MAE Program Earns National Accreditation
Truman’s Master of Arts in Education (MAE) program has received full accreditation for the next seven years through the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). The Truman MAE program was an early adopter of the new CAEP standards and one of the first educator preparation programs in the country to receive accreditation.
The CAEP standards reflect the voice of the education field on what makes a quality teacher. CAEP accreditation ensures there is solid evidence Truman’s graduates are competent and caring, and that the University’s staff has the capacity to create a culture of continuous improvement.
“Having a degree from a nationally accredited program speaks to the quality of the education and thus students who graduate from Truman’s program are well prepared to teach effectively - from the first day - which is one of the most important factors for their success,” said Janet Gooch, dean of the School of Health Sciences and Education. “Employers and other institutions recognize the high standards associated with a degree from a nationally accredited teacher preparation program.”
A number of significant changes were made within the MAE program to help prepare for CAEP accreditation. The MAE program now has an assessment team with a charge to use data generated from a series of state mandated and program specific assessments to guide curricular changes and program improvement efforts. A suite of state mandated assessments were piloted and implemented. Changes were made to the core MAE curriculum to better align to the new state required assessments. To enhance the program’s work in collaboration with school-based partners, the Field Experience Advisory Board, consisting of program graduates, mentor teachers, principals and superintendents, was developed and implemented.
“The success of our accreditation was very much a team effort,” said Pete Kelly, the education chair and associate dean of the School of Health Sciences and Education. “Virtually all faculty and staff in the MAE were involved in the process. I strongly believe our efforts have yielded improvements in the quality of our teacher preparation.”
Originally created as a normal school designed specifically to produce professional teachers, Truman has deep roots in educator preparation. Currently, the Department of Education’s 10 full-time and 11 part-time faculty members graduate roughly 100 MAE students annually. All MAE students complete an internship and conduct research, and they all meet every state exit standard by the time they graduate.
Students interested in the MAE must apply for entry into the program. Once admitted, they receive additional coursework in the major area as well as coursework specific to the MAE. Students can get their undergraduate degrees in any number of subjects if they plan on pursing elementary or special education at the master’s level. Those that specialize in the content areas of history, music, science, math, English or a foreign language obtain undergraduate degrees in those disciplines prior to enrolling in the MAE program.
More information about Truman’s MAE program can be found at truman.edu/majors-programs/academic-departments/about-the-education-department.
