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Mansfield responds to Teacher Preparation Report

MANSFIELD – A report by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) on teacher preparation programs gives Mansfield University mixed grades.

MU is one of seven of the 75 schools in Pennsylvania ranked in the report that earned three out of four stars in undergraduate secondary education teacher preparation. In undergraduate elementary teacher preparation, Mansfield earned one star.

In response to the report, Provost Peter Keller said, “Mansfield University is aware of the recently released National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) evaluation of teacher preparation in the United States. We are pleased to have our secondary teacher preparation program rated highly by NCTQ but have concerns about their evaluation process.”

“We believe that the analysis of Mansfield’s elementary teacher education program was incomplete and included noteworthy inaccuracies,” he said. “Mansfield is preparing a detailed response for NCTQ that points to evidence of quality and program strengths that were overlooked in its evaluation. Moreover, we have general concerns about the validity of the NCTQ methodology. Many US educators find NCTQ evaluation methodologies flawed.”

Keller added, “Pennsylvania has 93 colleges and universities that offer teacher education programs approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. The well-regarded National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) has accredited just 20 of these institutions. NCATE accreditation is awarded only after a rigorous review process that includes a self-study and an extensive on-site visit. Mansfield is proud to be among a relatively small group of NCATE accredited programs, which gives us confidence in the quality of our teacher education programs at all levels, including elementary education.”

For more on the study, go to the June 18 issue of InsideHigherEd.com.

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