• Gallaudet University
• Professional Education Programs

Established in by an act of Congress in 1864, signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln, and with a teacher preparation program over a century old, Gallaudet University has a long history, many traditions, and significant accomplishments. While the university is singular in many ways, it is also vital, every-changing, and ever improving. Gallaudet has grown from a small college to a multifaceted university and the world’s greatest resource on deafness.

Gallaudet is the world’s only university purposefully established for the education of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. Gallaudet’s mission attracts students who prefer an educational experience where deafness is background and their educational experiences are foreground (Clark, 2002). In the fall of 2001, 1,852 undergraduate and graduate students were enrolled: 1,243 undergraduate, 517 graduate, and 92 sign language and professional studies students. International students currently comprise 11 percent of the student body.

Not only does Gallaudet have a unique population of deaf and hard-of-hearing students (virtually all of our undergraduate students are deaf or hard-of-hearing and many of the graduate students), it also has the world’s largest concentration of faculty, preparation programs, and students engaged in or embarking upon careers related to deafness. Their fields are largely school professions—administration, school counseling, psychology, school social work, and teaching. In addition to its professional and academic programs, Gallaudet also serves as a focal point for Deaf cultureand community in America, if not worldwide. The Gallaudet Research Institute is a leading center on research focused on deafness and related issues. The GRI conducts studies on the demographic and academic characteristics of the U.S. deaf and hard of hearing population, and makes funds available to support faculty, student, and staff research on topics considered priorities of Gallaudet University.

Gallaudet University offers exemplary educational programs to deaf and hard of hearing students at all learning levels. The Kendall Demonstration Elementary School (KDES) serves infants and their parents and continues service through the Eighth Grade. The Model Secondary School for the Deaf (MSSD) offers programs for students in Grades 9 through 12. Both of these schools are part of the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center (formerly known as Pre-College National Mission Programs) which has a federal mandate to develop and disseminate innovative curriculum, materials, and teaching strategies to schools and programs nationwide (Gallaudet Fast Facts, 2002). The earliest years of the school's history also are those of the university, for the lower school predated and inspired the establishment of Gallaudet. Kendall Demonstration Elementary School (KDES) serves students from birth through age fifteen, beginning with the Parent-infant Program and ending in grade eight. Kendall students reside in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Model Secondary School for the Deaf (MSSD) provides a comprehensive day and residential four-year high school program for students from various states and United States territories. Annual enrollment at the demonstration schools averages 140 students at KDES and 200 at MSSD. The National Mission Planning portion of the Clerc Center focus on research, demonstration, and dissemination in areas of national priority in deaf education. Those areas currently are: literacy for all children, education of families with deaf and hard of hearing children, and transition to the world of work and postsecondary study.

In both its academic and cultural roles, the University and its professional preparation programs are at the vortex of sweeping changes in education and civil rights for deaf people continuing to evolve from the Deaf-President-Now (DPN) protest at Gallaudet in 1988. Deaf candidates, as well as those interested in working in a deafness-related profession, come to Gallaudet with the goal of returning to their communities to become leaders in and advocates for Deaf learners. For many students from around the world, a professional education from Gallaudet provides the promise of enabling them and the Deaf students in their home countries to make the connections—to knowledge, to skills, to innovations, and to larger communities – that will enable them to break with what has often been a history of isolation and neglect.

Gallaudet’s Mission Statement, emphasizes a comprehensive and world-wide purpose through public service and advocacy. The University’s Vision Statement, drafted during the 1992-93 academic year, while paying tribute to Gallaudet’s heritage, also stresses themes of excellence, diversity, interconnectedness, and inclusive education that occurs in multiple settings. The Vision Statement has been accompanied by a strategic planning process (referred to as ARAP) that illustrates the University’s commitment to planned change through clearly established objectives and performance assessment of outcomes.

Nowhere are the university’s involvement in change and its dual role as an academic institution and community/cultural focus more apparent and energetic than the "Language Issue". This refers to a group of complex questions regarding the relationship of American Sign Language and English, bilingualism, literacy, diversity, and cultural pluralism. While these questions have extremely important implications for the education of students at Gallaudet, they are even more critical for the children with whom the school professionals who graduate from Gallaudet’s programs elsewhere, and school programs across the country are wrestling with questions regarding the development of language and literacy in children who are deaf and hard-of-hearing, and, in many instances, multilingual. Both the university’s Mission and its Vision Statement refer to Sign Language, English, and the diversity of people who are deaf and hard of hearing. In 1995, in response to issues of language at Gallaudet and in deaf education in general, the University adopted and promulgated a Sign Communication Policy that emphasizes direct sign communication that is inclusive as central to Gallaudet’s mission. During the 2001-2002 academic year, university-wide dialogue returned to discussions of core values that enabled us to reach a consensus on a Gallaudet Credo. The Credo reemphasizes the value of diversity and multiple perspectives, and connections between heritage and future. Gallaudet’s urban location in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. provides opportunities for diverse perspectives as well as connections to both tradition and innovation.

The Professional Unit of Gallaudet University consists of those programs that prepare individuals to support the education of deaf children (P-12) and their families (see Figure 1). The Unit includes the following programs: Undergraduate Teacher Preparation (with specializations in early childhood, elementary, secondary, and physical education); Graduate Teacher Preparation in Deafness (with specializations in elementary, secondary, multiple-disabilities, and family centered early education, and a certificate in advanced studies); Educational Administration and Supervision; School Counseling, School Psychology, and School Social Work. The Department of Educational Foundations and Research also offers a Technology Certificate program for experienced teachers.

All but two of the Unit programs are housed in the school of Graduate Schools and Professional Education (GSPP). The remaining programs, School Psychology and School Social Work, are housed in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Technology (CLAST). Professional Education Programs (PEP) across colleges share a common governance structure (PEP Unit) and a curriculum review committee (PEP-C). Two long-term PEP Planning Committees that support collaboration between PEP faculty, PEP administration, CLAST faculty in the liberal arts, and partners in P-12 school settings. These two committees focus on the critical areas of Diversity and Field Experiences, and Assessment and Technology. All of these structures for governance and planning have been newly created since the 2001 administrative restructuring described in the Governance section of this report.

Candidates enroll in Gallaudet’s professional education programs (both Initial and Advanced) because they want to work in educational settings with deaf and hard of hearing children and their families. All but one of Gallaudet’s professional education programs focus on deaf education settings. The exception to that is Gallaudet’s Initial Teacher Preparation Program (BA). The BA teacher preparation program enrolls only deaf undergraduates, and is a program that prepares teachers to work with all children (termed "general education"). Because we believe that good teaching for deaf children is rooted in an understanding of children, teaching, and learning, the focus in this program is on foundational and fundamental knowledge about teaching and learning. Graduates of our BA program in teacher education are eligible (once they have passed the Praxis certification test) to earn an initial teaching license from Washington, D.C. Inevitably those graduating candidates continue on to a graduate level program, usually in Deaf Education. At the conclusion of the MA in Deaf Education candidates become eligible for certification through the Council on the Education of Deaf.

• History of Development
• Summary of Conceptual Framework
• Shared Vision
• Coherence
• Professional Commitments and Dispositions
• Commitment to Diversity
• Commitment to Technology
• Commitment to Literacy and Communication
• Candidate Proficiencies Aligned with Professional Standards

The Gallaudet Professional Unit, with its diverse programs, has, in the past, had individual philosophies reflected in program conceptual frameworks. In 2000 a group of program leaders met to reexamine those frameworks (see Timeline for Development of Gallaudet’s Conceptual Framework). As we discussed the commitments, practices, understandings and perspectives shared among all Unit programs we found that we did, in fact, share a vision of professional education candidates at Gallaudet. We turned to faculty in the liberal arts, asking them what they felt were core elements of professional preparation at Gallaudet. Again, we found many commonalities. As we went on to formalize that shared vision in an explicit Conceptual Framework statement, we looked to two key sources: 1) Gallaudet’s Mission and Vision Statements (as well as other statements of Gallaudet’s commitments, such as the statement on Sign Communication at Gallaudet University); and 2) broader input from unit faculty, candidates, and partners in our professional community about what an education from Gallaudet signified for them. As a result of that input we revised the Conceptual Framework as we continued the feedback process in the next year. The shift from seeing the "connections" as continua rather than as dichotomies, for example, was one of the revisions made.

During the 2001-2002 academic year we discussed the draft Conceptual Framework with candidates and faculty at forums and PEP meetings, with school partners, at Task Force and Collaboration Council meetings. We also began to explicitly integrate the meaning of the Conceptual Framework into our curriculum though Program Knowledge Base Statements, syllabi and program and clinical handbooks. And we began to consider the implications of the Conceptual Framework for our unit assessment system as we described transition points and assessments. In keeping with our institutional mission, as well as the Conceptual Framework, the Department of Education on 2002 focused its assessment development efforts on sign communication and visual learning. They also developed a statement of "Valued Teacher Dispositions" based on the Conceptual Framework, and from that statement, developed some pilot assessments for candidate dispositions.

During the 2002 – 2003 we are continuing the task of articulating institutional standards by articulating the candidate outcomes (see PEP Institutional Standards) and related assessments (see Unit Assessment Plan) based on the Conceptual Framework.

Educating for Connections is the core of our Unit Conceptual Framework. Educating for Connections is rooted in a world that is increasingly interdependent. Interdependence is especially salient for Gallaudet, the world’s only university established for deaf and hard of hearing individuals, because Deaf people have for so long been keenly aware of their interdependence with one another across the world. Deaf individuals often see themselves as citizens of the world: Deaf students not only come to Gallaudet from around the world, but are also likely to travel to and work in international sites. Educating for Connections describes the reality of P-12 deaf students, 90% of whom are born to hearing families and, thereby, experience first-hand the connections between deaf and hearing worlds. And, Educating for Connections describes the desired outcomes of our programs: education through and for connections. It also describes the means through which we believe we can accomplish these outcomes: by linking multiple perspectives (local/national/global; Deaf/hearing ); by connecting tradition with innovation; and by uniting theory and practice and reflection and inquiry.

Conceptual Framework Principles. While there are many kinds of connections implied in Educating for Connections, five key commitments stand out:

• Deaf and Hearing Worlds
• Local, National, and Global Perspectives
• Tradition and Innovation
• Theory and Practice
• Reflection and Inquiry

Although these commitments may appear to the eye to be dichotomies, they are intended to be continua that represent the integration of the knowledge, skills and dispositions associated with the individual concepts.

Educating for Connections between Deaf World and Hearing World, and for best practices in General Education and Deaf Education. This phrase represents a view of deafness based in an understanding of Deaf people as part of a cultural and linguistic minority made up of people who are visual learners, rather than as people with a medical diagnosis that emphasizes "hearing impairment" (thus the term "Deaf-World") [Lane, H, Hoffmeister, R., Bahan, B.1996]. It also implies a mission to strengthen the bilingual/bicultural abilities, as individuals and as educators [Grosjean, 1992 ] of all of our graduates (deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing) through strong preparation in American Sign Language (ASL) and English literacy, as well as knowledge of other content areas (see, for example, ARAP target SSO 1.2 and 2.1, and Department of Education adapted INTASC Standards). This commitment emphasizes an awareness of the need to develop specialized practices for educating deaf children [(Bowe, Approaching Equality: Education of the Deaf, 1991; Council on Education of the Deaf, Standards for the Certification of Professionals Involved in the Education of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children and Youth, 2001], built on a foundation of core knowledge, skills, and dispositions (including an expectation for high achievement) that support learning for all students [see content standards; also Martin & Lytle, 2000]. And finally, this commitment describes the expectation that our candidates will demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to educate their P-12 students for connections between Deaf and Hearing worlds.

Educating For Connecting Local, National, and Global Perspectives. This phrase addresses the need to prepare candidates to reach beyond their individual (autobiographical), and even professional perspectives to learn from local perspectives—from the families and communities in which we are educating (Shonkoff & Phillips, From Neurons to Neighborhoods, 2000). Yet, in no sense is Gallaudet's program a local program—our students come from all states and many countries and graduates become educational innovators and leaders in diverse national and international venues. For these reasons, the program prepares utilizes with national and international perspectives brought by our candidates as part of course content. Experiences in "the field," in term, means internship, practicum, and student teaching experiences at local, national (in 25 states) and international (see Partners in Education). These experiences, together with curriculum that explicitly addresses varying ways of learning, prepares our candidates to understand and respond to diverse cultural perspectives (Christensen & Delgado, Deaf Plus: A Multicultural Perspective, 2000).

Educating for Connections to Tradition and Innovation. More than ever, the field of education is recognizing the need to be able to draw from a "continuum of teaching strategies" (Bredekamp & Copple, 1997) in order to support the learning and development of children. While many of these strategies are innovative, make use of recent technologies, and reflect new ways of thinking about learning, many, such as experiential, and family-centered learning, have long historical traditions. Through Unit programs, candidates learn foundational traditions upon which their field is based, as well as contemporary knowledge and skills that will enable them to use pedagogically sound methodologies. Furthermore, tradition and innovation in deaf education have been closely linked to Gallaudet since its founding in 1864 (Van Cleve, Deaf History Unveiled, 1993). Similarly, the university's teacher preparation program has been on the forefront of innovation in the field since it began in 1891 (Jones & Achtzehn, 1992). To succeed as innovators teachers must understand both the field's history (Moores, op. cit.) and contemporary innovations (Gibb & Dyches, Guide to Writing Quality Individualized Education Programs: What is Best for Students with Disabilities, 2000; Mahshie, op. cit.)

Educating for Connecting Theories and Practice. Our current understanding of the ways in which people learn through active construction of knowledge has made it clear that theory and practice cannot be separated (Schoen, !987, Richardson, Constructivist Teacher Education, 1997). In the structure, curriculum, and assessment of our programs we model constructivist approaches that engage students in interdisciplinary exploration, collaborative activity, and field-based opportunities for experiential learning, reflection, and self-examination (Kaufman, 1996; Kroll & LaBosky, 1996). We then expect our candidates to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to employ these strategies in schools.

Educating for Connecting the Curriculum to Continuous Learning Through Reflection and Inquiry. Education in general, and deaf education in particular, is rapidly changing in both context and content. Therefore, it is essential that candidates develop the dispositions needed to be a life-long learner of both content and pedagogy. Our programs prepare them to become reflective practitioners who continually evaluate how choices and actions affect students, parents, and other professionals, (Adler, S., The Reflective Practitioner and the Curriculum of Teacher Education, 1991) through seminar discussions, reflective writing, and portfolio assessments evaluated by self, peers and Instructors Paris & Ayres, Becoming Reflective Students and Teachers with Portfolios and Authentic Assessment, 1996).

Our conceptual framework, Educating for Connections, describes the vision and purpose of our programs for the preparation of professional educators, and is based on a knowledge bases derived from research, inquiry, theory, and the wisdom of practice. This vision of the professional educators that Gallaudet prepares is based in institutional commitments (see Conceptual Framework Alignment Chart- Figure 1). Together with our partners in Arts and Sciences, Academic Technology, and in P-12 school, we continue to design, implement, and evaluate curriculum, field experiences, and assessments that both model and support connected education.

The conceptual framework provides a coherent system for aligning curriculum, instruction, and field experiences (see Conceptual Framework Alignment Chart – Figure 2). Unit faculty gathered input from the sources identified above and distilled them to the key principle of Educating for Connections. From there they identified five major themes or philosophical commitments that cut across the programs in six departments. Because Gallaudet University is a visually strong environment, we also believed it desirable to develop a schematic to portray these commitments. During the spring of 2000, both the Narrative and the Visual depiction of Gallaudet’s Professional Education Unit Conceptual Framework were used with various members of the professional community as a tool for receiving feedback on both the Conceptual Framework and the strengths and weaknesses of our programs. During the summer of 2002 the Conceptual Framework was further strengthened visually through the efforts of a Gallaudet University student working in our Graphic Design Co-op. The student, Zaine Bujalic, has designed a logo that visually conveys the uniqueness of Gallaudet’s Professional Education Programs.

The Conceptual Framework has been was widely disseminated to students through student Program and Field Experience Handbooks, student orientation materials, and aligned with course objectives at the start of the 2001-2002 academic year (see syllabi). As Fall semester continues faculty are now reviewing course and programmatic assessment to examine their alignment with our Conceptual Framework. The Conceptual Framework has also been used as a foundational document in program revisions, including our development of a comprehensive Unit Assessment Plan. However the process of refining and strengthening our Conceptual Framework continues each time course, program, unit, and collaborative discussion occur.

Best Practices for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Learners. Gallaudet’s philosophical commitments have been operationalized through strategic planning that targets related candidate outcomes. Central to those outcomes is the goal of setting the national standard for best practices for deaf and hard of hearing learners (preschool through graduate school) through both our own practices, as well as those of our graduates. Best practices are prevalent throughout all professional education programs. In addition, unit candidates and faculty work closely with the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center. The Clerc Center also contributes to the improved education of deaf and hard of hearing students by working in partnership with others, including the unit faculty, to identify, develop, evaluate, disseminate, and encourage the use of innovative educational strategies, materials, and technologies.

Commitment to Diversity An understanding of the centrality of knowledge, skills and dispositions related to diversity is embedded in Gallaudet’s vision statement and strategic plans. For example, the Strategic Objective 1, which relates to academic achievement, includes targets on offering effective curricular and co-curricular programs that enable participation in a diverse society, and recruiting and retaining a diverse student population. The university has undertaken a number of initiatives to promote candidates understanding of and respect for diversity. For example, Gallaudet’s general studies include requirements for diversity-intensive courses. The Council on Undergraduate Education has also targeted Student Outcomes for University Studies that focus on and support an understanding of diversity. Another example is the Culture and Language Colloquium (CLC) for graduate students (with new faculty members also invited as part of their orientation). The CLC takes place during the three weeks before Fall semester and includes a two-credit class involving lectures and discussions related to Deaf Culture and its place in the matrix of American society. Through topics such as, "Culture within Culture," and "Contact: When Two Cultures Meet" students learn about the powerful impact of culture on the values and beliefs of individuals, about the uniqueness of Deaf Culture, and about the potential for cultural misunderstanding among members of various communities in a diverse society. The Center for Global Education (CGE) is yet another Gallaudet initiative that supports multicultural and global understanding through international internships, fellowships, and scholarships.

Commitment to Technology. Gallaudet has a strong commitment to using technology as a means of enhancing teaching and learning, for our candidates, as well as for P-12 learners. This commitment is emphasized through institutional standards (see SSO 1.4), supported through the resources of Academic Technology, as well as PEP program resources. Gallaudet students, faculty, and staff use instant messaging and email extensively for communication. Gallaudet has a strong commitment to using technology in its academic programs and services. More than 70 percent of students each semester take one or more courses that are enhanced by Gallaudet’s online learning system. Improvement of student technology skills is an important objective, and many resources are made available to support it. New students attend an orientation to technology, and during their First Year Seminar, students learn how to use Gallaudet’s online learning system and other technologies. Throughout their academic careers, students have access to many online tutorials and tests to develop their technology skills. For students interested in technology careers, majors in graphic arts, digital media, computer science, and computer information systems are available. At Gallaudet’s web portal, students can organize their calendars, course work, and access channels of information. The new Student Academic Center’s classrooms are technology-rich and specially designed for the visual needs of deaf and hard of hearing people. In the student lab, there are high-end video-editing rooms, as well as a video conferencing system for use on the Internet and Internet2 (Gallaudet Fast Facts, 2002).

Many professional education programs build from the strong technological foundation that Gallaudet provides. For example, the Dept of Educational Foundations and Research have offered an innovative certificate program on "Integrating Technology in the Classroom" which links candidates on-line with those working in schools. The FORUM project connects Unit faculty with teachers of both hearing and deaf students in seven public schools across the United States in order to receive training in integrating technology in their teaching and prepare projects. And the Department of Education has recently begun requiring a Technology Portfolio as part of its teacher preparation performance assessment. (other programs?)

Commitment to Literacy and Communication is supported in multiple ways, through policies, resources, curriculum, and performance assessment, at multiple points along the educational path of candidates. Strategic Planning Targets (SSO 1.1 and 1.5), Undergraduate Education Outcomes, and Clerc Center National Mission Priorities all focus on literacy and communication. Literacy is supported through a general studies program that includes a requirement for at least four writing-enhanced courses. In addition, English Works! provides tutorial support for writing. In the Unit, admission requirements require applicants to demonstrate proficiency in sign communication and English literacy, while courses, as well as programmatic portfolio development, strengthen candidates’ abilities to support literacy development in P-12 students.

Gallaudet’s candidates leave their professional preparation to enter the national and international arena. In addition, our certification programs are approved by Washington, D.C., which itself uses the standards of national professional organizations for program reviews. Therefore, national standards for professional preparation are of particular importance for our candidates. These standards include ACEI, CACREP, CEC, INTASC, NAEYC, NCTM, NSSA, NCTE, and NASP (among others). All of our programs have embraced these national standards for their value in supporting our graduates in the larger world. Alignment among institutional professional standards is evidence in course syllabi as well as Program Reviews (see Evidence Room).

September 24, 2002