Teacher Preparation Program Accountability:
Oklahoma

Analysis of Oklahoma's policies

Oklahoma's approval process for its traditional and alternate route teacher preparation programs does not hold programs accountable for the quality of the teachers they produce.

Most importantly, Oklahoma does not collect or report data that connect student achievement gains to teacher preparation programs.

The state collects some objective, meaningful data to measure the performance of teacher preparation programs, but it does not apply any transparent, measurable criteria for conferring program approval. Oklahoma collects programs' annual summary licensure test pass rates (80 percent of program completers must pass their licensure exams). However, the 80 percent pass-rate standard, while common among many states, sets the bar quite low and is not a meaningful measure of program performance. The state reports on aggregate certification exam pass rates by subject area, program and program status and it surveys first-year teachers and their principals to rate the first-year teachers' preparedness. In addition, programs are required to report on candidates' results on assessments of reading instruction in elementary, early childhood education and special education and to provide candidates and publicly report on supply and demand information on teacher employment.

The state's website does include a report card that allows the public to review and compare traditional teacher preparation program pass rates.

In Oklahoma, national accreditation is required for program approval.

Citation

Oklahoma Administrative Code 712:10-5-1 OEQA Administrative Rules: 218:10-5 Title II State Reports https://title2.ed.gov Annual Reports http://www.ok.gov/oeqa/About_OEQA/Annual_and_State_Reports/index.html http://www.ok.gov/octp/Educator_Preparation/Accreditation_Accountability/index.html www.caepnet.org

Recommendations for Oklahoma

Collect data that connect student achievement gains to teacher preparation programs. 
As one way to measure whether programs are producing effective classroom teachers, Oklahoma should consider the academic achievement gains of students taught by programs' graduates, averaged over the first three years of teaching. Data that are aggregated to the institution (e.g., combining elementary and secondary programs) rather than disaggregated to the specific preparation program are not useful for accountability purposes.  Such aggregation can mask significant differences in performance among programs.

Gather other meaningful data that reflect program performance. 
Although measures of student growth are an important indicator of program effectiveness, they cannot be the sole measure of program quality for several reasons, including the fact that many programs may have graduates whose students do not take standardized tests. The accountability system must therefore include other objective measures that show how well programs are preparing teachers for the classroom, such as: 
1.    Satisfaction ratings by school principals and teacher supervisors of programs' student teachers, using a standardized form to permit program comparison
2.    Average raw scores of teacher candidates on licensing tests, including academic proficiency, subject matter and professional knowledge tests
3.    Number of times, on average, it takes teacher candidates to pass licensing tests
4.    Five-year retention rates of graduates in the teaching profession.

Establish the minimum standard of performance for each category of data. 
Merely collecting the types of data described above is insufficient for accountability purposes. The next and perhaps more critical step is for the state to establish precise minimum standards for teacher preparation program performance for each category of data. Oklahoma should be mindful of setting rigorous standards for program performance, as its current requirement that 80 percent of program completers must pass their licensing exams is too low a bar. Programs should be held accountable for meeting rigorous standards, and there should be consequences for failing to do so, including loss of program approval.

Maintain full authority over the process for approving teacher preparation programs. 
Oklahoma should not cede its authority and must ensure that it is the state that considers the evidence of program performance and makes the decision about whether programs should continue to be authorized to prepare teachers.

State response to our analysis

Oklahoma was helpful in providing NCTQ with facts that enhanced this analysis.

The state also asserted that Oklahoma's educator preparation programs are held accountable via rigorous evidence-based accreditation standards that include candidates' impact on student learning.