Based on a recent national report, graduates of teacher education
programs in Oklahoma’s public universities continue to be some of most
well prepared in the nation.
In their 2001 report on national passing rates, National Evaluation
Systems, Inc. showed that graduates of teacher education programs from
Oklahoma’s public universities had an average passing rate of 89 percent
on the three tests the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation
requires as a condition for licensure in Oklahoma: the Oklahoma General
Education Test (OGET), the Oklahoma Subject Area Test (OSAT) and the
Oklahoma Professional Teaching Examination (OPTE).
The report which will be used later in the year to provide
information for the federal teacher education report card as required by
Title II of the Higher Education Act, disclosed how each institutions’
teacher education graduates fared on all three assessments combined.
All of Oklahoma’s public universities had passing rates either in
the 80s or 90s with the University of Oklahoma, Norman and Oklahoma State
University, Stillwater, heading the pack with passing rates of 97 and 94
percent respectively.
“The primary goal of our 12 public teaching universities is to
ensure that only caring and competent teacher education graduates are
headed into Oklahoma’s classrooms,” said Hans Brisch, Chancellor of
the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.
“Preparation and commitment are key elements that will open the
doors for many of these graduates in the years to come.”
Brisch added that Oklahomans could also view these passing rates as
As and Bs, clearly indicating that teacher education programs at the
state’s public universities are doing an excellent job of preparing
their students.
On the individual test results, 11 universities boasted passing
rates of more than 90 percent in the Academic Content Area.
OU again fared the best with a 99 percent passing rate.
The combined average score for the 12 institutions involved was 94
percent.
In the Basic Skills Area, institutional passing rates ranged from
81 to 100 percent, with Cameron University, Lawton, and the University of
Science and Arts of Oklahoma, Chickasha, topping all state schools with
perfect 100 percent passing rates. Eight
more institutions boasted passing rates of at least 93 percent.
The average score for all 12 public institutions combined was 95
percent.
The combined average score was slightly less in the Professional
Knowledge Area, where passing rates averaged 93 percent.
Nine institutions scored at least 90 percent. OU topped all the state’s public universities with a
passing rate of 100 percent. USAO
and Langston University followed OU with identical passing rates of 97
percent.
These figures are consistent with the State Regents’ teacher
education initiative to ensure accountability for quality teacher
education programs. In 1992
the State Regents charged a 10-member team to assess the status of teacher
preparation in the State System and to make recommendations to establish
Oklahoma as a national leader in teacher preparation.
In 1997 the State Legislature charged the Oklahoma Commission for
Teacher Preparation with the task of developing a state teacher competency
examination that would assess required competencies among Oklahoma’s
teacher education candidates. Thus,
the OGET, OSAT and OPTE were born.
Within the last decade, State Regents have enacted tougher
admission standards for students desiring to join the elementary or
secondary teaching ranks. Currently,
to qualify for admission into an Oklahoma teacher education program at a
State university, students must either have at least a 3.0 grade point
average in all of their liberal arts or science classes or they must pass
the Pre-Professional Skills Test.
These and other initiatives implemented by the State Regents to
improve teacher preparation also led to the creation in May 2000 of the
Oklahoma Higher Education Institutional Warranty on Teacher Education.
This warranty guarantees that any graduate from any of Oklahoma’s
four-year public institutions that other teacher education programs will
meet 15 competencies designed to improve student-learning opportunities.
Teachers not meeting these competencies within the first year of
their residency will receive additional training at no expense to the
student or the school district.
Oklahoma’s efforts to improve teacher preparation have not gone
unnoticed nationally. For
four consecutive years, Oklahoma has ranked among the top three states in
terms of improving teacher quality. In
it’s “Quality Counts 2001” report, Education Week ranked
Oklahoma third in the nation for teacher quality.
“It’s extremely important that our state colleges and
universities produce the best teacher candidates possible.” State
Regents Chairman Joe Mayer said. “By
implementing initiatives such as the teacher warranty, we have developed
high-quality teacher preparation programs that are second to none;
however, we cannot rest on our laurels.
We must continue to examine these programs on an ongoing basis and
look for new and innovative ways to improve them.”
The 12 public universities in Oklahoma with teacher education
programs include Cameron; East Central, Ada; Langston; Northeastern State,
Tahlequah; Northwestern Oklahoma State; Oklahoma Panhandle State; OSU;
Southeastern Oklahoma State; Southwestern Oklahoma State; the University
of Central Oklahoma, Edmond; OU and the University of Science and Arts of
Oklahoma.