School ofEducation faces examination for certification and reaccreditation The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, N-CATE, plans to visit Harding soon. Since the N-CATE is the only nationally recognized accreditation, being accredited is an important standard for Harding. Dr. Bobby Coker, dean of the School of Education, said, "Harding has been accredited by the N-CATE since 1962." The School of Education is evaluated every five years, when N-CATE brings in four examiners from their board to study Harding's education program. The education department supplies N-CATE with a self-study report, and they also prepare exhibits that exemplify Harding's program. The accreditation process is crucial for many education students. Graduating with an education degree from an accredited school not only certifies the student to teach in the state from which they graduated, but it also allows them to attain certification in other states. Many changes have been made in the School of Education due to new standards of certification in the state of Arkansas. "Arkansas has made two major revisions. They are revising levels and moving to a performance-based education system, " Coker said. The fact that they are revising levels simply means that early childhood, middle school and secondary education majors require certification in their levels, whereas they did not before. The move to a performancebased education system is divided into stages consisting of knowledge, skills and disposition, all of which must be accomplished by education majors. These areas can all be tested with an array of assessment instruments. Arkansas has chosen portfolios, video tapes of teaching, written responses to scenarios, lesson plans and units to qualify. The School ofEducation works through the help of grants. They recently received a four-year Upward Bound Grant of $900,000. The Upward Bound Programworks with 10th through 12th grade students to keep them in school and motivate them toward college. Members of the education faculty visit local high schools and hold tutoring sessions for students who need them. Other projects include weekends and a five-week Richard Blankenship, Ed.D., Professor Jess Bucy, M.S.E. , Assistant to Dean, Baseball Coach Delores Carson, E.D.S., Assistant Professor Marilee Coker, M.Ed., Director of Curriculum Lab Maribeth Downing, Ph.D. , Professor Tony Finley, Ed.D. , Associate Professor Ed Higginbotham, Ed.D., Associate Professor Wyatt Jones, Ed.D. , Prof. Education, Dir. Grad. Studies, Asso. Dean Jan Morgan, Ed.D., Ass't Prof., Special Ed., Chair Elem./Special Ed. Jim Nichols, Ed.D. , Professor, Director Field Experience Jeanine Peck, Ed.D. , Professor Richard Peck, Ed.D. , Associate Professor Carolyn Priest, SIU., Instructor, Reading Gordon Sutherlin, Ed.D. , Associate Professor Linda Thornton, E.D.S., Assistant Professor Betty Watson, Ed.D. , Professor, Elementary Education summer camp during which high school students stay at the university and attend classes. "It gives high school students a view of the opportunities and options that they have," Coker said. Another grant that the School ofEducation received is theWilbur Mills Education Service Co-op. "This is a $50,000 grant which we received to implement a 'teacher rounds ' model for in-service education," Coker said. "Teacher rounds" is based on the medical model ofstudent rounds. The education students work with area teachers in the classrooms. This grant will expire soon, so they have written a request for an additional $100,000 grant. Harding's School of Education has a reputation for producing some of the best teachers in the state of Arkansas. With the skills they gain from their experiences and the good standing of the program, they are able to achieve greater goals. Harding has maintained this high accreditation and high standing through hard work and the ability to change to meet the requirements placed upon it by the state. - Shellie Morris
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