Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

COMMITTEE ON JOINT EDUCATION

Date:04/19/2006
ATTENDANCE
Time:07:39 AM to 08:39 AM
Bacon
Benefield
Place:HCR 0107
Evans
Jones
This Meeting was called to order by
King
Representative Merrifield
Larson
Massey
This Report was prepared by
McKinley
Jennifer Thomsen
Paccione
Penry
Pommer
Rose
Solano
Spence
Todd
Tupa
White
Williams
Merrifield
Windels
X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call
Bills Addressed: Action Taken:
Teacher Education-

07:40 AM

Matt Gianneschi, Chief Academic Officer at the Colorado Commission on Higher Education, and Dorothy Gotlieb, Deputy Commissioner at the Colorado Department of Education, introduced themselves. Ms. Gotlieb described the number of students enrolled in teacher preparation courses in Colorado institutions of higher education and the number of institutions offering teacher preparation. She noted that in the past four years, she has completed a site review of every preparation site in Colorado. She described the method by which the State Board of Education approves preparation programs. Ms. Gotlieb explained how the enactment of Senate Bill 99-152 has affected public institutions of higher education that provide teacher preparation. She said there has been great improvement in teacher preparation since the enactment of the bill. Mr. Gotlieb commented on partnerships between two-year and four-year institutions on higher education.

07:46 AM

Ms. Gotlieb continued, speaking to alternative education preparation programs and teacher-in-residence programs. She described two new programs for principal preparation recently approved by the State Board of Education. In response to a question from Representative King, Ms. Gotlieb described programs that use on-line learning. She responded to follow-up questions from Representative King regarding the content test and entrance into the teacher preparation program period. She clarified points regarding principal preparation.

07:51 AM

Ms. Gotlieb described the provisions of House Bill 04-1104 and explained how its provisions are being implemented. Representative Merrifield commented on a bill currently moving through the legislative process. Ms. Gotlieb noted that Colorado's standards in teacher preparation are among the highest in the nation. She explained the standards that must be met by teacher candidates from out of state. Ms. Gotlieb described a survey, noting that schools responded that beginning elementary school teachers showed improvement, especially in literacy and reading. She described what new teachers are expected to know.



07:56 AM

Ms. Gotlieb continued describing the expectations of new teachers. She said the survey showed that new candidates are well prepared, particularly in their content areas. She said the survey showed that alternative programs have an important place. Most new teachers, she said, are teaching in their content area. She noted that the survey revealed that new teachers are not necessarily aware of content standards in math and literacy unless it was in their content area.

08:00 AM

She continued describing the outcome of the survey. Ms. Gotlieb responded to a question from Representative King regarding pass rates on the Place and Praxis tests. She noted that Praxis is quite rigorous. Representative King asked about the Place test for foreign language. In response, Ms. Gotlieb described how and when those tests are modified.

08:03 AM

In response to a question from Representative Todd, Ms. Gotlieb described how and when the Place test came to be used. She described differences between the Place and Praxis tests. She commented on the test cut scores and how those scores were decided. Representative Solano asked if there is a limit on how many times a student can take the tests. Ms. Gotlieb said there is not, but that taking the test is costly.

08:07 AM

Ms. Gotlieb continued describing the results of the survey, noting some new teachers need work on consistency. She spoke to survey results regarding individuality and technology. Ms. Gotlieb described modifications that would be made to next year's survey.

08:11 AM

Dr. Gianneschi provided three handouts to the committee (Attachments A through C). He described the handouts, which include a recent report to the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (CCHE) on student enrollment. Dr. Gianneschi commented on the high quality of teacher preparation programs in the state. He said the curriculum is rigorous. Dr. Gianneschi said CCHE administers teacher professional development grants from Title II Part A of the federal "No Child Left Behind Act." He responded to questions about the grants from Representative Merrifield and described state partnerships.


08:16 AM

Dr. Gianneschi said the data in the report to the General Assembly was reported for the first time through the Student Unit Record Data System (SURDS). He explained that data is calculated on unduplicated headcounts and that all endorsement areas were considered together. He said there are 10,869 students enrolled in teacher preparation programs in the state, which represents a 15 percent enrollment growth from 2004 to 2005. Dr. Gianneschi described total enrollments by level - undergraduate, graduate, and post-baccalaureate.

08:21 AM

Dr. Gianneschi said the University of Northern Colorado continues to have the highest undergraduate enrollment in teacher preparation programs. Metropolitan State College of Denver has the largest post-baccalaureate enrollment. He noted that the University of Phoenix has experienced a large growth in enrollment in teacher preparation programs, as has Johnson and Whales. He described a program recently approved by the State Board of Education and CCHE that is fully on-line. Dr. Gianneschi responded to questions from Representative King regarding post-baccalaureate programs versus graduate programs. In response to a question from Senator Bacon, Dr. Gianneschi said that the costs of in-state institutions have increased considerably, but still are well below tuition at private institutions. Senator Bacon asked follow-up questions to which Dr. Gianneschi responded. He described how students at the University of Colorado Health Sciences center use College Opportunity Fund dollars.

08:28 AM

Dr. Gianneschi responded to a question from Representative King regarding the classification of 400-level graduate level courses. He described the demographics of education candidates, noting that females outnumber males three to one in teacher preparation programs. Dr. Gianneschi described enrollment in teacher preparation programs by endorsement area. He commented on concerns about the low number of students seeking endorsements in foreign language. The elementary education endorsement, he said, has by far the largest enrollment. He noted that there are four candidates for every elementary school in the state.

08:32 AM

Dr. Gianneschi commented on enrollment in mathematics. He said that 162 of 169 candidates for mathematics endorsements are math majors. In mathematics, he said, 42 percent of the candidates are male. He spoke to the limited number of students pursuing secondary science endorsements. He commented on the demographics of administrator and principal candidates.


08:37 AM

Dr. Gianneschi responded to a question from Representative Merrifield regarding the implementation of Phase II admission requirements. He said CCHE is working with the Rural School Caucus on the issue. He responded to follow-up questions from Representative Merrifield on the topic.

08:39 AM

The committee adjourned.