BSC School of Education
Receives NCATE Reaccreditation

( Bluefield)—Bluefield State College’s School of Education recently received continuing accreditation under the performance-oriented standards of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). NCATE is a nationally accrediting body for schools, colleges, and departments of education authorized by the U.S. Department of Education.

“Accreditation is a process for assessing and enhancing academic and educational quality through voluntary peer review,” noted Dr. Blevins, Dean/BSC School of Teacher Education. “The achievement of NCATE reaccreditation provides evidence of the quality of our program as measured by a national review. This recognition speaks to the high quality of our faculty, students, and graduates.”

NCATE currently accredits 623 institutions which produce two-thirds of the nation’s new teacher graduates each year. Accreditation assures students and employers that BSC’s School of Education continues to meet rigorous standards. Teacher candidates must have in-depth knowledge of subject matter that they plan to teach, as well as the skills necessary to convey this knowledge to students.

“NCATE accreditation is the ‘performance standard’ for teacher education,” added Dr. Albert Walker, BSC President. “It assures students and the world at large that the College has high quality programs staffed by well qualified faculty and that the students who graduate from these programs are fully prepared to be excellent teachers.”

While visiting BSC, members of the NCATE accreditation team interviewed students, faculty, administrators and school-based partners. Additionally, they visited classrooms and examined campus facilities, including information technology resources and library, to ensure NCATE standards are being met.

In the past decade, NCATE has moved from an accreditation system that focused on curriculum and what teacher candidates were offered, to a data-driven, performance-based system dedicated to determining what candidates know and are able to do. The new system expects teacher preparation institutions to provide compelling evidence of candidate knowledge and skill in the classroom. Multiple types of performance assessment are expected throughout the program of study. Candidate qualifications are assessed upon entry, and candidate competence is assessed throughout the program as well as prior to student teaching/internship work, and before completion of the program.

BSC’s School of Education has held NCATE accreditation on a continuous basis since 1991.

April 24, 2006