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Standard V
Faculty

2002 Institutional Report for NCATE Accreditation

Standard V: Faculty Performance and Development

COEHS faculty are well qualified, scholarly, and active in their fields. They aligned their courses to both the COEHS Framework and to their SPAs. They model best professional practice in teaching, scholarship, and service; collaborate with P-12 colleagues; and are evaluated and provided with multiple professional development opportunities.

Qualified Faculty: Professional education faculty who are tenured or on tenure track in COEHS as well as shared COLS faculty all hold earned doctorates. Academic staff hold a minimum of a master’s degree. Likewise, both faculty and academic staff hold exceptional expertise in their assigned instructional areas. For example, Dr. Erdman was honored as the Wisconsin Teacher Educator of the Year in 1997; Dr. Carrell was named Outstanding College Educator by the Wisconsin Communication Association in 1998; and Dr. Wineberg is currently serving as President of the US National Committee of the World Organization for Early Childhood Education. Additionally, 18 COEHS faculty members have won Distinguished Teaching Awards.

Unit faculty have professional teaching experience at the P-12 level and/or comparable experience. Likewise, 95% of the faculty are eligible to or have held professional licensures in the areas they teach. These faculty also have contemporary experiences in school settings at the levels they supervise and/or teach. For example, Dr. Ford returned to teach first grade; Dr. Shearer spent a school year working as a District Reading Specialist and Middle School Reading Intervention Teacher; and Dr. Olson’s sabbatical involved working with immigrant and international students in the Fox Valley and beyond. Clinical and school-based faculty also have extensive track records of teaching activity in schools. For example, Supervisors Russ taught for seven years, Buckley for 19 years, and Benotch for 33 years. Moreover, all school faculty are required to be licensed in the fields in which they supervise and/or teach.

Modeling Best Professional Practices in Teaching: Using the Course Alignment Form faculty report course alignment with: 1) objectives and assessments correlating directly to the COEHS Framework; 2) the state standards; 3) SPAs; and 4) Data-Based Decisions that can be made as a result of data collected in the course. (See Standard I Notebook.)

Based upon analysis of the Course Alignment Forms, it becomes clear faculty have a thorough understanding of the content they teach as well as how each course reflects current research, theories, and developments in each field consistent with their standards. Faculty members demonstrate how they value candidates’ learning and assess candidates’ performance through Course Alignment Forms. In addition to tests and exams, faculty regularly assign group projects, portfolio statements, classroom action research, development of lesson/unit plans/teaching materials, book and article critiques, interviews of students and other professionals, classroom participation, and case study reports.

To encourage candidate development of reflection, faculty members assign reflective journal entries, student self-evaluations, book/article/symposium/class presentation critiques, reaction cards and reflection papers, and awareness journals and papers. Activities promoting critical thinking, problem solving, and professional dispositions are documented. Faculty use a variety of instructional strategies, seen on the Course Alignment Form and responses to “Data-Based Decisions for Program Improvement” questions. This information provides data related to instructors assessing their own effectiveness as teachers including positive effects they have on candidates’ learning and performance. For example, Dr. Urofsky writes: “…reading reaction cards provide information about students’ understanding of the readings and their abilities to relate the concepts to a growing understanding of what it means to be a professional counselor. Based on this information, I can identify the readings that are most meaningful for the students, and try out other readings to replace or supplement areas of possible weakness.”

Faculty members integrate diversity into their teaching in a number of ways. For example, Drs. Henn-Reinke and Wineberg arranged for student teaching or other field-based experiences to take place in the Milwaukee Public Schools. Dr. Hones integrates knowledge and experiences about Southeast Asians and Hispanics into the ESL program courses he teaches. Additionally, Dr. Tapley added a section on non-Western art in her Understanding the Arts class and Dr. McCall had students review web sites related to the six federally recognized Native nations in Wisconsin.

Technology likewise is integrated into a wide variety of courses. Thirty-one faculty members indicated they attended technology-related workshops or conferences in 2000-01. Nearly all faculty utilize Blackboard or a university hosted web site, PowerPoint, web searching, and email in their teaching and communication with students. Drs. Liske and Tapley added teaching with technology components to their methods courses in music and art respectively. Secondary methods classes are teamed with Instructional Technology courses creating integrative learning communities. Faculty members encourage students to review content area specific software and/or web sites, utilize CD-ROM textbooks, develop web sites, post conference proposals to web sites, and submit assignments using email.

Modeling Best Professional Practices in Scholarship: Professional education faculty are active and recognized scholars. In each of the past three years COEHS faculty members have won the prestigious Rosebush University Professorship, a university award for excellence in teaching, professional achievement, and public service. Four COEHS faculty and one shared COLS faculty were also named to Endowed Professorships. Likewise, outside organizations recognize faculty for their scholarship contributions – Dr. Carrell won a Central States Communication Association Research Award in 1998 and Dr. Hones won the Outstanding Dissertation Award from the American Educational Research Association in 1998.

Faculty are involved in a variety of different types of research including examination of: Teaching methodology

• Lambert – Teacher response to beginning reader errors
• Drecktrah – Pre-service teachers’ preparation to work with para-educators
  Learners and curriculum
• Christian-Smith – Politics of young women’s literacies
• Lemberger – Evaluation of the Science & Technology for Children Curriculum
  Policy
• Koyzis – Micro-politics of teacher education reform
• Fischer and Swanger – Supply and demand of educational personnel
  Teacher/Administrator/Counselor preparation
• Cramer, Rose, and Winterfeldt – Infusing technology into social studies
• Rettig – Quantum leaps in educational leadership
• Saginak – Family systems for school counselors
  
  Publication and conference presentation numbers are extraordinary given the COEHS faculty loads. Our best estimates indicate since our last accreditation, 54 COEHS faculty members have authored or co-authored approximately 45 books/monographs/reports, 62 chapters in books, and 190 articles. They have also presented or co-presented 467 conference sessions.

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Modeling Best Professional Practices in Service: COEHS faculty and staff also value and engage in service and leadership activities with P-12 schools, professional organizations, community based organizations, and the larger University. Three associated staff members won the UW Oshkosh Outstanding Service Award – EMC Director Keefer; PEP Director Cook; and Education Advisement Coordinator Bowen.

In the P-12 arena during 2001, faculty members collaborated and consulted with 45 school districts. While COEHS faculty members work extensively with P-12 partners, they also work with policy makers and university departments at the state, national and international levels. A sampling of activities include:

• Henn-Reinke – tutor/facilitator of grades 1-3 at Hayes Bilingual School in Milwaukee
• Cramer – grant reader, TEACH and UW System P-16 grants
• Hones – member, DPI Task Force for licensure in ESL & Bilingual Education
• Rose – member, DPI Social Studies advisory team; co-author, curricular guide
  
  Professional organization membership and service are standard activities. COEHS faculty belong to 120 professional organizations and provide a range of service:
• Ford – recipient, Outstanding Service Award, WSRA
• Genisio – editor, Wisconsin State Reading Association (WSRA) Journal
• Henn-Reinke – member, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
• Marchel – president-elect, Wisconsin Division of Early Childhood Education
• Olson – past-president, Wisconsin Association for Counselor Education
• Rylance and Fiedler – co-editors, Journal of Disability Policy Studies
• Havens – member and chair, three CACREP visitation teams
  
  COEHS faculty members are also active professionals in the community serving in a variety of capacities and reaching out to many constituencies. A sample follows:
• Erdman – member, Winnebago County Child Welfare Administration Review Board
• Fry – translator, Honduran Partnership and Malagasy Partnership
• Genisio – director literacy program, Christine Anne Center
• Lampe – parent advocate, due process cases
• Marchel – member, Head Start Executive Board
• Olson – initiator, grief counseling program Oshkosh Correctional Institute
• Rettig – co-host, education issues radio show, WGEE in Green Bay
• Stiver – member, Board of Directors for Rawhide Boys Ranch
  
  Collaboration: Professional education faculty collaborate regularly and systematically with colleagues in P-12 settings. Collaboration is promoted by many different initiatives: 1) curricular efforts such as the Learning Community Blocks and Practicum experiences in which professional core courses are integrated for cohort groups of candidates and with field-based placements; 2) student teaching and internships with teachers frequently involved in the large group seminars for candidates; 3) special projects such as the Anishinabe Indian Teacher for Indian Children initiative and the PT3 grants bringing COEHS faculty into direct contact with P-12 students, faculty, and staff to bring innovation to area schools; 4) staff development models such as the FVWP co-directed by a COEHS staff member and a P-12 teacher to help teachers discover their voices as writers and writing teachers; 5) teacher events such as a long history of professional development conferences on Reading, Early Childhood, Special Education, Writing and Language, and Culture; 6) research projects such as the recent collaborative study of the effects of Wisconsin’s class size reduction program in local classrooms; and 7) student events such as the UW Oshkosh English Festival bringing over 500 middle school readers and their teachers from twenty different area schools on campus to work with faculty, staff, and candidates on a variety of literacy-related activities.

COEHS faculty collaborate with faculty in other colleges or university units. Recently, efforts were made to strengthen collaboration between COEHS and COLS. This began with regularly scheduled informal meetings bringing together the Deans and Associate Deans of each college. The COEHS Associate Dean extended these conversations by meeting with four divisions of COLS (math and science, social science, humanities, and fine arts) to discuss changes in curriculum and assessment especially as it relates to general education and subject matter preparation of teacher education candidates. COLS faculty and staff have participated with COEHS faculty and staff at university, state, and national professional development opportunities related to these changes. Initial work focused on collaboration with the math and science division. Continuing the discussions of curricular implications of these changes for both COLS and COEHS, initiatives are being formulated for strengthening content preparation in math and science. COEHS will add similar efforts with the other divisions as well. Because shared staff represent the fields of music, art, communications, and physical education, COEHS collaborates more directly with those programs with faculty and staff involved in program improvement and candidate assessment decisions.

The faculty collaborate with members of the broader professional community. COEHS recently approved changes in the composition of an advisory council to work with the Dean, faculty, and staff to improve teaching, candidate learning, and the preparation of educators. Some departments such as Special Education hold regular meetings focusing on issues in their field with an advisory group; other departments such as Reading use focus groups as part of their program evaluation process. A significant collaboration effort, initiated by COEHS in conjunction with CESA 6, was the organization of a higher education consortium including P-12 representative voices, UW four-year and two-year campuses, the technical college system, and private institutions forming a partnership for the Fox Valley region.

Unit Evaluation of Professional Education Faculty Performance: The Unit has a defined and articulated process for the evaluation of faculty performance and appraisal. Faculty and academic staff are encouraged each semester to conduct Student Opinion Surveys (SOS), which are then submitted in tenure, renewal, merit, promotion, and post-tenure review cycles. Data gathered from those forms help faculty evaluate and improve their own teaching. Merit is calculated every two years and requires reporting of teaching, service activities, and scholarship. Scholarship and service are weighted equally; teaching is double weighted. Post-tenure review occurs every four years after tenure was granted and consists of two sets of merit papers during that period. Departmental personnel committees conduct the first level of review followed by the personnel committee, Dean, Provost and Vice Chancellor, and Chancellor. Merit guidelines are distributed in merit years. (See Standard V Notebook and COEHS Handbook.)

To assist new faculty members in understanding COEHS expectations in relation to tenure and renewal, Letters of Expectations are developed jointly by the new faculty member and the department personnel committee chair or designee. Letters of Expectations are then included in all renewal and tenure documentation. (See Standard V Notebook.) Appeal procedures for Faculty Non-renewals or Denials of Tenure are detailed in the Handbook. (See .http://www.uwosh.edu/handbook) (Web Link No Longer Active as of 2/19/08)

Unit Facilitation of Professional Development: UW Oshkosh provides a wide variety of professional development opportunities. Since 1997, the Faculty Development Program offers support including: Teaching and Research Grants (11 each), Faculty Colleges (10), Sabbaticals (7), Workshops (6), Small Grants (4), and an Individually Planned Program. To promote diversity and develop international learning opportunities, COEHS faculty were awarded seven grants ($35,226) resulting in linkages being developed in Mexico, Laos, Japan, Greece, Cyprus, Belize, England, Scotland, Nigeria, and Kenya.

Since 1997 COEHS faculty submitted grant proposals through the Sponsored Research Office; twenty-three were funded ($3,154,647). Additional contracts ($1,863,585) were also granted. COEHS and the Graduate/Undergraduate Collaborative Research program provide funds for candidate professional development and research.

Additional faculty opportunities include technology workshops offered by the Instructional Development and Authoring Lab (IDEA) lab, Academic Computing, and PT3; Dean’s Office sponsorship for faculty members to attend conferences such as the Governor’s Wisconsin Educational Technology Conference, Race and Ethnicity Conference, Authentic Assessment Conference; and Faculty Colleges offered by the Faculty Development Program.

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