ABSTRACT

Title of dissertation PERCEIVED IMPACT OF CAEP STANDARDS ON SCHOOL-UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS

			Judith H. Beiter, Doctor of Education, 2017

Dissertation directed by Professor David Imig, Chair

			College of Education



Recent changes in teacher education program accreditation and in the accountability requirements for both the school district and the higher education partners precipitated the need for this study.  Partners must understand the priorities, needs, and challenges facing collaborative partnerships called for in new accreditation standards. 

This study reviews existing partnership agreements between one school district and several institutions of higher education to review the partner’s understanding of the changes in educator preparation program accreditation. Interviews of deans and directors of eight college and university partners and several school district leaders in the district under study served as a primary data source to examine common purposes and to understand priorities of the partnerships. The interviews also served to gather perspectives and shared understandings regarding programs, issues, and processes.

The following research questions guided the study and the interviews: What do the IHEs and the LEA perceive as the purposes or goals for the partnership? What are the perceptions of the partners regarding the new CAEP emphasis on creating a “culture of evidence”?

The intention of this study was to add to the school-university partnership literature regarding current data sharing perspectives, both formal and informal, across one school district and its IHE partners. However, at a time when teacher preparation institutions and school district partners find themselves facing a national teacher shortage, there is a lack of common agreement regarding ways to assess teacher performance relative to student growth.