In addition, the college houses thirteen centers and labs, among them the Center for Teacher Education, the Child Development Lab School with NAEYC accreditation, the Center for Instructional Technology Solutions in Industry and Education, the TV Learning Lab, the Center for Information Technology Impacts on Children, Youth, and Families, the Center for Gerontology, and the Training and Technical Assistance Center for Disabilities.
At the time of the last NCATE review in 1998, the former College of Education, established in 1971, had almost completed a merger begun in 1996 with the College of Human Resources. In 1973 we received both State Approved Program status and NCATE accreditation, which has continued successfully. The College of Education brought to that merger degree authorizations for the bachelors, masters, educational specialist, and doctoral levels for both Ed.D and Ph.D. Because the colleges had shared values, the transition progressed smoothly.
Professional Education Unit
The Professional Education Unit is comprised primarily of the two departments focused on education, i.e. the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies and the Department of Teaching and Learning. Additionally, there are undergraduate linkages to agricultural education in the College of Agriculture and Life Science; early childhood education in the Department of Human Development; math education, second languages education, and music education in the College of Arts and Sciences. Faculty in those programs teach some education courses but have their academic home outside the Unit.
The broad mission of the Professional Education Unit at Virginia Tech is to promote and support learning for all members of its educational community. We are dedicated to preparing educators who know how to facilitate learning, who care about learners, who engage in inquiry to solve educational problems, and who see their professional development as a life-long process in an environment where "learning for all" members of the education community can flourish. Moreover, through scholarly research and outreach, our faculty aim to inform schools, schooling and the profession about vital issues regarding practice, policy, and educational theory.
The Unit is a member of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) and is accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). The School Counseling program is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).
All initial licensure programs, except one, are located on the Blacksburg campus. Designed specifically for career switchers, a math and science graduate licensure program is located at the Northern Virginia Graduate Center in Falls Church. That program, however, has the same requirements as the campus programs and submitted national program reviews with the campus programs and passed with national recognition. Advanced programs are offered at several off campus sites, including Roanoke, Abingdon, Carroll County, Virginia Beach, and Richmond. Typically these programs are offered to a particular cohort of students for a specified period of time. They are often created in response to a request from one or more school divisions in the area. The university’s graduate higher education centers in Falls Church, Virginia Beach, and Roanoke allow the University to serve the graduate education needs in these areas of the state. Advanced education programs offered at the Falls Church center includes masters and doctoral levels preparation programs for reading specialist, counseling, and principal preparation and the advanced education of teachers and other educational professionals. Programs at the Center are staffed by seven resident faculty and are supported by campus faculty and adjuncts when appropriate. The center in the Hampton Roads area serves cohorts of candidates pursuing the doctorate in educational administration. The Roanoke center offers intact cohort master’s degree programs. The degree programs at these off campus sites are the same as those offered on campus and are taught by Blacksburg faculty who travel to the site; or, in the case of Northern Virginia, faculty who are assigned to that site.
A chart of programs (click here) provides an overview of initial and advanced programs in the unit as they relate to degree levels. The chart of initial programs shows the kinds and levels of degrees candidates earn as well as the number of candidates completing the programs in the last four years and the projected number for this year. The chart also shows the national program review status of those programs having national reviews. The chart also shows other advanced programs available to school personnel; however, the programs do not necessarily have their own degree authorization.
Distance Education
The Unit is engaged in several distance education initiatives. Because of the severe shortage of special education teachers in Virginia, a series of courses required for provisional licensure were developed for the Web. Likewise, a series of nine one-hour web-based modules were developed by Career and Technical Education faculty to upgrade the preparation of provisionally licensed teachers throughout the state. These courses do not comprise approved licensure programs, but are instead designed to assist school divisions train unprepared teachers already in classrooms. The online Instructional Technology master's degree (ITMA) was originally designed to teach Virginia K-12 educators how to use technology effectively in their classrooms. Since its inception in 1998, this program has expanded to include national and international educators from a wide variety of backgrounds, including the private sector and government branches. The program currently provides approximately 150 educators the opportunity to incorporate technology effectively in instruction, and also provides new career opportunities in education. The physical education online master’s program for experienced, licensed physical education teachers is in its last semester and will finish when this cohort graduates in May.
Significant Accomplishments from 1998-2003
During the past five years, the majority of our initial licensure programs moved to the graduate level. Having graduate programs has enabled us to attract a variety of candidates to our programs. It also enables the programs to function as cohorts, which enhances the sense of community and collegiality among candidates within a program.
The Career and Technical Education program continued to be nationally ranked. In 1995, the program was ranked third in the nation by U.S. News and World Report. In 1997, fourth, and since that time sixth, until April 2002, they moved to fifth.
The publication of Black
Issues in Higher Education, Vol. 16, No. 10 released on July 22, 1999
ranked Virginia Tech third in highest in African-American doctoral degrees.
The majority of the Virginia Tech African-American doctoral candidates
came from Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. Since its inception in
1971, the K-12 Educational Leadership and Policy Studies program alone has
conferred over 800 Doctoral degrees. Almost 60% of the Doctoral degrees conferred
were received by females and African-Americans. Specifically, 290 White females, 87 African-American females, 77
African-American males, and 11 foreign nationals received their doctoral degrees
through the Educational Leadership and Policy Studies program. That department
received the Exemplary Department Award in 2000.
The University is currently being reorganized with the College of Human Sciences and Education (renamed effective December 2002) to be merged with arts and humanities departments remaining from the split of the old College of Arts & Sciences. That merger will be effective on July 1, 2003. As part of the current concept, there will be a School of Education within the new merged college. A school will allow the education unit to become more clearly defined within the college and university structures and give education more visibility among our external constituents. We are currently designing a structure for the school of education. In the new school, an emphasis on math, science, and technology will reflect the agenda set forth in the university’s strategic plan. Virginia Tech has been a major producer of math and science teachers. In the last four years, 121 science teachers (some with multiple endorsements) and 102 mathematics teachers were graduated. Currently 24 science candidates and 27 mathematics candidates are student teaching. These are significant numbers compared to other higher education institutions in Virginia.
