OATdb Archive - Sam Houston State University

OATdb Archive

2013 - 2014

Reading MED (Reading Specialist)

Goal

Quality And Effectiveness

Enhance the quality and effectiveness of the academic programs

Objective

Standards Of Proficiency

Graduate Reading Specialist candidates will meet or exceed the established standards of proficiency in the knowledge and skills required for Texas Reading Specialist Certification.

Indicator

Candidates' Reading Specialist TExES Scores

Candidates will successfully pass all domains of the Texas Reading Specialist certification examination, a standardized test developed by Educational Testing Service.

Criterion

TExES Reading Specialist Scores

It is expected by the department that 100% of students taking the Reading Specialist exam will pass with a score that exceeds the state mean and achieves a score of at least 80% on each of the four domains.

Finding

TExES Reading Specialist Score Results

100% of students in 2013-2014 that took the Reading Specialist exam passed with a score that exceeded the state mean and achieved a score of at least 80% on each of the four domains.

Action

Quality And Effectiveness

We will analyze our candidates’ results of the Texas Reading Specialist Certification Examination for the 2014-2015 academic year to determine if course content needs to be changed to increase the percentage in the domain areas.

Goal

International Reading Association Standards Proficiency

We use the knowledge and skills standards developed by the International Reading Association, the premier professional organization in the field, as the foundation to our program.

Objective

Reading Specialist Standards

The proficiencies of the International Reading Association were developed by leaders in the profession and represent the knowledge and skills base needed by Reading Specialists in the field.

Indicator

Portfolio Rubric

Candidates create a portfolio that demonstrates their proficiency in each standard through work samples and reflection. See attached rubric.

Criterion

Portfolio Scores

The reading faculty divide the standards among them (two faculty members per standard) to score the portfolios. Candidates must achieve at least a score of 1 (acceptable) on each standard.

Finding

Portfolio Scores

All students passed their portfolio evauation with a score of 1 (acceptable) or better.

Action

Portfolio Review

We will conduct a five year review of our master's program in 2014-2015 and plan to revise all rubrics. Also, we will have students work on their portfolio as a part of each class instead of waiting until the last semester. We believe that these two actions will improve the quality of our students' portfolios.

Update to previous cycle's plan for continuous improvement

While all of our candidates did well on the master’s portfolio the reading faculty realized that reaching a score of 3.7 out of a 4.0 was unrealistic in 2012-2013 and that the scoring criteria needed to be examined. .The grading criteria were changed to 2 (exceptional) and 1 (acceptable). All candidates did achieve at least a 1 (acceptable) for their portfolios this year. We are pleased with our result of all candidates not only passing the state reading specialist examination but scoring above the state mean in all of the four domains. We continue to hold this expectation for all candidates moving into the 2014-2015 year. In addition, faculty will continue implementing a virtual orientation for new students to cover portfolio requirements, and faculty will incorporate activities and assignments related to Domain IV throughout the sequence of courses.

Plan for continuous improvement The reading faculty will undertake a rigorous and evaluative stance in regards to revise the masters in reading course content as well as all scoring rubrics for the 2014-2015 academic year. The faculty will review all course content, including textbooks and syllabi, to ensure our courses are relevant to today’s candidates and meet the new standards of our program.