What is INTASC?   It's the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium, a group that identified 10 principles of quality teaching.

What is NCATE?  It's the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, our national accrediting body for teacher education. 

What is DPS?  It's the Division of Professional Standards, part of the Indiana Department of Education.  The DPS was formerly called the IPSB:  Indiana Professional Standards Board. 

  Why are we telling you this?

Well, NCATE and the DPS have adopted INTASC principles for accrediting all teacher education programs in the state of Indiana.

What are INTASC principles?

There are 10 principles.  (See below.)

Under each principle there are 8-15 standards divided into Knowledge standards, Disposition standards, and Performance standards.
 

• Effective teachers need to know a lot about each of the 10 areas (principles) below.

• Effective teachers also need to have the right attitudes and dispositions toward and in each of the 10 areas.

• And effective teachers need to show evidence that they can perform at effective levels in each of the 10 areas.

...
Here are the 10 INTASC Principles under which the knowledge, disposition and performance standards fit.  (Stop in the Education Office if you want to see all the standards under each principle.)
 
 Principle #1:  The teacher understands the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) he or she teachers and can create learning experiences that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful for students.

 Principle #2:  The teacher understands how children learn and develop, and can provide learning opportunities that support their intellectual, social and personal development.

 Principle #3:  The teacher understands how students differ in their approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners.

 Principle #4:  The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students' development of critical thinking, problem solving and performance skills.

 Principle #5:  The teacher uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.

 Principle #6:  The teacher uses knowledge of effective verbal, nonverbal, and media communication techniques to foster active inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction in the classroom.

 Principle #7:  The teacher plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals.

 Principle #8:  The teacher understands and uses formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and ensure the continuous intellectual, social and physical development of the learner.

 Principle #9:  The teacher is a reflective practitioner who continually evaluates the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community) and who actively seeks out opportunities to grow professionally.

 Principle #10:  The teacher fosters relationships with school colleagues, parents, and agencies in the larger community to support students' learning and well-being.

Click here for a one-page Word file listing these 10 INTASC Principles.
Click here for a PDF document on INTASC from the Council of Chief State School Officials.

These INTASC principles and the standards that go with them can be neatly aligned with the NCATE standards dealing with

• a university's or college's design of the education program,

• standards met by the candidates in the program

• and the faculty teaching them,

• and standards for the wider institutional support of the education program.

Additionally, these INTASC principles and standards line up neatly with the HU Education Department's conceptual framework:  Teacher as Effective Steward.   At HU, we believe teachers should be responsible and effective stewards of

• knowledge

• learner development

• learning environments

• instruction

A teacher needs a well-rounded background of content and pedagogical knowledge, a service- and responsibility-oriented disposition, and multiple experiences (performance) with a variety of learners to be best equipped to impact the world for Christ.