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TWU Response to CTABC/SCSBC Professional Development Policy
TWU School of Education and TWU Extension are grateful for the opportunity to provide support for the new Professional Development Policy adopted by CTABC/SCSBC. We recognize the strong partnership we have had in the past with CTABC/SCSBC and are happy to prioritize the needs of your teachers and school leaders as we continue to develop our offerings for professional development, certificates and graduate degrees. The following three points are a description of how we see our programs responding to the implementation of your new policy.
1. Christian Perspectives Course Requirements
TWU has and will continue to offer a Graduate Certificate in Christian Education for those teachers hired by Christian Schools who have completed their teaching preparation in a secular institute. The following existing courses/descriptions are available and these courses can be revised to emphasize your policy requirements as needed and approved by our academic councils. However, because they were initially developed in response to CTABC/SCSBC needs, we do not anticipate that there would be significant revisions necessary.
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CTABC/SCSBC
ProD Policy Course # and Title
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TWU Course # and Title
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TWU Course Description
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Mode of Delivery Available
(see below for more detailed descriptions of delivery)
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101 – Intro to Biblical World-view
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EDUC 620 – Worldview Foundations for Education
(3 sm hrs)
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An introduction to two contrasting worldviews in which the believing community in the west must carry out its educational calling. The course will consist of four parts. The first will be a survey of the Biblical story in its progressive unfolding of God’s work of redemption. The second will articulate a Biblical worldview in its significance for education. The third will examine the modern/postmodern story as the cultural context in which we tackle academic leadership. Finally, the course will probe the complex issue of living in the Biblical story in the context of contemporary western culture. Attention will be given to the comprehensive demands of both stories and the resulting conflict. Participants will explore a Biblical resolution to this antithesis in the field of education.
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Summer Institute – Two Weeks
Online
School Based
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102/103 - Study of the Old/New Testament
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EDUC 569 - Curriculum and Pedagogy: Biblical Studies (3 sm hrs)
*Currently this course does not separate the Old and New Testament. TWU is open to discussions around the possibility of splitting this course into two separate sections.
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This course is designed to deepen teachers’ knowledge of the Bible and its use in Christian schools. Participants will consider how to teach Biblical Studies from grades K-12, how to use the Bible as a devotional book, and how the Bible gives direction to the learning-teaching process in all areas of the curriculum. The course emphasizes the canonical order of Scripture, beginning with the Torah, stressing God’s plan from creation to new creation. All sections of Scripture—Torah, history, wisdom literature, the (minor) prophets, the gospels and acts of the apostles, the epistles and the revelation of Jesus Christ—will be studied from the point of view of how these can be taught in the classroom. Participants will extrapolate from Scripture pedagogical guidelines for the teaching of Bible in order to see God’s power and glory revealed in His Word. They will develop scope and sequence charts, units, and learning activities for their own classrooms and/or schools.
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Summer Institute – One Week Full Days
School Based
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104 -Curriculum Design
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EDUC 623 - Developing Educational Programs
(3 sm hrs)
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Translating your school’s mission and external course requirements into educational programs and classroom units for Christian schools. Course content and assignments will be geared to curriculum leader responsibilities and/or teachers’ own classrooms.
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Summer Institute
Online
School Based
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105 -Pedagogy
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EDUC 540 - Christian Approaches on Teaching and Pedagogy
(3 sm hrs)
EDUC 545 - Assessing and Evaluating Student Learning
(3 sm hrs)
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This course will examine the theory and practice of teaching and pedagogy, including: the nature of teaching; a biblical framework for understanding and implementing teaching and learning; the classroom context for teaching and learning; the relationship between teaching and a teacher’s personal, professional, and spiritual growth; theories of instruction and distinctively Christian approaches to instruction; and a taxonomy of teaching strategies. The course will also include a review of educational aims and learning outcomes as well as the significance of learning style theories, multiple intelligences, and differentiated learning for daily classroom practice. These topics will be explored and discussed in terms of the relevance to classroom practice and the enhancement of teaching Christianly.
An understanding of assessment and its implementation as part of an integrally Christian, holistic approach to teaching and learning. Planning for assessment as an integral part of the curriculum planning. How the purpose of an assessment must fit with the assessment strategy employed. Distinctions between diagnostic assessment, assessment for learning, assessment of learning, and assessment as learning. The interpretation of assessment results in order to shape current and future teaching and learning activities. Clear and accurate communication of the results of assessment for particular audiences. This course will keep in the forefront how we can engage in assessment processes in a manner that invites and equips young people to become disciples of Christ in the world.
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Summer Institute: Two Weeks
Online
School Based
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106 - Cross Cultural Awareness
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EDUC 548 - Providing for Student Diversity in the Classroom
(3 sm hrs)
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An investigation of the importance of meeting the needs of diverse learners in regular classrooms, including physical, emotional/social, intellectual, cultural, moral, and religious diversities. How a biblical worldview provides a framework for teaching diverse learners. Teaching and learning strategies for learners with varied intellectual gifts, with special needs, and with diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Developing and implementing differentiated learning for students with different learning styles, aptitudes, and interests.
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Summer Institute: Two Weeks
School Based
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Modes of Delivery for Christian Perspectives Courses:
Summer Institute: Face to face delivery. 3 sm hr courses are offered during a two week period during the summer (usually in early July). Not all courses will be offered every summer, but TWU will ensure a rational rotation of all Christian Perspective Courses.
Online: Online instruction is offered on a semester basis – Fall or Spring. Online availability can be adjusted based on need. Some courses can be offered as a Directed Study online, some require a small cohort of 10 for implementation.
School Based: TWU is willing to arrange for a professor to deliver the course at a school - minimum requirement of 15 students, or minimum fee. The course could be offered in the summer, or throughout the year – evenings/weekends/pro-d days.
Cost of Courses:
Based on 2011 tuition rates - $235 per semester hour ($705 per 3 sm hr course)
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