Academics: School of Education

Training the Teachers of Tomorrow

Chowan University's School of Education produces esteemed teachers for elementary and secondary school careers year after year. Our graduates go on to inspire their own students into becoming the future leaders of tomorrow. Many enter directly into their careers upon graduation and licensing, while others go on to graduate school programs. All our students are committed to academic and teaching excellence, exemplified by the "Teacher of the Year" Awards they regularly receive. Chowan produces teachers who believe in the worth and dignity of every student and who have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to facilitate learning for all students in a diverse society.

Chowan instills within these future teachers the professional belief system that all students can learn. Our commitment to this powerful belief is what distinguishes Chowan among the other teacher education schools. Chowan realizes that you can not teach every student in the same way, so we arm our graduates with a wide repertoire of teaching strategies and skills in order to reach them all.

Preparing Effective Teachers
The School of Education has a comprehensive logistical plan established in accordance with national and state standards in order to ensure the effectiveness of our graduates. Known as the Conceptual Framework, our researched knowledge-based program starts the very minute students enter the Teacher Education program at Chowan. Our detailed plan of action lets students learn early on what needs to be done first, what should be accomplished throughout their student careers, what they will master by the time they graduate, and how they can most efficiently demonstrate all they have learned and done.

The philosophy of the Conceptual Framework, "Preparing Effective Teachers to Provide Quality Instruction for All Learners in a Diverse Society", encourages our graduates to adapt specific characteristics that will help them become better teachers. Students of the Teacher Education program will mold themselves into life-long learners even after they leave the campus, accomplished scholars who thrive in the pursuit of knowledge, reflective practitioners who can recognize their own weaknesses and work to remedy them, promising classroom managers fostering positive learning environments, and articulate communicators who master both oral and written abilities.

Build Your Resume the Right Way
Education graduates will have plenty of time and opportunities to practice honing these traits while they complete real world work experiences through partnerships with area public schools. Chowan has developed a long-term, meaningful relationship with schools in the area in order to respond more completely to the needs of the students that our graduates will come to serve. This kind of directly responsive approach to education is just one more way Chowan distinguishes itself among other education programs. Our top-notch teaching graduates learn a strong commitment to their students, but they also learn the art of involving parents, other teachers and the entire community.

Graduates gain experience in everyday teaching activities that go beyond the classroom, starting early in their college careers, which helps to build a strong resume through the years. First observing and later interacting, field experiences sequentially prepare students to be effective educators by the time they have a full semester student teaching internship in their senior year. The relationships developed through field work and internships not only help Chowan's students but also the students they impact, and many of these internship experiences turn into full-time careers. All education students will graduate with at least 250 hours of field work, while some students, such as the Elementary Education students, will have over 300. Whether it is tutoring reading to area second graders who are at risk of falling behind, judging the best science fair project among hundreds of potential winners, helping high school students with SAT preparation or even encouraging them to take college level courses as part of a Dual Enrollment initiative, our graduates help maintain the vital relationship between Chowan and the region we represent.

Technology as a Teaching Tool
In preparing the most effective teachers possible, Chowan emphasizes the use of the latest technologies and the application of these technologies as a productive teaching tool for the future students of our graduates. Through our TaskStream electronic portfolios, Education students adopt an individual information system that will be maintained for the entire time they attend Chowan, and students can choose to maintain this service after graduation. TaskStream assists students with resume and experience help, certification and licensing aid, as well as a wide array of assessment and evaluation programs. Chowan's internet-based Blackboard system allows students to access a vast amount of class information over the web, including things you might have missed in the classroom. The Carrie Savage Camp Hall, where the School of Education is located on campus, houses several state-of-the-art computer labs and our highly-advanced Smart Classrooms, with the latest in multimedia applications. Chowan's Whitaker Libraryhouses the Education department's Instructional Materials Center which contains current state-adopted textbooks in licensure areas, as well as curriculum guides, thematic activity books, children's big books, and professional books stressed by Chowan's education program for developing effective teachers.

Our Specialized Degree Programs
Graduates will leave Chowan with competencies in both specialized education and general areas of education. Whether you are a lateral entry student coming from another school, a beginning undergrad or a career teacher just out to broaden your intellectual scope, Chowan offers Bachelor of Science degrees in four distinct licensure areas- Elementary Education for grades Kindergarten through 6th, Physical Education for Kindergarten through 12th, Music Education for Kindergarten through 12th, and Social Studies Education for 9th grade through 12th. Through cooperation with the School of Arts and Sciences' various departments, specialized course curriculums train our PE, Music and Social Studies majors to become highly effective educators.

Elementary Education students are specifically trained through course work and field work to develop professional and leadership skills for use in elementary school settings and for advocating the needs of children. Not only will the graduates of Chowan's Physical Education program exemplify their motor skills in sports, games, activities and different levels of fitness, they will also master a variety of teaching methods to achieve student success regardless of a student's abilities and improve self-esteem in all their students. Music Education majors will not only learn the intricate art of musical performance, but they will also become knowledgeable in music history, literature and theory in order to be more effective in working with students, their families, schools, communities and more. Social Studies Educators will learn to develop concepts that will provide valid insights into the political, economic and social behaviors of America's diverse population. All students will be grounded in the general education areas, as well as the state-adopted North Carolina Standard Courses of Study.

Our State and National Accreditation
Before entering the School of Education, all students must submit an essay entitled "What Must I Do To Become An Effective Teacher?" and join the Students of the North Carolina Association of Educators (SNCAE). Prospective students must also take the PPST-Praxis I exam (the Pre-Professional Skills Test) or the CBT-Praxis I exam (Computer-Based Test) in order to show competence in the general education areas for admission into the School of Education, as established by the North Carolina State Board of Education. Some Praxis I exemptions may be made due to high ACT or SAT scores. Closer to graduation, Elementary Ed students will take the Praxis II Specialty Area Exam to show that they meet the high standards expected of a Chowan Education graduate. After successful completion of all course work, fieldwork experiences and internships, students will graduate and be eligible to apply for North Carolina Licensure.

Chowan is actually small enough to actively engage our students in advisement to make sure they achieve these goals. Faculty and advisors can periodically check on their students and the progress they are making, so the rate between students entering the Teacher Ed program and the number of students who actually graduate is very high. Their teachers can verify and help students to overcome any difficulties they may encounter. This can attest to the 100% passing rate of our elementary education majors taking the Praxis II exam this past year.

Chowan is also active under the North Carolina Model of Teacher Education Consortium (NCMTEC), which hopes to increase the number of highly qualified teachers by providing advice, professional development and financial assistance. This aid can even include tuition reimbursement for undergraduate courses and textbooks, as well as stipends for teacher assistants. NCMTEC also provides test preparation seminars for the Praxis I and II exams.

In order for Chowan to remain a strong competitor in the teacher education arena, Chowan evaluates and reassesses its School of Education program each year. To maintain this higher learning accountability, Chowan updates the Teacher Education program every semester to ensure the very best education for all students. All this makes Chowan University's School of Education program approved by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) and accredited under the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

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Academics: School of Education