| Preparing the Institutional Report |
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| The professional education unit is required to write and submit an institutional report (IR)
that describes the unit’s conceptual framework and evidence that demonstrates that the six standards are met. In continuing accreditation visits, the IR also serves as primary documentation of the unit’s growth and development since the last accreditation visit |
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| The unit is required to submit an electronic copy of its IR to NCATE (ncate@ncate.org) approximately 60 days prior to the on-site visit. If the IR is on the unit’s website, an electronic copy of it must be submitted to NCATE for archival purposes. Both a printed and electronic copy of the IR must be sent to each member of the BOE team, each member of the state BOE team on a joint visit, the state consultant, and the NEA or AFT representative. At the same time, the unit must send the link to its website and college catalogs to NCATE, team members, the state consultant, and the NEA and AFT representatives. |
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| The printed copy of the IR may be transmitted to BOE members, state consultants, and state NEA and AFT representatives via regular or overnight mail. The electronic version of the report should be submitted via an e-mail attachment. It may include links to relevant exhibits, but the narrative, including appendices, should not exceed 100 pages. If the IR is available on the institution’s website, the unit should send the link to the URL to team members via an e-mail message. |
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| All IRs should include a cover
sheet that identifies:
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- the name and address of the unit and institution,
- the dates of the scheduled BOE visit,
- the unit’s website address, and
- the NCATE contact person and his/her e-mail address.
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| The institutional report, including
any appendices and attachments, cannot exceed 100 pages in
length and should be single-spaced with 12-point type and
with double spaces between paragraphs. NCATE may return an
IR to an institution if it exceeds the page length or does
not include the information described below. An incomplete
IR could prevent a visit from occurring on schedule, which could result in the loss of accreditation. |
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| The IR should include a table of contents and three sections: Overview of the Institution, Conceptual Framework, and Evidence for Meeting Each Standard. Each section is described below. Sample IRs from different types of institutions can be accessed in the “Resources” section of NCATE’s website. Many institutions that have hosted visits in the past two years have their IRs available on their institutional websites.
BOE members find data presented in tables very helpful in determining whether standards are met. Tables in the IR should be included in the overview, Standard 1, Standard 3, and Standard 4.They may also be appropriate in Standards 2, 5, and 6. These  sample tables should be placed in the IR. |
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| Overview of the Institution |
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| This section sets the context
of the visit. It should clearly state the mission of the institution
and the unit. It should also describe the characteristics
of the unit and identify and describe any branch campuses
included in the review, off-campus sites, alternate
route programs, and distance learning programs. The overview
should include any other information to help the BOE team
understand the unit (e.g., residential or commuter, religious
affiliation, and characteristics of the student body).
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| This section should also list
all programs offered by the unit that prepare individuals
to work in P–12 schools. It should include the following
information for each program in tabular form: |
- the program name, award level (type of degree or licensure), program
level [initial teacher preparation (ITP) or advanced preparation (ADV)],
number of candidates currently enrolled;
- the state agency and/or NCATE–affiliated specialty organization or
other accrediting body reviewing each program; and
- the status of the program reviews.
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| This information should be
presented in tabular form similar to that below:
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| Conceptual Framework |
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| This section provides an overview of the unit’s conceptual framework(s). The overview should include a brief description of the framework(s) and its development. For continuing visits, changes in the conceptual framework since the last visit should be described. The discussion of the framework(s) should concisely summarize the five structural elements of the conceptual framework and each of the six expectations listed as Evidence for Conceptual Framework(s) in the NCATE Unit Standards document: (1) shared vision, (2) coherence, (3) professional commitments and dispositions, (4) commitment to diversity, (5) commitment to technology, and (6) candidate proficiencies aligned with professional and state standards. |
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| Evidence for Meeting Each Standard
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In this section the unit should discuss the evidence that demonstrates how it is meeting each of the six standards. The unit should address each element of each standard as delineated in the rubrics for the standards. Significant differences among programs, particularly between initial teacher preparation and advanced programs, should be described as the response is written for each element. This section of the IR should have the sub-sections listed below: |
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| Standard 1—Candidate
Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions |
- Element 1: Content Knowledge for Teacher Candidates
- Element 2: Content Knowledge for Other Professional School Personnel
- Element 3: Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Teacher Candidates
- Element 4: Professional and Pedagogical Knowledge and
Skills for Teacher Candidates
- Element 5: Professional Knowledge and Skills
for Other School Personnel
- Element 6: Dispositions for All Candidates
- Element 7: Student Learning for Teacher Candidates
- Element 8: Student Learning for Other Professional
School Personnel
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| Standard 2—Program Assessment and Unit Capacity |
- Element 1: Assessment System
- Element 2: Data Collection, Analysis, and Evaluation
- Element 3: Ue of Date for Program Improvement
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| Standard 3—Field Experiences and Clinical Practice |
- Element 1: Collaboration between Unit and School Partners
- Element 2: Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of Field Experiences and Clinical Practice
- Element 3: Candidates’ Development and Demonstration of Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions to Help All Students Learn
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| Standard 4—Diversity |
- Element 1: Design, Implementation, and Evaluation
of Curriculum and Experiences
- Element 2: Experiences Working with Diverse
Faculty
- Element 3: Experiences Working with Diverse
Candidates
- Element 4: Experiences Working with Diverse
Students in P–12 Schools
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| Standard 5—Faculty Qualifications,
Performance, and Development |
- Element 1: Qualified Faculty
- Element 2: Modeling Best Professional Practices
in Teaching
- Element 3: Modeling Best Professional Practices
in Scholarship
- Element 4: Modeling Best Professional Practices
in Service
- Element 5: Collaboration
- Element 6: Unit Evaluation of Professional Education
Faculty Performance
- Element 7: Unit Facilitation of Professional
Development
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| Standard 6—Unit Governance
and Resources |
- Element 1: Unit Leadership and Authority
- Element 2: Unit Budget
Element 3: Personnel
- Element 4: Unit Facilities
Element 5: Unit Resources including Technology
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| Other Information |
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| In addition to the IR, team members find it helpful to have access to other documents that describe the unit and its programs. BOE members will examine the institution and/or unit website prior to the visit. The unit should ensure that all information posted on its website is current and accurate. In addition, if information from handbooks, catalogs, brochures, and other published documents is not available on the website, the BOE team chair and institution’s NCATE coordinator should determine jointly the additional information the unit should send to BOE team members. Other information that teams find helpful to review before the visit are the student teaching handbook and documents on the conceptual framework. |
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