EPP Syllabus Statements

Conceptual Framework:

Our vision as a nationally recognized Educator Preparation Program (EPP) is to remain at the forefront of educator preparation. Informed by responsive engagement in collaborative partnerships, we advance educational excellence through innovative teaching in an ever-changing global and digital learning environment. Our mission is to prepare educators to improve student learning within a collaborative teaching and learning community through innovative teaching, purposeful research, and engaged service. The essence of our vision and mission is captured in the theme Collaborative Development of Expertise in Teaching, Learning and Leadership, which was adopted in 2002 to express concisely the fundamental approach to educator preparation at KSU.

The EPP at Kennesaw State University is committed to developing expertise among candidates in initial and advanced programs as teachers, teacher leaders and school leaders who possess the capability, intent and expertise to facilitate high levels of learning in all of their students through effective, research-based practices in classroom instruction, and to enhance the structures that support all learning. To that end, the EPP fosters the development of candidates as they progress through stages of growth from novice to proficient to expert and leader. Within the EPP conceptual framework, expertise is viewed as a process of continued development, not an end-state. To be effective, teachers and educational leaders must embrace the notion that teaching and learning are entwined and that only through the implementation of validated practices can all students construct meaning and reach high levels of learning. In that way, candidates are facilitators of the teaching and learning process. Finally, the EPP recognizes, values and demonstrates collaborative practices across the college and university and extends collaboration to the community-at-large. Through this collaboration with professionals in the university, local communities, public and private schools and school districts, parents and other professional partners, the EPP meets the ultimate goal of bringing all of Georgia’s students to high levels of learning.

Knowledge Base:

Teacher development is generally recognized as a continuum that includes four phases: pre-service, induction, in-service, renewal (Odell, Huling, and Sweeny, 2000). Just as Sternberg (1996) believes that the concept of expertise is central to analyzing the teaching- learning process, the teacher education faculty at KSU believes that the concept of expertise is central to preparing effective classroom teachers and teacher leaders. Researchers describe how during the continuum phases teachers progress from being Novices learning to survive in classrooms toward becoming Experts who have achieved elegance in their teaching. We, like Sternberg (1998), believe that expertise is not an end-state but a process of continued development.

Use of Technology Statement:

Technology Standards for Educators are required by the Professional Standards Commission. Telecommunication and information technologies will be integrated throughout the master teacher preparation program, and all candidates must be able to use technology to improve student learning and meet Georgia Technology Standards for Educators. During the courses, candidates will be provided with opportunities to explore and use instructional media, especially microcomputers, to assist teaching. They will master use of productivity tools, such as multimedia facilities, local-net and Internet, and feel confident to design multimedia presentations. In addition, teacher candidates will use technology to teach students, demonstrating an impact on student learning.

School-Based Activities Statement:

As a teacher candidate, you are encouraged to be involved in a variety of school-based activities directed at the improvement of teaching and learning. Activities may include, but are not limited to, tutoring students, assisting teachers or other school personnel, attending school board meetings, and participating in education- related community events. As you continue your teacher candidate experiences, you are encouraged to explore every opportunity to learn by doing.

EPP Diversity Statement:

A variety of materials and instructional strategies will be employed to meet the needs of the different learning styles of diverse learners in class. Candidates will gain knowledge as well as an understanding of differentiated strategies and curricula for providing effective instruction and assessment within multicultural classrooms. One element of course work is raising candidate awareness of critical multicultural issues. A second element is to cause candidates to explore how multiple attributes of multicultural populations influence decisions in employing specific methods and materials for every student. Among these attributes are ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, gender, giftedness, disability, language, religion, family structure, sexual orientation, and geographic region. An emphasis on cognitive style differences provides a background for the consideration of cultural context.

Kennesaw State University provides program accessibility and accommodations for persons defined as disabled under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. A number of services are available to support students with disabilities within their academic program. In order to make arrangements for special services, students must visit the Office of Disabled Student Support Services (770-423- 6443) and develop an individual assistance plan. In some cases, certification of disability is required.

Please be aware that there are other support/mentor groups on the campus of Kennesaw State University that address each of the multicultural variables outlined above. For more information contact the Student Life Center at 770-423-6280.

The KSU Educator Preparation Provider (EPP) believes all learners are entitled to equitable educational opportunities. To that end, programs within the EPP consist of curricula, field experiences, and clinical practice that promote candidates’ development of knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions related to diversity identified in the unit’s conceptual framework, including the local community, Georgia, the nation, and the world. Curricula and applied experiences are based on well-developed knowledge foundations for, and conceptualizations of, diversity and inclusion so that candidates can apply them effectively in schools. Candidates learn to contextualize teaching and draw effectively on representations from the students’ own experiences and cultures. They learn to collaborate and engage with families in ways that value the resources, understandings, and knowledge that students bring from their home lives, communities and cultures as assets to enrich learning opportunities. Candidates maintain high expectations for all students (including English learners, students with exceptionalities and other historically marginalized and underrepresented students), and support student success through research-based culturally, linguistically, and socially relevant pedagogies and curricula.

Campus Resources for Writing:

The KSU Writing Center is a free service offered to all KSU students. Experienced, friendly Writing Assistants will work with you to become a better writer-- regardless of your strengths or weaknesses. Commonly covered writing strategies include topic development, organization, revision, research, source documentation, and grammar, but the Writing Center listens to and works with each writer individually. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please visit the following web site: http://writingcenter.kennesaw.edu/community/campus-partnerships.php, or stop by Room 242 in the English Building.

Accessibility:

Kennesaw State University provides program accessibility and accommodations for persons defined as disabled under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. A number of services are available to support students with disabilities within their academic program. In order to make arrangements for special services, students must visit the Office for Student Disability Services (SDS), 470-578-2666, and develop an individual assistance plan. The SDS website is: http://sds.kennesaw.edu/. In some cases, certification of disability is required.