Section 10. Definitions

Part I. Definitions

The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall have the meanings indicated unless the context implies otherwise:

"Accreditation" means a process for assessing and improving academic and educational quality through voluntary peer review. This process informs the public that an institution has a professional education unit that has met national standards of educational quality.

"Accredited institution" means an institution of higher education accredited by a regional accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education.

"Accredited program" means a Virginia professional education program accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC), or a process approved by the Board of Education.

"Biennial accountability measures" means those specific benchmarks set forth in 8VAC20-542-40 to meet the standards required to obtain or maintain program approval status.

"Biennial report" means the report submitted to the Virginia Department of Education every two years by approved education programs.

"Candidates" means individuals enrolled in education programs.

"Candidates completing a program" means individuals who have successfully completed all coursework, required assessments, including those prescribed by the Board of Education, and supervised student teaching or required internship.

"Candidates exiting a program" means individuals who have successfully completed all coursework, regardless of whether the individuals attempted, passed, or failed required assessments, including those prescribed by the Board of Education, and/or who may not have completed supervised student teaching or required internship.

"Distance learning" means a formal educational process in which the majority of the instruction occurs when the learner and the instructor are not in the same place at the same time. In this process, information or distributed learning technology is the likely connector between the learner, the instructor, or the site of program origin.

"Diversity" means the wide range of differences among groups of people and individuals based on ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, gender, exceptionalities, language, religion, and geographical area.

"Education program" means a planned sequence of courses and experiences leading to a degree, a state license, or preparation to provide professional education services in schools.

"Exceptionalities" means physical, mental, sensory, and emotional disabilities or differences, including gifted/talented abilities.

"Field experiences" means program components that are conducted in off-campus settings or on-campus settings dedicated to the instruction of children who would or could otherwise be served by school divisions in Virginia, or accredited nonpublic schools, and are accredited for this purpose by external entities such as regional accrediting agencies. They include classroom observations, tutoring, assisting teachers and school administrators, student teaching, and internships.

"Full-time faculty" means employees of a higher education institution with full-time assignments within the education program as instructors, professors, administrators, or other professional support personnel (e.g., student teaching supervisor or advisor).

"General education" means courses and other learning experiences in the liberal arts and sciences that candidates in baccalaureate programs typically complete in the first two or three years of their programs for the purpose of becoming liberally educated college students.

"Governance" means the system and structure for defining policy and administering procedures for the professional education program.

"Indicators" means operational definitions that suggest the kinds of evidence that professional education programs shall provide to demonstrate that a standard is met.

"Instructional technology" means the theory and practice of design, development, utilization, management, and evaluation of processes and resources for learning and the use of computers and other technologies.

"Licensing" means the official recognition by a state governmental agency that an individual has met state requirements and is, therefore, approved to practice as a licensed professional.

"Part-time faculty" means employees of a higher education institution who have less than a full-time assignment in the education program. Some part-time faculty are full-time employees of the college or university with a portion of their assignments in the education program. Other part-time faculty are not full-time employees of the institution and are commonly considered adjunct faculty.

"Pedagogical studies" means courses and other learning experiences in which candidates study and apply concepts, theories, and research about effective teaching.

"Professional education faculty" means those individuals who teach one or more courses meeting essential competencies in endorsement areas, provide services to education students (e.g., advising or supervising student teaching) or administer some portion of the education program.

"Professional education program" means the Virginia institution, college, school, department, or other administrative body within a Virginia institution of higher education, or another Virginia entity for a defined educator preparation program that is primarily responsible for the preparation of teachers and other professional school personnel.

"Professional studies" means courses and other learning experiences to teach candidates the historical, economic, sociological, philosophical, and psychological foundations of schooling and education.

"Program approval" means the process by which a state governmental agency reviews an education program to determine if it meets the state's standards for the preparation of school personnel.

"Regional accrediting agency" means one of the six accrediting associations, including New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and Western Association of Schools and Colleges, recognized by the United States Department of Education.

"Scholarly activities" means the active involvement in an individual's area of specialization as demonstrated through such faculty activities as research, articles published in refereed journals, program evaluation studies, documentation of ongoing activities, grant-seeking, and presentations at professional meetings.

"School faculty" means licensed practitioners in preK-12 schools who provide on-site instruction, supervision, and direction for candidates during field-based assignments.

"Standards of Learning for Virginia public schools" means the Commonwealth's expectations for student learning and achievement in grades K-12 in English, mathematics, science, history/social science, technology, the fine arts, foreign language, health, and physical education, and driver education.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 23, Issue 25, eff. September 21, 2007.

Statutory Authority

§ 22.1-298.2 of the Code of Virginia.