Understanding and Using the 2003 NSTA Science Teacher Preparation Standards for NCATE Accreditation or State Approval

Excerpt

It is likely that if you are a science teacher educator at a college or university with a teacher preparation program, you will be involved at some point in your career in the accreditation process for the science teacher education program. The accreditation process can seem long, effortful, and even complicated at times. This brief article is the first in a series for the Journal of Science Teacher Education that is aimed at helping science teacher educators navigate the process of accreditation. The authors of this series are members of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) Audit Team whose primary responsibility is to evaluate program reports, assure alignment to the 2003 NSTA Science Teacher Preparation Standards, and determine NSTA program recognition. This first installment of the series provides an overview of accreditation and an introduction to understanding and using the 2003 NSTA Standards for Science Teacher Preparation to ensure that science teacher preparation programs are of high quality and successfully recognized by NSTA. Future installments of this accreditation series will focus on topics including: …