6.2. b Continuous Improvement

• Summarize activities and changes based on data that have led to continuous improvement of candidate performance and program quality.
• Discuss plans for sustaining and enhancing performance through continuous improvement as articulated in this standard.
  

The Unit has coped with instability in the fiscal, regulatory, organizational, managerial, and leadership framework since the previous review. The Unit found opportunities for improvement, in spite of state and university budget woes, turnover in state, Unit, and department leadership, and a slower than expected pace of reforms in teacher preparation.

Three separate deans have headed the Unit since the last review. The current dean assumed the role after a national search that concluded in July 2012.  During the past three years the state universities in Connecticut have experienced budget cuts and hiring freezes. The effect of these has persisted, with negative impacts on planning, staffing, and development of new programs. This same period saw the abolition of the Connecticut State University (CSU) system and formation of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CONSCU), governed by the Board of Regents. The CONSCU is comprised of the 4 state universities, 12 community colleges, and Charter Oak, the state online college.

Also during this period a new Commissioner of Education was appointed, along with reorganization in the Connecticut State Department of Education. A statewide committee, the Educator Preparation Advisory Committee (EPAC), was formed, with the intention to reform teacher preparation in the state. The Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) drafted new state regulations in 2010, but these were shelved.
Meanwhile, CSDE mandated the Connecticut Foundations of Reading Test (CFoR) as a certification requirement for elementary education candidates. In response three literacy courses were added to the elementary education program of study. Adding these to the existing curriculum caused course overloads for many of the candidates, but the new courses, with dedicated faculty teaching them, resulted in scores on the CFoR going from an initially low pass rate to the second highest in the state. In the past year Connecticut began requiring the Praxis II test for elementary education, and this will probably require modification of the preparation program.

The Education Department has operated under three different chairs since the last review. The first two of these were elected by the faculty, as called for the collective bargaining agreement. However, in 2011 the unit brought in an outside chair. The new Chair acted to improve several structural problems. She reorganized the advisement process for teacher candidates, was instrumental in moving the secondary education coordinator position from the Arts & Sciences faculty to the education faculty, in order to consolidate information and ensure that all applications to the professional semester were complete. She also worked closely with area public schools to recruit and select well-qualified clinical faculty from among local public school educators. She responded to difficulties in screening candidates and the interest of the CSDE in higher academic admission standards for education candidates by creating a pre-education major for freshman students. The department is currently conducting a national search for a new chair.

To strengthen both recruitment and retention the Unit raised the GPA requirement for admission from a 2.8 to a 3.0. At the end of the freshman year the student’s transcript is reviewed for GPA and grade requirements. A 3.0 GPA is required for admission to the education major. This requirement will help to ensure more able candidates and better retention.

Ongoing review of the activities leading to national recognition, program accreditation, and continuous improvement led to the formation of two new organizational bodies in the 2012-2013 academic year. The NCATE Steering Group was formed early in Fall Semester, 2012. The group serves to facilitate communications among key individuals who are involved in NCATE-related activities and is comprised of the SPS dean, the A&S dean, the NCATE coordinator, the Tk20 administrator, the SPS associate dean, the education department chair, and the NCATE consultant. Later in the same year, an evaluation of the Tk20 data collection and reporting system conducted by a member of the Unit faculty led to a greater level of support from Tk20 and the creation of the Assessment and Accreditation Committee. This faculty committee will identify issues relating to assessment and will review and advise on assessment issues (e.g., rubrics, alignment of candidate learning outcomes and assessment instruments, etc.).