Truman MAE Curriculum Matrix
Truman MAE candidates engage in culturally responsive educational practices in their Truman coursework and clinical field experience placements and completers demonstrate their competency in this area in the field. Students are presented with culturally responsive teaching practices content throughout the curriculum. From their first education class, ED 388, through their undergraduate course sequence and into their graduate-level classes, the Truman Curriculum Matrix reveals that culturally responsive teaching is deeply woven into the fabric of the teacher education program. Examples include analyses of the treatment of underrepresented minorities in and by the educational system (ED 389), intentional classroom placements early in the program in high-poverty schools (ED 394), and individual feedback for how program students can most effectively teach K-12 students in vastly cultural and economic circumstances (ED 394, ED 593).
Professional GPA
As outlined by the Truman Curriculum Matrix, candidates are presented with information about engaging culturally responsive educational practices throughout their degree program. The Professional GPA serves as one measure that supports the claim that Truman candidates and completers have mastered this content.
Social Justice Rubric
The MAE is focused on social justice currently and has had one pilot of a disposition rubric that had a range of feedback from mentors ranging from “this is an excellent idea,” to “this is not something that we should evaluate.” From our key takeaways from the data collected from University Supervisors, mentors, and students, we adjusted the rubric Summer 2021 with input from students and are piloting it again in F2021.
MEES
Successful performance on the MEES demonstrates that candidates engage in culturally responsive educational practices with diverse learners. All Truman MAE completers have not only passed the MEES assessment but the mean scores for every standard have consistently far exceeded both the minimum and higher target scores. Truman intern candidates’ scores on Standard 2 of the MEES assessment, for which candidates must demonstrate understanding of students’ languages, family, culture, and community needs, and Standard 6 of the assessment, for which candidates must demonstrate evidence of culturally and linguistically appropriate communication, offers support to the claim that our completers understand and can demonstrate culturally responsive educational practice.
Portfolio
In the pilot portfolio, several students were chosen to have exemplars for Standard 2 that reflect cultural diversity. One of our interns created a lesson with the Holocaust that focused not only on how students learn, grow and develop, but he incorporated social justice with propaganda and thinking about the power of words.
First-Year Teacher Survey Questionnaire (FYTSQ)
Truman 2020-2021 completers’ responses on the FYTSQ indicate that they feel they are able to engage in culturally responsive educational practice. An overwhelming 97% of 2020-2021 completers agreed (36%) or strongly agreed (61%) that they were prepared to promote respect for diverse cultures, genders, and intellectual/physical abilities. (Please consult the summary document of the last six years of data from this questionnaire for additional evidence of support from prior years.)
Principal of First-Year Teachers Survey Questionnaire
Principals of 2020-2021 first-year completers provide further evidence that our completers are prepared to engage in culturally responsive educational practice, with 89% agreeing (50%) or strongly agreeing (39%) that they were prepared to promote respect for diverse cultures, genders, and intellectual/physical abilities. (Please consult the summary document of the last six years of data from this questionnaire for additional evidence of support from prior years.)
MAE Completer Survey
All completers who responded to the 2018-2019 survey reported that they felt 53.8% prepared and 46.2% thoroughly prepared to develop strong rapport with students from diverse backgrounds. This reflected the 2017-2018 data that stated 25% felt prepared and 75% thoroughly prepared in the same area.
Before we implemented the social justice rubric, the 2017-2018 completers reported a low scoring in preparedness for culturally responsive teaching. Ninety-one percent of the 2018-2019 completers reported ninety-one percent of participants being prepared or thoroughly prepared for culturally responsive teaching.
Professional Disposition Rubric
Students are assessed using a Professional Disposition Rubric that measures both quantifiable goals and “soft skills” such as professionalism, collegiality, and ability to effectively teach diverse populations. Students, mentors, and University Supervisors report that MAE students consistently demonstrate strong dispositions, with an average score of three out of three by the time they approach program completion.