COMMON STANDARDS (2015)

COMMON STANDARDS (2015)

Standard  1: Institutional  Infrastructure to Support Educator  Preparation 

Each Commission-approved institution has the infrastructure in place to operate effective educator preparation programs.  Within this overall infrastructure:

• The institution and education unit create and articulate a research-based vision of teaching and learning that fosters coherence among, and is clearly represented in all educator preparation programs. This vision is consistent with preparing educators for California public schools and the effective implementation of California’s adopted standards and curricular frameworks.
  
  
• The institution actively involves faculty, instructional personnel, and relevant stakeholders in the organization, coordination, and decision making for all educator preparation programs.
  
  
• The education unit ensures that faculty and instructional personnel regularly and systematically collaborate with colleagues in P-12 settings, college and university units and members of the broader educational community to improve educator preparation.
  
  
• The institution provides the unit with sufficient resources for the effective operation of each educator preparation program, including, but not limited to, coordination, admission, advisement, curriculum, professional development/instruction, field based supervision and clinical experiences.
  
  
• The Unit Leadership has the authority and institutional support required to address the needs of all educator preparation programs and considers the interests of each program within the institution.
  
  
• Recruitment and faculty development efforts support hiring and retention of faculty who represent and support diversity and excellence.
  
  
• The institution employs, assigns and retains only qualified persons to teach courses, provide professional development, and supervise field-based and clinical experiences. Qualifications of faculty and other instructional personnel must include, but are not limited to: a) current knowledge of the content; b) knowledge of the current context of public schooling including the California adopted P-12 content standards, frameworks, and accountability systems; c) knowledge of diversity in society, including diverse abilities, culture, language, ethnicity, and gender orientation; and d) demonstration of effective professional practices in teaching and learning, scholarship, and service.
  The education unit monitors a credential recommendation process that ensures that candidates recommended for a credential have met all requirements.

Standard 2: Candidate Recruitment and Support

Candidates are recruited and supported in all educator preparation programs to ensure their success.

• The education unit accepts applicants for its educator preparation programs based on clear criteria that include multiple measures of candidate qualifications.
  
  
• The education unit purposefully recruits and admits candidates to diversify the educator pool in California and provides the support, advice, and assistance to promote their successful entry and retention in the profession.

• Appropriate information and personnel are clearly identified and accessible to guide each candidate’s attainment of program requirements.
  
  
• Evidence regarding progress in meeting competency and performance expectations is consistently used to guide advisement and candidate support efforts. A clearly defined process is in place to identify and support candidates who need additional assistance to meet competencies.

Standard 3: Course of Study, Fieldwork and Clinical Practice

The unit designs and implements a planned sequence of coursework and clinical experiences for candidates to develop and demonstrate the knowledge and skills to educate and support P-12 students in meeting state-adopted content standards.

The unit and its programs offer a high-quality course of study focused on the knowledge and skills expected of beginning educators and grounded in current research on effective practice. Coursework is integrated closely with field experiences to provide candidates with a cohesive and comprehensive program that allows candidates to learn, practice, and demonstrate competencies required of the credential they seek. 

The unit and all programs collaborate with their partners regarding the criteria and selection of clinical personnel, site-based supervisors and school sites, as appropriate to the program.

• Through site-based work and clinical experiences, programs offered by the unit provide candidates with opportunities to both experience issues of diversity that affect school climate and to effectively implement research-based strategies for improving teaching and student learning.
  
  
• Site-based supervisors must be certified and experienced in teaching the specified content or performing the services authorized by the credential.
  
  
• The process and criteria result in the selection of site-based supervisors who provide effective and knowledgeable support for candidates.
  
  
• Site-based supervisors are trained in supervision, oriented to the supervisory role, evaluated and recognized in a systematic manner.
  
  
• All programs effectively implement and evaluate fieldwork and clinical practice.
  
  
• For each program the unit offers, candidates have significant experience in school settings where the curriculum aligns with California’s adopted content standards and frameworks, and the school reflects the diversity of California’s student and the opportunity to work with the range of students identified in the program standards.

Standard 4 – Continuous Improvement

The education unit develops and implements a comprehensive continuous improvement process at both the unit level and within each of its programs that identifies program and unit effectiveness and makes appropriate modifications based on findings.

• The education unit and its programs regularly assess their effectiveness in relation to the course of study offered, fieldwork and clinical practice, and support services for candidates.
  
• Both the unit and its programs regularly and systematically collect, analyze, and use candidate and program completer data as well as data reflecting the effectiveness of unit operations to improve programs and their services.

The continuous improvement process includes multiple sources of data including 1) the extent to which candidates are prepared to enter professional practice; and 2) feedback from key stakeholders such as employers and community partners about the quality of the preparation.

Standard 5 – Program Impact

The institution ensures that candidates preparing to serve as professional school personnel know and demonstrate knowledge and skills necessary to educate and support effectively all students in meeting state adopted academic standards. Assessments indicate that candidates meet the Commission adopted competency requirements as specified in the program standards.

The unit and its programs evaluate and demonstrate that they are having a positive impact on candidate learning and competence and on teaching and learning in schools that serve California’s students.

*Italicized language represents language that will be included in a Common Standards Glossary.