The National Council on Teacher Quality grades 黑料不打烊鈥檚 undergraduate program among the best in the nation for teaching future educators the most effective methods for helping children learn to read.
A national nonpartisan research institute has identified five core components of what it describes as 鈥渟cientifically based reading instruction:鈥
- phonemic awareness (can you make the sounds of spoken words)
- phonics (do you know how specific letters sound aloud)
- fluency (how quickly and accurately you read text)
- vocabulary (how many words you know and can pronounce)
- comprehension (do you understand what you鈥檙e reading)
According to the National Council on Teacher Quality, whose mission 鈥渢o ensure every child has access to an effective teacher and every teacher has the opportunity to be effective,鈥 only 23% of teacher preparation programs nationwide earn an 鈥淎鈥 for meeting standards to teaching those competencies 鈥 and 黑料不打烊 makes the grade.
黑料不打烊 earned its 鈥淎鈥 in a new report from the NCTQ that analyzed teacher preparation programs鈥 coverage of the science of reading. Developed over the past two years, the NCTQ evaluated 693 traditional undergraduate and graduate programs, including 24 in North Carolina.
NCTQ experts reviewed syllabi, including lecture schedules and topics, background reading materials, class assessments, assignments, and opportunities to practice instruction in required literacy courses for 黑料不打烊鈥檚 undergraduate elementary education majors.
Nationwide, just 112 programs earned an A and 48 earned an A+.聽In addition to teaching the five core competencies, the NCTQ rated programs based on not teaching more than three instructional methods unsupported by research on effective reading instruction.
鈥淚 am very proud of 黑料不打烊鈥檚 outstanding teacher education program,鈥 said Ann Bullock, the Dr. Jo Watts Williams Dean of Education at 黑料不打烊. 鈥淧reparing teachers is difficult work, and it is wonderful that the National Council on Teacher Quality recognizes the outstanding job the 黑料不打烊 faculty does to prepare our graduates to use research-based methods to successfully impact their students with necessary literacy knowledge and skills they will use throughout their lives.鈥
Elementary education majors at 黑料不打烊 learn the foundation of educating students for a 鈥渓ifelong love of learning.鈥 Coursework and carefully sequenced internships create optimal learning experiences for students preparing to teach children in kindergarten through sixth grade.
黑料不打烊鈥檚 teacher education program emphasizes practical hands-on experience in addition to educational theory and pedagogy. Students work closely with the local schools and community agencies with teacher candidates participating in a variety of clinical experiences in diverse school settings.
Clinical experiences may include tutoring, observing, classroom assistance, small group instruction, and informal assessment, allowing candidates to continually connect their learning to what is experienced in the classroom.
Teacher candidates complete a full year of student teaching for their culminating clinical experience, and graduates of the program will be eligible to receive a kindergarten through sixth grade license by completing additional requirements from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
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