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Revised August 2016
Covenant College Teacher Education Program Purpose Statement:
Learning, Serving, Transforming
The purpose of the teacher education program at Covenant College is to prepare competent and compassionate teachers who practice their profession according to biblical guidelines in diverse educational settings. Candidates develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to become teachers who model life-long learning and faithful service to God as change-agents in society.
Graduate Program of Education General Learning Outcomes:
Graduate educators will:
1. Apply a Reformed theological framework to educational theory and practice. This framework includes:
TF1. Christ is preeminent in all things. His life, death, resurrection, and exaltation inaugurated the new age in which Christ is King.
TF2. The Bible is God’s Word. It provides the grand narrative (creation, fall, redemption) that defines this life, the life to come, provides light to our personal lives, and guides institutional and societal life.
TF3. Humans are multi-dimensional beings made in God’s image, fearfully, wonderfully, and differently made.
TF4. Creation is inherently meaningful and educators are called and providentially guided to unfold its potentialities to the glory of God and the good of humankind.
TF5. All creation is adversely affected by the fall into sin. The battle between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness affects all people, institutions, and cultures.
TF6. God in his grace provides to both believers and unbelievers legitimate insights into the created order, including ways to overcome the effects of the fall across all the domains of life.
TF7. Educators are to be faithful stewards of the gifts, abilities, and interests that God gives us.
TF8. Educators look hopefully to the return of Christ. Living, loving, learning, celebrating, working, worshipping, and serving are shaped today by God’s call to give witness to Jesus Christ.
2. Conduct, apply, and evaluate educational research to improve practice.
3. Describe the role of schools in society over time.
4. Facilitate needed change in practice to close the gap between the current situation (the “is”) and the desired situation (the “ought”).
5. Demonstrate intellectual maturity.
6. Collaborate with stakeholders to build a just and inclusive school community.
Standards for Teacher Candidates
Learner and Learning
1. Learner Development. The teacher understands how learners grow and develop, recognizing that patterns of learning and development vary individually within and across the cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and physical areas, and designs and implements developmentally appropriate and challenging learning experiences.
2. Learning Differences. The teacher uses understanding of individual differences and diverse cultures and communities to ensure inclusive learning environments that enable each learner to meet high standards.
3. Learning Environments. The teacher works with others to create environments that support individuals and collaborative learning, and that encourage positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
4. Content Knowledge. The teacher understands the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) he or she teaches and creates learning experiences that make these aspects of the discipline accessible and meaningful for learners to ensure mastery of the content.
5. Application of Content Knowledge. The teacher understands how to connect concepts and use differing perspectives to engage learners in critical thinking, creativity, and collaborative problem solving related to authentic local and global issues.
Instructional Practice
6. Assessment. The teacher understands and uses multiple methods of assessment to engage learners in their own growth, to monitor learner progress, and to guide the teacher’s and learner’s decision making.
7. Planning for Instruction. The teacher plans instruction that supports every student in meeting rigorous learning goals by drawing upon knowledge of content areas, curriculum, cross-disciplinary skills, and pedagogy, as well as knowledge of learners and the community context.
8. Instructional Strategies. The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage learners to develop deep understanding of content areas and their connections, and to build skills to apply knowledge in meaningful ways.
Professional Responsibility
9. Professional Learning and Ethical Practice. The teacher engages in ongoing professional learning and uses evidence to continually evaluate his/her practice, particularly the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (learners, families, other professionals, and the community), and adapts practice to meet the needs of each learner.
10. Leadership and Collaboration. The teacher seeks appropriate leadership roles and opportunities to take responsibility for student learning, to collaborate with learners, families, colleagues, other school professionals, and community members to ensure learner growth and to advance the profession.
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