Minnesota Administrative Rules

8705.1000 UNIT APPROVAL FOR TEACHER PREPARATION.

Subpart 1.

Written application required.

A written, electronic application for approval, including initial and continuing approval, of a unit must be submitted to the board 60 days prior to a scheduled on-site visit and must include the requirements in subparts 2 to 10.

Subp. 2.

Professional, pedagogical, and content studies.

The unit must provide professional, pedagogical, and content studies that include the following:

A.

the unit provides professional education programs with a clear and consistent conceptual framework threaded throughout the instructional program based on research, theory, and accepted practice;

B.

the unit provides and assures that candidates complete a professional sequence of courses based on the standards for both pedagogy and subject matter under parts 8710.2000 to 8710.8080;

C.

the unit provides and requires candidates in teacher preparation programs to have completed a program of general studies in the liberal arts and sciences equivalent to the requirement for persons enrolled in programs at their institution not preparing persons for teacher licensure;

D.

the unit provides programs that require candidates in teacher preparation programs to demonstrate content-specific competence of the licensure field;

E.

the unit sets forth clear expectations specific to locally determined indicators of professional dispositions and has a process for assessing those expectations;

F.

the unit's programs instruct candidates to use Minnesota kindergarten through grade 12 student academic standards, or, if unavailable, national discipline-specific standards for lesson planning and teaching;

G.

the unit requires that teacher candidates demonstrate the ability to use prekindergarten through grade 12 student performance data to make instructional decisions;

H.

the unit's programs were developed in collaboration with academically qualified faculty, along with licensed, experienced school personnel in the content area, and other stakeholders;

I.

the unit's programs require candidates to complete coursework in methods of teaching the content and scope for which they are preparing to be licensed;

J.

the unit's programs evidence culturally responsive curricula; and

K.

the unit's programs evidence direct training in the expectations published in the Minnesota Code of Ethics for professional practice and related Minnesota Statutes.

Subp. 3.

Field experience.

The unit must demonstrate field experiences that include the following:

A.

the teacher licensure programs incorporate a range of planned and supervised field-based experiences prior to student teaching that provide candidates opportunities to demonstrate the unit's indicators of professional dispositions and the required skills and knowledge under parts 8710.2000 to 8710.8080 spanning the scope of the license;

B.

the unit has a process to assure that programs provide and require experiences in the field aligned to the scope and content of the licensure field sought;

C.

the unit has a process to assure that all candidates have experiences with diverse populations, including students with a range of exceptionalities, and students representing a diversity of socioeconomic, linguistic, cultural, ethnic, and racial backgrounds;

D.

the unit has a process for and establishes collaborative school partnerships for field experience placements;

E.

the unit has a process to verify that school personnel who host teacher candidates or supervise related services candidates hold a valid Minnesota license, or the equivalent, for their assignments;

F.

the unit has an established process and criteria for the selection of school-based partner sites and cooperating teachers to assure that partners model effective instructional practices, and that the cooperating teachers model the incorporation of state prekindergarten through grade 12 student academic standards in their teaching;

G.

for initial licensure, each program requires a student teaching period of a minimum of 12 continuous weeks, full time, face-to-face, which could be split into two placements, and in compliance with program-specific field experience and student teaching requirements set forth in parts 8705.2000 to 8705.2600 and parts 8710.3000 to 8710.8080; and

H.

related services licensure programs incorporate a range of planned and supervised field experiences providing opportunities to demonstrate the required skills and knowledge of their specific field under parts 8710.6000 to 8710.6400.

Subp. 4.

Candidate selection.

The unit must demonstrate a candidate selection process that includes the following:

A.

multiple criteria and assessments are identified and used to admit candidates who demonstrate potential for professional success in teaching;

B.

plans, policies, and practices for admission and retention of a diverse candidate pool; and

C.

a plan for uniformly assessing and, as appropriate, giving credit to candidates, including out-of-state, transfer, nontraditional, or postbaccalaureate, for knowledge and skills acquired through prior academic preparation and teaching experiences that meet licensure requirements, and must maintain records to support decisions made.

Subp. 5.

Candidate advising.

The unit must demonstrate a candidate advising process that:

A.

provides appropriate and accurate academic and professional advisement at a candidate's admission and throughout the candidate's professional education program;

B.

assures that candidates have access to accurate published information describing the teacher preparation programs' requirements, including information about state-required teacher licensure examinations;

C.

has a defined student appeals process including a published reference to Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (c); and

D.

ensures that candidates are provided information on resources available for personal, professional, and career counseling as well as academic support services.

Subp. 6.

Monitoring candidate progress and demonstrating standards.

The unit must have a defined process to monitor candidate progress and demonstration of standards that includes the following:

A.

maintaining complete, accurate, consistent, and current records of candidate progress through the programs, including coursework, field experiences, and other program requirements;

B.

monitoring and assessing candidates' attainment of standards of parts 8710.2000 to 8710.8080 at a minimum of three identified checkpoints after admission throughout the professional education sequence;

C.

a uniform, operational assessment system applied to candidates in all licensure programs which identifies key assessments, including performance assessments;

D.

evidence that multiple assessments are used to demonstrate candidates' academic competence in the content they plan to teach;

E.

evidence that assessment of teacher candidate performance includes data about the performance of the students they teach; and

F.

an established and published set of exit criteria and outcomes from each program consistent with the licensure requirements of the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board.

Subp. 7.

Monitoring program effectiveness.

The unit must demonstrate monitoring program effectiveness that includes the following:

A.

the unit collects, aggregates, analyzes, and uses aggregated data from its key assessments to evaluate program effectiveness and to make program improvement changes;

B.

the unit has a process to collect and evaluate aggregate data as required by parts 8705.2000 to 8705.2600 for the purpose of biennial continuing program approval;

C.

the unit has an operational process to obtain feedback from graduates and employers of graduates on the performance of graduates for use in program evaluation; and

D.

the unit has an advisory group with external members including cooperating teachers, other school partners, and graduates that regularly assists with the ongoing evaluation and improvement of programs.

Subp. 8.

Qualifications and assignment of faculty.

The unit must demonstrate qualifications and assignment of the professional education faculty that include the following:

A.

the unit ensures that all education faculty are qualified by advanced academic preparation for the faculty member's current assignments;

B.

the unit verifies that faculty assigned to teach in the education program are actively engaged in professional organizations, other education-related endeavors at the local, state, or national levels, and ongoing involvement in prekindergarten through grade 12 schools in accordance with Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (f);

C.

the unit actively recruits and has plans, policies, and practices for hiring diverse faculty;

D.

each licensure program has a faculty member designated as the program leader who is qualified by advanced academic preparation and who has responsibility for understanding current Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board licensure standards and expectations for that licensure program;

E.

the unit provides support for faculty to engage in professional development to enhance intellectual and professional vitality to ensure that they model effective delivery of instruction;

F.

the unit has a system to provide feedback to faculty based on candidate evaluation of faculty effectiveness and candidate data;

G.

the unit demonstrates that faculty assigned to instruct and assess the subject matter content have advanced academic preparation to teach the content;

H.

the unit ensures that all faculty who are assigned to teach content-specific methods courses have advanced academic preparation, and have at least one academic year of prekindergarten through grade 12 teaching experience in that content area and scope;

I.

the unit ensures that all faculty who supervise student teaching must have a minimum of a master's degree and have at least one academic year of prekindergarten through grade 12 teaching experience aligned to the scope of the licensure programs they supervise; and

J.

the unit has a policy in place expecting faculty to demonstrate teaching that reflects knowledge and experience with diversity and student exceptionalities.

Subp. 9.

Unit leadership.

The unit must designate a unit leader who assumes the following responsibilities:

A.

the unit leader has responsibility for implementing current Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board requirements and approval processes;

B.

the unit leader has responsibility for submitting required federal and state reports related to teacher preparation and licensure;

C.

the unit leader facilitates ongoing communication and collaboration with unit and arts and sciences faculty members for developing, implementing, and maintaining continuity of licensure programs to ensure that content standards are being taught and assessed as approved;

D.

the unit leader facilitates ongoing communication and collaboration with prekindergarten through grade 12 school partners to ensure quality field placements and to maintain the integrity of programs;

E.

the unit leader is responsible for arranging training for cooperating teachers that addresses their role, program expectations, candidate assessments, procedures, and timelines;

F.

the unit leader provides periodic orientation to board standards, both unit and program-specific, to all unit faculty, including adjuncts and part-time instructors, to ensure program integrity and consistency;

G.

the unit leader monitors the institutional and unit long-range plans to ensure the ongoing vitality of the unit and its programs, and the future capacity of its physical facilities;

H.

the unit leader is responsible for submitting licensure program proposal applications and program effectiveness reports to the board for approval;

I.

the unit leader is responsible for administering all licensure programs as approved and for notifying the board of any changes to approved programs through the biennial program reporting process;

J.

the unit leader is authorized to recommend for teacher licensure candidates who have completed the unit's teacher preparation programs; and

K.

the unit leader has a monitoring process in place and is responsible for ensuring that candidates successfully complete all board licensure assessments before recommending a candidate for licensure.

Subp. 10.

Unit governance and resources.

The unit must demonstrate governance and resources that include the following:

A.

responsibility and authority for teacher preparation programs are exercised by a defined administrative and instructional unit, for example a department, division, school, or college of education;

B.

the unit is directly involved in the areas of faculty selection and assignments, tenure, promotion, and retention decisions;

C.

the unit is directly involved in decisions about recruitment and admission of candidates, curriculum decisions, evaluation and revision of programs, and the allocation of resources for licensure programs;

D.

the unit has sufficient financial and physical resources and institutional support to sustain teacher preparation programs including adequate budgets, classroom and office space, technology support and equipment, supplies, and materials;

E.

the unit has sufficient numbers of faculty to teach in the licensure programs to ensure consistent quality and delivery of the program over time;

F.

the unit has workload policies and adequate resources to enable all faculty who teach in licensure programs the time and resources to accommodate teaching, advising, assessment of candidates and programs, research, scholarship, program administration, committee work, supervision, and service to schools and community;

G.

candidates and faculty have access to current books, journals, and electronic information that support teaching, learning, and scholarship;

H.

candidates and faculty in the unit have training in and access to current education-related technology to support teaching, learning, and scholarship;

I.

the unit has sufficient faculty, administrative staff, support, and technical staff to ensure consistent delivery and quality of programs and to comply with all board reporting requirements to maintain unit and program approval; and

J.

the unit has the capacity and established operational processes to obtain periodic external feedback on the performance of graduates as required for continuing program approval.

Statutory Authority:

MS s 122A.09

History:

39 SR 822; L 2017 1Sp5 art 12 s 22

Published Electronically:

August 21, 2017