AAQEP Accreditation 2022
Standard 3: Aspect A
Preparation programs ensure that candidates, upon completion, are ready to engage in professional practice, to adapt to a variety of professional settings, and to grow throughout their careers. Effective program practices include: consistent offering of coherent curricula; high-quality quality, diverse clinical experiences; dynamic, mutually beneficial partnerships with stakeholders; and comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes informed by trustworthy evidence. Each aspect of the program is appropriate to its context and to the credential or degree sought.
Description of how curricula are aligned with and/or national standards:
The Multiple Subject Credential Program is aligned with the California Commission
on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC) Teaching Performance Expectations (TPEs). These standards
consist of the knowledge, skills, and abilities that beginning general education teachers
must have opportunities to develop during their preparation program. The Multiple
Subject Credential Program faculty work together in course-alike and phase-alike meetings
to consider how and when the TPEs must be introduced, practiced, and assessed in the
program. The TPEs are also aligned with the state-adopted Common Core Standards for
K-12 students, which in turn, strengthens the Multiple Subject Credential Program’s
connections to the state’s learning and development standards for K-12 students. Teacher
candidates in the Multiple Subject Credential Program demonstrate their knowledge
of the TPEs by successfully completing coursework aligned to the TPEs, engaging in
clinical practice that also meet CCTC standards, and by passing the Fresno Assessment
of Student Teachers (FAST), which is Fresno State’s Teaching Performance Assessment
(TPA) that is also based on the TPEs.
The TPEs are research-based and aligned to national teaching standards expectations. These expectations for preservice teachers are intentionally aligned to the California Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP) that guide teacher induction programs and ongoing teacher development in California. This direct alignment indicates to beginning teachers, teacher educators in preparation programs, and new teacher development staff the importance of a coherent learning experience from initial teacher preparation to that of ongoing support and development of the practice of professional educators in the induction years and beyond.
The TPEs serve as a guide to the Multiple Subject Credential Program’s curricular and clinical developments and help focus its continuous improvement efforts in collecting data that also measure the extent to which the program helps beginning teachers develop the knowledge, skills, and abilities to apply pedagogical theories, principles, and instructional practices for the comprehensive instruction of culturally and linguistically diverse students. The TPEs are organized by the following six domains:
- Engaging and Supporting All Students in Learning
- Creating and Maintaining Effective Environments for Student Learning
- Understanding and Organizing Subject Matter for Student Learning
- Planning Instruction and Designing Learning Experiences for All Students
- Assessing Student Learning
- Developing as a Professional Educator
Overview of Coursework:
Phase 1 Multiple Subject candidates complete fifteen units of coursework: Literacy
Foundations which examines influential factors and guiding principles of becoming
literate in multiple subject areas and the design and implementation of integrated,
thematic literacy instruction. Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Pedagogy addresses
the pedagogy and best practices for teaching Emergent Bilingual students. Curriculum
and Pedagogy- Designing for Successful Teaching TK-8 includes background information
on curriculum theories and multiple pedagogical approaches with a focus on the integration
of curriculum and instruction; Understanding Children, Learning and Development in
TK-8 Classrooms addresses the principles of educational psychology and their relations
with recent research and school practice; diverse theoretical perspectives on learning
and development in children and adolescents, as well as their implementation and application
in school settings. Inquiry and Puzzles of Practice A addresses the first of three
inquiry courses. Dual candidates also take Designing Effective Environments for Students
with Disabilities, a course which addresses special education law, lesson planning,
writing effective learning plans for students with disabilities and related special
education topics, for a total of eighteen units in Phase 1.
Multiple Subject Credential candidates in Phase 2 complete fourteen units of coursework: Science Instruction and Applied Technology, designed to prepares candidates to effectively and equitably teach elementary school science with contemporary instructional technologies; Mathematics Instruction and Applied Assessment addresses strategies for teaching and assessing mathematics concepts; Disciplinary Literacies and Integrated Curriculum TK-8 examines how reading, writing, talking, listening and viewing are tools for learning content will guide an inquiry-based approach to curriculum planning, curriculum implementation, and assessment across curricula. Inquiry and Puzzles of Practice B continues with the inquiry cycle introduced in Phase 1; and Field Study B which is the initial supervised clinical practice experience in a general education classroom. In place of Field Study B, Dual candidates enroll in Initial Dual Student Teaching, which is a mixture of initial Multiple Subject and Special Education clinical experiences. Dual candidates also enroll in Positive Behavior and Social Supports which addresses the principles of behavior and best practices for structuring and maintaining effective classroom management and individualized behavioral intervention strategies.
In Phase 3, Multiple Subject candidates complete three courses: Inquiry and Puzzles of Practice C is the last of the three cycles of inquiry and Field Study C, the final student teaching experience in a general education classroom. Differentiated Instruction and Classroom Management, examines the role of Universal Design for Learning, provides strategies for teaching diverse learners and using effective classroom management. This course is taken by the Multiple Subject Credential candidates only. In place of enrollment in Differentiated Instruction and Classroom Management, Dual candidates enroll in two special education teacher preparation courses: Assessing Students with Special Needs which addresses formal and informal assessments, interpretation of test data, and the practical application of data to form instruction. Assessment and Instruction for Mild/Moderate or Moderate/Severe Disabilities provides a knowledge base of strategies and interventions for students who are not responding to the current instructional environment with a focus on evidence-based curricula and instructional methods that are effective with students with mild/moderate or moderate/severe disabilities. At this point, Multiple Subject candidates will have completed all of their coursework and clinical practice. Dual candidates will have one more phase coursework and clinical practice in special education to complete their Education Specialist Credential.
Table to indicate alignment between curricula and/or national standards: