Conceptual Framework
Mount Union College’s Teacher Education Program’s Conceptual Framework is based on the guidelines suggested by the Ohio Department of Education and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). A conceptual framework is “an underlying structure…that gives conceptual meanings through an articulated rationale to the unit’s operation and provides direction for programs, courses, teaching, candidate performance, faculty scholarship and service, and unit accountability.” (NCATE, 2001) MountUnionCollege’s Teacher Education Program’s Conceptual Framework focuses on its theme, candidate performance, program areas, and commitments to diversity, technology, and assessment.
Caring Teachers Live What They Believe
The theme, Caring Teachers Live What They Believe, has its roots in the synthesized “We Believe” statements collected from Teacher Education Program faculty, teacher candidates, members of our partner schools, and other professional community members. The Advisory Committee, Unit Governance Committee, Kappa Delta Pi, and SNEA interacted with various drafts of the conceptual framework. This allowed input from teacher candidates, cooperating teachers, as well as other constituents from our partner schools. Fundamental to understanding the theme is Martin Habermann’s (1995) belief that only decent people can be prepared to teach, Nel Noddings’ (1995) understanding of the ethic of care, Mount Union College’s mission statement, and Mount Union College’s Teacher Education Program’s eleven common goals.
|
