Aurora University College of Education Aurora, Illinois Institution Comment Comments submitted by: Dr. Andrew Manion, Provost
Aurora University is proud of its decades’ long history of professionally preparing teachers to work with our k–12 student population. Both the Illinois Board of Higher Education and the Illinois State Board of Education have reviewed our programs and given their unqualified approval. On a broader scale, Aurora University is fully accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association. Because of our exemplary program design and implementation, in 2003 we were given a ten year approval period. Also, the Higher Learning Commission has invited Aurora University to participate in the prestigious Pioneer Pathways Project as part of their comprehensive accreditation process. In 2005, Aurora University began the arduous work of applying for accreditation by The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Following intensive examination and evaluation, NCATE awarded Aurora University’s teacher preparation programs national recognition. As with the accreditation by the Higher Learning Commission, the evaluation of our university involved extensive documentation as well as on site visits and communication with faculty, current students, former students, and our former students’ current employers. The rating or evaluation of a university program is a complex and labor intensive undertaking. Aware of this both the Higher Learning Commission and NCATE utilize a comprehensive review system which involves both written documentation and personal, on site review. When we learned of NCTQ’s interest in rating teacher preparation programs in Illinois we dutifully collected and sent the requested data. However as part of their assessment process NCTQ chose not to visit our campus, nor did they seek to interview students, faculty, or student employers. The complexity of a four year university experience was reduced to a narrow band of select syllabuses and catalogue statements taken out of context. To evaluate an entire university program without so much as a visit is analogous to evaluating an automobile by looking at the blueprints of the factory in which it was assembled. This reflects research that is at best incomplete, and at worst sloppy and lazy. Students in our program would receive an “incomplete” if they attempted to make these kinds of evaluative conclusions based on so minimal an effort to collect meaningful data. While NCTQ’s standards purport to delineate the prerequisites of a quality teacher preparation program, as currently stated, current research and common sense do not support the validity of their standards. For example, NCTQ made no effort to observe or visit the program it was reviewing. Nonetheless, NCTQ findings support Aurora University’s provision of high quality undergraduate elementary education in nearly all of their standards areas. The most accurate measure of an institution’s effectiveness is gained through observations of the teachers it produces. To that end, we invite anyone, as well as students, to visit Aurora University, examine our printed material, and interact with our students, faculty, and most importantly the individuals who employ our graduates. The result will be an informed view of how we prepare teachers to transform the lives of their students through education.
www.nctq.org/edschoolreports
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