As stated in our conceptual framework, Be Teaching We Learn, we are committed to ensuring that our candidates understand the role of diversity and equity in supporting the learning and well-being of all students. Our inclusive definition of diversity encompasses culture, race, ethnicity, sex, age, national origin, physical and mental ability, religion, and socioeconomic and experiential background as individual differences that must be considered in the learning-teaching context. We adopted the Brofenbrenner model as the theoretical model for understanding individual differences and integrating diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions across educator preparation programs.
Developed by the College of Education faculty in spring of 1998, our Comprehensive Diversity Plan lists goals and action steps for increasing the diversity of candidates and faculty, increasing diversity knowledge and sensitivity, and implementing curriculum and experiences for candidates to acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to help all students learn. The plan provides the blueprint for the work of the College of Education Diversity Committee charged with the responsibility of providing leadership in enhancing diversity and multicultural education in the College.
Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of Curriculum and Experiences
To ensure the systematic integration of diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions throughout our educator preparation programs, we developed Diversity Alignment Tables for each of our educator preparation programs. These tables show the standards and indicators that specifically address diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions, where in the program the diversity standards are targeted, and how they are systematically assessed.
In our teacher education program, knowledge, skills, and dispositions related to diversity are addressed throughout our Standards of Beginning Teachers and specifically targeted in three standards – Student Individual Differences; Family, School, and Community Relationships and Resources; and Personal Characteristics and Interpersonal Skills. As with our standards, diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions are addressed throughout the teacher education program course work and field experiences and intensively targeted in three courses – EDUC 201 Development and Individual Differences; EDUC 204 Families, Communities, Culture; and EDUC 402 Adaptations for Diversity. Diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions are also targeted through mandatory field experiences in the Saturday Free Respite Care Program (a respite care program for children with moderate to severe disabilities) and schools with at least 30% minority populations. Candidate performance relative to diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions is assessed at multiple points during the program through the Admission Interview, course-based assessments, portfolio entries, the Idaho Technology Portfolio Assessment, teacher work samples, teaching performance evaluations, and the Exit Interview.
In our programs for the continuing preparation of teachers and the preparation of other school personnel, knowledge, skills, and dispositions related to diversity are specifically targeted in the Exceptionality and Diversity standard of our Standards for Advanced Professionals. As stated in the standard, we expect candidates to “address issues of exceptionality and cultural diversity is their professional practice.” As delineated in the Diversity Alignment Tables, our advanced educator preparation programs include course work and clinical experiences that specifically target knowledge, dispositions, and skills related to diversity. In addition, each program assesses candidate performance relative to diversity knowledge, skills, and dispositions at multiple points during the program through course-based assessments, assessment and curriculum projects, case studies, portfolios, performance evaluations during clinical experiences, the written comprehensive examinations, and the oral examination or defense.
Experiences Working with Diverse Faculty
Historically, the College of Education has faced the challenge of recruiting a diverse faculty. There are currently 59 full-time faculty in the College of Education. Of these, 32 (54%)) are female and 27 (46%) are male. In terms of ethnicity, 57 faculty members classify themselves as White and 2 as Hispanic. A total of 4 faculty members are individuals with exceptionalities (e.g., physical or health disabilities). With the new expanded NCATE definition of diversity that includes factors such as religion, language, and background experiences, we began charting additional data regarding faculty diversity. Two of these factors – religion and working with PK-16 students outside of Idaho – have particular relevance for the context of Idaho State University. Population demographics for southeastern Idaho indicate that 47% of the population belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon), and 68% of the population was born in Idaho and has never lived outside the state. In terms of religion, 6 (10%) of our faculty members identify themselves as belonging to the Mormon church, and 53 (90%) report affiliations with a variety of other religions including Catholic, Christian Scientist, Congregational, Episcopal, Jehovah’s Witness, Lutheran, Methodist, and Presbyterian. In terms of living and working outside Idaho, 57 (97%) faculty members came from other states to take a faculty position at Idaho State University.
Consistent with our conceptual framework and Comprehensive Diversity Plan, we continue our efforts to increase faculty diversity. Among these efforts is a Faculty Recruitment Policy that includes procedures for targeting individuals from diverse ethnic, racial, language, religious, and socioeconomic groups and individuals with exceptionalities. Implementation of the Faculty Recruitment Policy yielded positive results as we brought three minority candidates to campus to interview for tenure-track positions last year and were successful in hiring one of these individuals. We have also instituted additional initiatives for ensuring candidates have opportunities to work with and learn from a diverse faculty. Through a United States Department of Education Indian Education Partnership Grant, we procured funding to hire a Shoshone-Bannock woman from the Fort Hall Indian Reservation as a full-time coordinator of our Native Scholars Program. In addition to serving as coordinator of the program, she collaborates with instructors to integrate diversity issues into courses, frequently makes guest presentations in classes and public schools, and acts as a member of the team delivering EDUC 402 Adaptations for Diversity, the capstone course of the teacher education program. In another initiative to increase faculty diversity in the College, we have welcomed three individuals from Malaysia and Japan to work as visiting scholars and professors. In addition, we have initiated a “grow our own” program through which we identify talented culturally-diverse candidates for graduate assistantships in hopes of keeping those candidates at Idaho State University. We currently have two graduate assistants from Zimbabwe, one from Russia, one from Malaysia, and one from China.
The diversity knowledge and sensitivity of faculty members in the College of Education is evidenced by their work at the national and state levels in the areas of inclusion, multicultural education, and gender equity. For example, one of our faculty members currently serves as the chair of the Multicultural Education Special Interest Group for the Association of Teacher Educators and has presented and published numerous papers on Native American education issues. Another faculty member has just published a book on gender equity in sport, while another presents and publishes frequently on the inclusion of students with behavior challenges and severe disabilities. Another example of faculty work at the national and state levels is a faculty member who serves on the Idaho Hispanic Education Council and was instrumental in effecting state legislation for a program providing university scholarships for Hispanic youth. In addition, the Dean of the College of Education serves as a member of the state-level Indian Education Committee that advocates for quality education for Idaho’s native populations.
While the accomplishments of individual faculty members are certainly strong evidence of faculty knowledge and sensitivity, over the past two years the College of Education has extended beyond knowledge and understanding to action steps that demonstrate our shared commitment to preparing candidates who can help all students learn. We revised our conceptual framework to more accurately reflect our commitment to developing the diversity knowledge, skills and dispositions of our candidates and faculty. As a result of that work, we now share an inclusive definition of diversity that stimulated the creation and implementation of an Affirmative Action Policy for teacher education. A unique feature of the policy is an explicit statement of our responsibility in ensuring the success of candidates from traditionally under-represented populations in our programs. And, we have engaged in the total transformation of our teacher education program to include three courses specifically targeting student individual differences and adaptations for diversity.
During AY 2000-2001, the College of Education Diversity Committee initiated a series of programs and activities targeted to candidates, faculty, and staff with the goal of creating a culture of inclusion in the College of Education. Activities designed to address this goal included publication of an electronic Diversity Newsletter highlighting diversity events and activities within the College and beyond. The Committee also planned and conducted a series of Heritage Month Celebrations thematically grouped around Hispanic Heritage Month, National Disability Month, American Indian Heritage Month, Black History Month, Women’s History Month, and Asian-Pacific American Month. These celebrations typically include two or three different events (such as culturally specific performances including dance, music, and art; expert panels; presentations; and information displays). In April of 2001, the Committee brought an Educator-in-Residence from Vanderbilt University to the College who consulted with faculty and presented in classes and at a public performance on inclusive education, social justice, and service learning. The Diversity Committee also initiated an Equity Education Research Project aimed at identifying where in the College of Education curriculum diversity issues are addressed. The goal of the project is to create a curricular resource (an anthology of sorts) that will facilitate and support the sharing of teaching and learning ideas and activities regarding diversity education.
Experiences Working with Diverse Candidates
As with the recruitment and retention of a diverse faculty, the College of Education has historically faced the challenge of recruiting and retaining diverse candidates. Of the 2,226 candidates enrolled in the College of Education, 1,566 (70%) are female and 660 (30%) are male. In terms of ethnicity, 1,991 (89%) classify themselves as White non-Hispanic, 19 (.09%) as African American, 32 (1.4%) as American Indian, 29 (1.3%) as Asian/Pacific Islander, 44 (1.9%) as Hispanic, and 72 (3%) as non-resident alien. A total of 43 (1.9%) of our candidates have registered with the Idaho State University Center for Students with Disabilities and are receiving accommodations to meet special physical or academic needs.
Through our good faith efforts to increase and maintain candidate diversity, we affirm our values of diversity and our commitment to preparing candidates to work with students from diverse backgrounds and with exceptionalities. These efforts include recruitment activities for minority high school students; scholarships targeted for candidates from diverse gender, socioeconomic, and cultural groups; and the recruitment of international candidates to our graduate programs. Each semester we partner with high schools in our region to bring 50-60 students from local high schools to the College of Education for a Future Educators Day. We specifically target high schools with high minority student populations to recruit students for the event. The high school students spend a day in the College attending classes, touring facilities, and learning about the teacher education program and the teaching profession. A highlight of the day is a presentation and question-and-answer session with practicing teachers representing diverse ethnic groups. As another effort to increase candidate diversity, we partnered with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes to develop a U.S. Department of Education Indian Education Partnership Grant. Funded in the summer of 2000, the Native Scholars Project fully supports 14 Native American students for their last two years of the teacher education program and the first year of an induction program after they graduate and obtain jobs. Over the last two years we have aggressively sought funding for scholarships designed to increase the diversity of candidates in our educator preparation programs. As a result, we now award 6 scholarships specifically for candidates from diverse ethnic, racial, gender, and socioeconomic groups. In summer of 2000, we welcomed 47 Taiwanese candidates into the Doctor of Education in Education Leadership program. The Taiwanese cohort group has brought a valuable global perspective to our faculty and American candidates.
Experiences Working with Diverse PK-12 Students
Because our region, state, and local community reflect limited diversity, we face the particular challenge of providing candidates with experiences in authentic contexts that will prepare them to work with diverse students. The student population in southeast Idaho is exceptionally homogeneous – 88% of the students are white; 47% are of the majority religious group (LDS-Mormon), 46% live in families with a mean income of $25,000-$30,000; and 68% have parents who were born in Idaho and have never lived outside the state. Therefore, we must take extraordinary measures to ensure that ALL of our candidates interact with students with exceptionalities and students from different ethnic, racial, language, and religious groups. As a requirement for the first course in the professional education core, all candidates complete four hours of field experience in the College of Education Saturday Free Respite Care Program, a respite care program for children with moderate to severe disabilities. As a requirement for EDUC 204 Families, Communities, Culture, all teacher education candidates complete a supervised field experience in a K-12 classroom in a school with at least a 30% minority population. Because few schools close to the university or our outreach centers meet the criteria, the majority of candidates must travel 20-40 miles one-way to complete their field experiences. For some candidates, this travel represents a significant expense and hardship.
In addition to the mandatory field experiences in the teacher education program, candidates have additional opportunities to interact with diverse PK-12 students. A literacy methods course required for all elementary education candidates includes a supervised field experience in a school with a high Native American, Hispanic, and/or ESL school population. Candidates in our early childhood program are encouraged to complete at least one of their field experiences in the Head Start Program or the Migrant Education Program. Candidates in our special education program must complete all practica and their student teaching internship working with students with exceptionalities. The Office of Field Experiences maintains a priority list of placements for the student teaching internship that includes schools with at least 30% minority student populations, and during their placement interviews with the Director of Field Experiences candidates are encouraged to complete their student teaching internship in one of these sites.
Our commitment to preparing candidates who can help all students learn is evidenced by new partnerships with schools. One of our partnership schools is the Fort Hall Elementary School located on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation. Because the school population is 98% Native American, faculty and candidates gain direct experience working with students from diverse backgrounds. In addition, we have strengthened our relationship with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes through numerous collaborative activities such as the Native Scholars Project. We have also formed relationships with the Idaho School for the Deaf and Blind in Gooding and with schools in American Falls and Aberdeen with high Hispanic and ESL student populations. Through these relationships, our faculty and candidates gain valuable experience in working with students with diverse backgrounds. This experience translates to greater knowledge and sensitivity that is then integrated into program course work and assessments.
