barbara Dixon, English Education;  David Arnold, English

Foreign Language  Jan Seiler, Foreign Language Education; Foreign Language  rep.

Music                     Judy Bond, Music Education; Music rep.

Social Science         Paula DeHart, Social Science Education; History rep

Special Education    Patty Caro, Special Education;  Math rep

UW-Marathon        Theo Koupelis, Science

                              Holly Hassel, English

                              Social Science rep

LTE Assistance.  An LTE will be hired to assist in the preparation of all documents related to the grant outcomes and activities.  The assistant will help with correspondence, documentation, distribution of materials and note taking.  The assistant will be hired at the rate of $10 X 175 hours, totaling $1,750 plus fringe of $753.  Total cost for assistance will be $2,503

Travel

UW-Marathon Campus faculty participating in this project will be given mileage costs for roundtrip travel from Wausau.  Total cost each at 90 miles round trip X .325 X 9 trips.  Total cost for travel will be $790.

Supplies and Expenses

Materials.  All members of the Program Area Teams will be given copies of all documents being considered to include university-level content guidelines and Praxis II Tests at a Glance and Study Guides.  It is anticipated that there will be working documents and copies associated with distribution of those documents.  Additionally, one representative from each Program Area Team and the three UWMC representatives will take the Praxis II exam.  Fees for taking the exam are $105; total cost $105 X 9 program area exams or $945. Total materials cost will be $2,865. 

Workshop Sustenance.   Sustenance for the participants during the meetings held during the academic year may include beverages, snacks and/or lunch as necessary. Additionally, snacks will be provided for the regional colloquium for dissemination.  The total cost will be $1,000.

Total grant request is $29,798