Welcome NC Teacher Cadets!
Introduction:
Students who have completed the NC Teacher Cadet I and II courses with a grade of B or higher may submit their portfolio to seek credit by examination for EDUC 1100 (Introduction to Teaching and Technology) at Catawba College. To do so, students must complete the following steps:
- Apply and gain acceptance to Catawba College.
- Submit the NC Teacher Cadet Portfolio and high school transcript (to confirm grades of B or higher in NC Teacher Cadet I and II) on this page below.
- Must be submitted by the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment at Catawba College.
- Acceptable formats include PDF, Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or Google Docs.
- Email the School of Education office to verify submission of the portfolio.
- Once notified by the School of Education, submit a credit by examination form to the Business Office. This form will be provided to the student after submission of the portfolio. Please note that credit by examination requires a fee. Students meeting the criteria for credit (B or higher in NC Teacher Cadet I and II and 80% or higher rubric score for the portfolio) will receive reimbursement for this fee.
Students with questions, regarding this process should email the School of Education office. NC Teacher Cadet and public school partners should address questions to Dr. Kim Creamer, Dean of the School of Education.
Catawba College School of Education looks forward to welcoming NC Teacher Cadets to our campus and our program. The rubric for assessment of the portfolio follows.
The rubric that follows is designed to evaluate student portfolios completed during NC Teacher Cadet coursework and to assess students' understanding and skills across multiple objectives related to teaching, school structure, curriculum, educational technology, and professional requirements, as required by EDUC 1100. Each criterion is assessed on a scale from "Needs Improvement (1)" to "Excellent (4)," with a total score of 80% or higher required to receive credit by examination for EDUC 1100.
Please note: Students should also refer to the “Portfolio Assignments to Meet Rubric Criteria” document to find a table listing the objectives found in the rubric with possible assignments from the NC Teacher Cadet portfolios that may be used to fulfill the objectives. As assignments in NC Teacher Cadet courses may vary, students should consult the NC Teacher Cadet instructor about assignments in relation to the Catawba College rubric. NC Teacher Cadet instructors may consult the Catawba College School of Education (mcartner19@catawba.edu or kcreamer14@catawba.edu) for clarification, as needed.
It is the responsibility of the student seeking credit by exam to ensure the assignments in the portfolio address the criteria listed for each objective. The student may, for example, need to add a paragraph to a journal entry or essay to address a particular objective listed in the Catawba College rubric. Examples may include historical and societal issues in education, use of educational technology, state requirements for entry to Educator Preparation Programs, and/or state licensure requirements. The student may also elect to submit an additional essay or assignment to address any objective(s) the student determines are not fully addressed by the existing portfolio assignments to receive credit by examination. The student may upload any additional work with the portfolio as an appendix at the end of the portfolio.
Objective: Understanding the Nature of Teaching and the Teaching Profession
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
Describe the nature of effective teaching |
Provides comprehensive and insightful descriptions of effective teaching, including specific examples |
Provides detailed descriptions of effective teaching with some examples |
Provides basic descriptions of effective teaching with limited examples |
Provides vague or incomplete descriptions of effective teaching |
|
Reflect on life goals and relate them to teaching |
Thoroughly reflects on personal life goals and clearly relates them to the benefits and challenges of teaching |
Reflects on life goals and relates them to teaching with minor gaps in clarity |
Reflects on life goals but only partially relates them to teaching |
Limited reflection on life goals and weak or unclear relation to teaching |
|
Name and describe NC Professional Teaching Standards; relate them to the professional duties of teachers. |
Provides detailed descriptions of professional duties with clear references to standards |
Describes professional duties with adequate reference to standards |
Describes basic professional duties with limited reference to standards |
Inadequate description of professional duties and lacks reference to standards |
|
Recognize and describe professional obligations (NC Code of Ethics) |
Accurately recognizes and thoroughly describes professional obligations with clear understanding |
Recognizes and describes professional obligations with minor inaccuracies |
Recognizes but provides limited descriptions of professional obligations |
Fails to recognize or describe professional obligations accurately |
|
Explore professional resources |
Thoroughly explores and evaluates a wide range of professional resources |
Adequately explores and evaluates several professional resources |
Explores some professional resources but lacks evaluation |
Limited exploration of professional resources |
Objective: Understanding the Organizational Structure of NC Public Schools
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
Describe roles of public school personnel |
Accurately and thoroughly describes roles at all levels with examples |
Accurately describes roles at most levels with some examples |
Describes basic roles with few examples |
Inaccurate or incomplete description of roles |
|
Recognize and use educational acronyms and professional vocabulary |
Accurately uses a wide range of educational acronyms and vocabulary |
Uses educational acronyms and vocabulary with minor errors |
Uses some acronyms and vocabulary but demonstrates limited understanding |
Fails to use key acronyms or vocabulary |
Objective: Understanding the Nature of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
Describe relationships among curriculum, instruction, and assessment |
Provides a thorough and clear description with detailed examples |
Provides a detailed description with some examples |
Provides a basic description with limited examples |
Provides a vague or incomplete description |
|
Locate standardized curricula (i.e., use of the NCSCOS) |
Accurately locates and explains multiple standardized curricula |
Locates and explains several standardized curricula |
Locates some standardized curricula with basic explanations |
Fails to locate or explain standardized curricula accurately |
|
Discuss advantages/disadvantages of standardized curricula |
Provides a thorough discussion with balanced perspectives and detailed examples |
Provides a detailed discussion with some examples |
Provides a basic discussion with limited examples |
Provides a vague or incomplete discussion |
|
Compare/contrast methods of instruction |
Accurately compares and contrasts with detailed examples |
Adequately compares and contrasts with some examples |
Provides basic comparison/contrast with few examples |
Inaccurate or incomplete comparison/contrast |
|
Recognize influence of learning theory (ex: Vygotsky, Gardner, Piaget) |
Thoroughly recognizes and describes the influence with specific examples |
Recognizes and describes the influence with some examples |
Recognizes influence but provides limited descriptions |
Fails to recognize or describe influence accurately |
|
Locate and implement high-quality (research-verified, evidence-based) instructional resources |
Accurately locates and implements a variety of high-quality resources |
Locates and implements several resources |
Locates some resources but with limited implementation |
Fails to locate or implement high-quality resources |
Objective: Understanding Major Legal, Historical, & Societal Issues in K-12 Schools
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
Identify major tension points in history and describe the historical or societal issue(s) that caused the tension point. |
Thoroughly identifies and explains major tension points with specific examples |
Identifies and explains most tension points with some examples |
Identifies basic tension points with limited explanations |
Fails to identify or explain major tension points accurately |
|
Identify major Supreme Court decisions and describe their impact on education. |
Accurately identifies and explains major decisions with detailed examples |
Identifies and explains most decisions with some examples |
Identifies some decisions with basic explanations |
Fails to identify or explain major decisions accurately |
Objective: Understanding the Appropriate Use of Educational Technology
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
Identify and describe instructional uses of technology |
Thoroughly identifies and describes a variety of instructional uses with specific examples |
Identifies and describes several instructional uses with some examples |
Identifies some instructional uses with basic descriptions |
Fails to identify or describe instructional uses accurately |
|
Examine and implement educational software/web resources/technological tools |
Thoroughly examines and implements high-quality resources with clear criteria |
Examines/implements several resources with adequate criteria |
Examines/implements some resources with basic criteria |
Fails to examine/implement resources accurately |
|
Demonstrate awareness of the NC Digital Learning Competencies |
Demonstrates significant awareness with specific examples |
Demonstrates good progress with some examples |
Demonstrates basic progress with limited examples |
Limited or no progress towards mastery |
|
Collect and analyze educational data |
Accurately collects and thoroughly analyzes data with clear insights |
Collects and analyzes data with good insights |
Collects some data with basic analysis |
Fails to collect or analyze data accurately |
Objective: Understanding the Requirements for Entering the Teaching Profession
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
List and explain state requirements for entry into an educator preparation program |
Accurately lists and explains all requirements with detailed understanding |
Lists and explains most requirements with minor gaps |
Lists basic requirements with limited understanding |
Fails to list or explain requirements accurately |
|
List and explain licensure certification requirements |
Accurately lists and explains all requirements with detailed understanding |
Lists and explains most requirements with minor gaps |
Lists basic requirements with limited understanding |
Fails to list or explain requirements accurately |
Objective: Demonstrating Effective Communication Skills and Professionalism
| Criteria | Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Satisfactory (2) | Needs Improvement (1) |
|
Demonstrate effective written communication skills |
Demonstrates exceptional skills; engaging and clear |
Demonstrates good skills; mostly clear and engaging |
Demonstrates basic skills; somewhat clear and engaging |
Demonstrates poor skills; unclear and not engaging |
|
Demonstrate professionalism in content and presentation of assignments |
Assignments demonstrate exceptional effort with minimal errors in mechanics, spelling, and/or grammar |
Assignments demonstrate good effort with a few errors in mechanics, spelling, and/or grammar |
Assignments demonstrate basic effort with some errors in mechanics, spelling, and grammar |
Assignments fail to demonstrate effort with numerous errors in mechanics, spelling, and grammar |
Objective: Understanding the Nature of Teaching and the Teaching Profession
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
Describe the nature of effective teaching |
Essays: Best/worst experience, overall experience, change/improve experience, meanings/messages
List of Good Ideas |
|
Reflect on life goals and relate them to teaching |
Essays: Best/worst experience, overall experience, change/improve experience, meanings/messages |
|
Name and describe NC Professional Teaching Standards and relate them to the professional duties of teachers. |
Essays: Best/worst experience, overall experience, change/improve experience, meanings/messages* *May need to add as a component in the above essays (ex: Cite the professional teaching standard that relates to the practices(s) and duties discussed in the essays) and/or include as an additional assignment. |
|
Recognize and describe professional obligations (NC Code of Ethics) |
Essays: Best/worst experience, overall experience, change/improve experience, meanings/messages* *May need to add as a component in the above essays (ex: Cite the NC Code of Ethics as it relates to the professional obligations discussed in the essays) and/or include as an additional assignment. |
|
Explore professional resources |
Lesson plans Student work samples and accompanying responses (Cite resources used to plan the lessons and create the assignments included as work samples. Students may also include a bibliography of example resources used throughout their NC Teacher Cadet program.) |
Objective: Understanding the Organizational Structure of NC Public Schools
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
Describe roles of public-school personnel |
Profile assignments: School, Teacher, and Class |
|
Recognize and use educational acronyms and professional vocabulary |
Essays: Best/worst experience, overall experience, change/improve experience, meanings/messages* *May need to add this component in the above essays |
Objective: Understanding the Nature of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
Describe relationships among curriculum, instruction, and assessment |
Lesson Plans Lesson Plan Reflections |
|
Locate standardized curricula (i.e., use of the NCSCOS) |
Lesson Plans Lesson Plan Reflections |
|
Discuss advantages/disadvantages of standardized curricula |
Lesson Plan Reflections Student Work Samples and accompanying responses |
|
Compare/contrast methods of instruction |
Lesson Plan Reflections Essays: Overall experience and change/improve experience essays |
|
Recognize influence of learning theory (ex: Vygotsky, Gardner, Piaget) |
Lesson Plan Reflections |
|
Locate and implement high-quality (research-verified, evidence-based) instructional resources |
Lesson plans Student work samples and accompanying responses (Cite resources used to plan the lessons and create the assignments included as work samples.) |
Objective: Understanding Major Legal, Historical, & Societal Issues in K-12 Schools
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
Identify major tension points in history and describe the historical or societal issue(s) that caused the tension point. |
Journal entry – Students may address both criteria as a journal entry (combined or separate). Students should identify and describe at least 2 major tension points. |
|
Identify major Supreme Court decisions and describe their impact on education. |
Journal entry – Students may address both criteria as a journal entry (combined or separate). Students should identify and describe at least 2 major Supreme Court decisions. |
Objective: Understanding the Appropriate Use of Educational Technology
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
Identify and describe instructional uses of technology |
Lesson Plans Lesson Plan Reflections |
|
Examine and implement educational software/web resources/technological tools |
Lesson Plans Lesson Plan Reflections |
|
Demonstrate awareness of the NC Digital Learning Competencies (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/districts-schools/districts-schools-support/digital-teaching-and-learning/digital-teaching-learning-standards) |
Lesson Plans Lesson Plan Reflections Journal Entry |
|
Collect and analyze educational data |
Student Work Samples and accompanying responses |
Objective: Understanding the Requirements for Entering the Teaching Profession
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
List and explain state requirements for entry into an educator preparation program (ex: GPA, Praxis CORE exam) |
Journal entry (can be combined with objective criteria below)
|
|
List and explain licensure certification requirements (ex: GPA, licensure exams for desired discipline/grade level) |
Journal entry (can be combined with objective criteria above)
|
Objective: Demonstrating Effective Communication Skills and Professionalism
| Criteria | Possible portfolio assignment to meet criteria |
|---|---|
|
Demonstrate effective written communication skills |
All portfolio assignments |
|
Demonstrate professionalism in content and presentation of assignments |
All portfolio assignments |
Portfolio Submission
NC Teacher Cadet students applying to Catawba College may submit portfolios for "credit by exam" below.
* - Required
