Professional Practice Proposal
Here are ideas for my professional practice component (in no particular order):
- work with Chemistry Education to develop civic engagement component for the teacher methods courses within the chemistry department (CHE 161, 301)
- develop a STEM curriculum summer program for the Children's Discovery Museum or other local informal education program.
- Evaluate the success of a mastery learning online chemistry graduate course compared to traditional online chemistry graduate courses.
- Complete statistical analysis or research study on IMSP projects run during the summer.
Overview: Goals and Program Standards
The
purpose of these guidelines is to assist faculty and students in designing,
implementing, and administering meaningful professional practice projects.
The
goals of the doctoral level professional practice (C&I 598 – Professional
Practice) are to:
- Provide an opportunity to
broaden the doctoral student’s experiences by exposing him or her to projects
that extend program learning.
- Emphasize the integration of
substantive materials from the academic areas with the actual performance
expected of professionals in the field.
- Provide the opportunity to
apply relevant ideas learned in course work.
- Build the student’s
repertoire of skills in ways that can enhance professional placement after
graduation.
- Provide the opportunity to
take on new responsibilities.
- Enable cooperating agencies
and organizations to benefit from the students’ special talents and
background thus enhancing the reputation of the student and the
university.
Research and Scholarship
Candidates
systematically examine trends, issues, theories, and/or policies that have or
will impact teacher education. Candidates engage in written and verbal
interaction to expand the knowledge base related to teacher education and/or
curriculum and instruction. This interaction includes: critically interpreting
scholarly works; designing research methodology and collecting data; analyzing
and synthesizing research; and understanding research integrity and
responsibility. Candidates demonstrate ability to work both individually and
with others, contributing to a learning community through shared problem solving
and decision making.
Curriculum
Candidates understand curriculum design and
theory which includes the following processes: critically examining principles
of curriculum within socio-cultural, historical, and political frameworks;
designing and evaluating curricula; analyzing and comparing curricula; and
relating assessment strategies to curricular theoretical foundations.
Instruction
Candidates articulate
and critically examine principles of instruction and related technology issues
by: relating instructional methods to curricular understandings; designing and
evaluating instructional strategies; applying technology consistently with
diverse pedagogies; and analyzing and understanding diverse assessment
strategies in the evaluation of teaching.
Diversity
Candidates identify, comprehend, and analyze
issues of diversity and equity in P-12 and higher education through processes
which include but are not limited to the following: critiquing bias and
underrepresentation in literature; investigating issues related to traditionally
underserved and/or marginalized students and communities; and applying
nontraditional and diverse perspectives to scholarship and teaching.
Professional Practice Process
The major responsibility for
developing a professional practice project belongs to the student. Each
doctoral student should meet with his or her advisor or dissertation committee
chairperson well in advance of the actual professional practice project dates
in order to discuss his or her plan.
This discussion should include specifics such as:
·
Who will serve as the
mentor/professional?
·
What activities will comprise the professional
practice project?
·
What program standards and expected
outcomes will be addressed?
·
How much time will be spent in the professional
practice project? A three-credit hour professional
practice experience is a significant project which should require 50-80 hours to
complete.
·
What is the plan for the professional
practice project? A formal plan (see form)
needs to be completed once an informal agreement has been reached with the
faculty member overseeing the professional practice project and a
mentor/professional has been contacted and has indicated a willingness to
assist.
The
professional practice project should require 50-80 hours of supervised
professional experience. A student may enroll for three hours of professional
practice project credit (C&I 598) during one semester or it can be divided across
consecutive semesters. The distribution of time may vary in accordance to the
nature of the assignment but should reflect project continuity as opposed to a
series of unrelated work episodes.
The
professional practice project is based upon the individual student's
specialization and may be in a school system, college, university, governmental
agency, business firm, community organization, or other suitable organization. Student
responsibilities should reflect the specific focus of the student's
professional objectives. The faculty advisor must approve arrangements for the professional
practice project experience. In
addition, working collaboratively on research projects with faculty members is
an appropriate option for a professional practice project experience.
The
initial professional practice project proposal request should indicate the form
and substance of supervisory service to be provided. Except in unusual
circumstances, supervision will be provided by a designated person at the professional
practice project placement site and by the faculty advisor or dissertation
committee chairperson from the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. The specific
personnel and the frequency of supervisory activities will be outlined in the
proposal and/or adjusted when the placement is finalized.
The
Professional Practice Project Proposal form and the mandatory Professional
Practice Health Insurance form are provided below.
Ideally, the student is part of a
team with whom he or she can share and discuss emerging ideas. When a doctoral student is the only person
working on a project, it is particularly important that the mentor/professional
colleague is available to define and clarify the task and provide formative
feedback.
The
professional practice project may be undertaken concurrently with other
employment. However, the professional practice project proposal must contain a
description of the employment responsibilities and how these relate to the professional
practice project. The professional practice project itself may be paid or
unpaid, depending upon the project and the nature of the student's
responsibilities.
Current Employment and
Professional Practice Project Hours
A student cannot receive professional
practice project credit for a job he or she is already doing. The professional practice project experience
should be designed to allow the student to develop new skills and
expertise. It may be possible, however,
to receive professional practice project credit if a student can modify his or
her current position so that it includes performing teacher education or
development activities that are significantly different from, and are more
challenging than, what his or her current job requires. For example, if the doctoral student spoke
with his or her current supervisor and the supervisor was willing to allow the
student to take on a new and more challenging professional activity as part of
his or her current position, the hours spent fulfilling this new role could be
used for professional practice project credit.
Under these circumstances, a mentor must still be designated. While such an arrangement does have
advantages, it is also important to consider the value of working with
colleagues, parents and families, organizational structures, and communities
away from one’s normal setting. Such experiences
provide professional breadth and may enhance the student’s future employment
options.
Example Types of Professional
Practice Projects
Curriculum
and Instructional Development Professional Practice Projects
Curriculum and instructional development
involves a complex range of decisions and activities related to both what is
taught and how it is taught. It includes
such tasks as an analysis of needs, designing learning experiences, developing
resources, and evaluating outcomes. Some
examples of curriculum and instructional development professional practice
projects are listed below:
- Working with an educational agency or school on the development, implementation, or evaluation of a curriculum program.
- Developing
and implementing a staff training program for an educational agency.
- Evaluating
the implementation of a particular curriculum.
- Researching the merits of
different course designs.
- Creating
or evaluating online courses and resources.
- Developing
or assessing the impact of an educational technology integration plan
- Collecting and analyzing data on the impact of a recent curriculum change.
- Assisting teachers in developing classroom
activities that integrate technology resources in instruction
Supervision
Professional Practice Projects
The purpose of a supervision professional
practice project is to provide doctoral students opportunities to put theories
of supervision into practice.
Supervision professional practice projects should be focused on
developing skills for promoting and sustaining learning environments conducive
to student learning and staff professional growth. Sample ideas are listed below:
-
Working with other educational leaders to determine how best to improve the learning environment at your school.
- Working with the mentor teachers to improve teaching.
- Implementing a cognitive coaching program.
- Working with the leaders of a professional organization to help it become more responsive to its members.
- Using focus groups to assess parental expectations of your school.
- Developing and implementing a study to assess whether or not there is any racial disparity in school discipline practices at your site.
- Assist teachers in applying effective methods and strategies for using educational technology in a variety of authentic educational settings.
- Creating and heading an advisory board to address the achievement gap as it relates to diverse populations.
- Working to help develop and implement a school improvement plan.
Research
Professional Practice Projects
The purpose of a research
professional practice project is to provide doctoral students opportunities to
put theories, designs, and methods of research into practice. Research professional practice projects
should be focused on developing skills for designing research projects, as well
as collecting, analyzing, and reporting data regarding education and teacher
education issues. Sample ideas are
listed below:
- Working with other educational leaders to develop and implement a research design regarding in an educational environment.
- Working with the mentors and agencies to conduct a research project.
- Implementing a data collection protocol
- Completing IRB proposal
- Completing statistical analysis of quantitative data
- Completing qualitative analysis of observational, videotaped, or interview data
- Preparing data for reports
- Preparing data for presentations at professional meetings
- Developing and implementing a study plan
1.
Describe the scope and content of the
professional practice project.
2.
Describe the degree to which the planned
goals/outcomes for the professional practice project experience were
accomplished.
3.
Analyze how the professional practice
project has extended skills and/or knowledge related to program standards.
4.
Describe and analyze the challenges in
meeting the professional practice project planned goals/outcomes and timeline.
5.
Describe the process and results of the
supervision of professional practice
experience.
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