Main Menu
Contact: Jennifer Anderson (andersonj@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466
4/18/2002
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NATCHITOCHES- The Northwestern State University College of Education is among the top of its class. NSU has been assigned a grade of "A" for the performance of regular and alternate certification program completers on the state teachers' examination, also known as PRAXIS.
Schools with passages rates of 92-97 percent received an "A." Northwestern State University's passage rate was 94 percent.
The Higher Education Act of 1998 requires all institutions in the United States with teacher preparation programs to issue institutional reports on a yearly basis which contain information specified by the U.S. Department of Education.
In response, the Louisiana Blue Ribbon Commission for Teacher Quality created a Teacher Preparation Accountability System that assesses the performance of teacher preparation programs within the state. The system requires the state to phase in the key indicators of preparation performance scores based upon an institutional performance index, quantity index and authentic university-district partnership index.
During the first phase of the accountability system, the performance of regular and alternate certification students on PRAXIS was assessed. Grades are based upon either the passage rates of the last academic year or the average of the passage rates of the last two academic year, whichever is higher.
"I cannot express how pleased I am in the improvement in test passage rates," said Dean of College of Education John Tollett. "Test rates went from 91 percent to 94 percent. This is a significant improvement and I expect our rates will continue to improve. Our goal is to be an "A+" university within two years."
According to Tollett, the next phase will be to establish university growth targets. Those targets will include an increase in the number of program completers, improvement in test passage rates and ratings by employers of NSU graduates. The targets are expected to be established by October 1.
The College of Education is not only concerned with their students who pass the exam. They are taking steps to insure students in the education programs are making the right career choices by establishing an assessment committee to identify students who need assistance as early as possible.
"We are equally concerned with students who are not successful on their test with changing their majors and never becoming teachers as well as those who are not successful and complete the program."