Bluefield State University Teacher Education
The Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) advances excellent educator preparation through evidence-based accreditation that assures quality and supports continuous improvement to strengthen P-12 student learning. West Virginia has a partnership agreement that describe the goals of the partnership and the key responsibilities of signatory parties and educator preparation providers (EPPs).
Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP)
Bluefield State University’s educator preparation program is accredited under the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) standards, for a period of 7 years. BSU was granted full accreditation in Fall, 2019 and the next CAEP site visit will be in Spring 2026.
Initial Licensure Program included in CAEP accreditation:
Elementary Education
Elementary (K-6)
Add-on endorsements included:
English 5-9, General Science 5-9, Mathematics 5-9, Social Studies 5-9, and
Multi-Categorical BD, MI, SLD (excluding autism) K-6
CAEP Accountability Measures
Bluefield State University has one primary program offering certification in K-6 Elementary Education per our last accreditation review. The School of Education also offers endorsements in the 5-9 content areas of English Language Arts, math, science, and social studies as well as an endorsement in K-6 Multi-Categorical Special Education, excluding autism.
CAEP (Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation) has four annual reporting measures which are used to provide information to the public on both program outcome and program impact. The following is the list of CAEP measures with links to data tables that provide supporting evidence for each measure:
Measure 1: Completer Impact and Effectiveness
- Graduate Case Study – A case study approach was used to document completers’ impact on student learning.
- Supervisor Satisfaction (Institutional Survey FY21 data not available due to low response rate from supervisors). New process and survey being piloted FY22 with Sky Factor.
- Spring 2023 Cooperating Teachers’ Survey
Measure 2: Satisfaction of Employers and Stakeholder Involvement
- Employer Satisfaction Survey – A survey of principal ratings of the competence of recent graduates.
- Partnership Agreements – Includes partnership agreements with BSU and external stakeholders.
- Advisory Board – includes meeting agendas and minutes
- Graduate Satisfaction Survey – A survey of in-service teachers one year after graduation from BSU teacher preparation program.
Measure 3: Candidate Competency at Program Completion
- State licensure exam results – Includes passage rates and mean scores by year and program area.
- West Virginia Teacher Performance Assessment (WVTPA) – Includes WVTPA demonstrating competency at completion.
- Completer graduation rate – Includes rates for successful completion of student teaching, by program area.
- Course Dispositions – Designed to assess dispositions of teacher education candidates as they progress through the elementary education program.
- Student Teaching Evaluation – Completed during the student teaching residency the Student Teacher Observation Tool (STOT), aligned with the 10 InTASC Standards, is used to determine candidate competency at completion.
- Student Teaching Content Evaluation – Completed during the student teaching residency the Student Teaching Content Evaluation, aligned with CAEP- Elementary Education Standards, is used to determine candidate competency at completion.
Measure 4: Ability of Completers to be Hired in Education Positions for Which They Have Been Prepared
- Employment information – Includes employment information for completers 1 and 2 years after program completion.