THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

"The College of Education . . . provides strong emphases in human resource development and preparation of personnel for positions requiring specialized skills in human understanding and education; training program management; and human and material resource development."

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Introduction

In the College of Education's mission statement, it is self-described as a community of scholars dedicated to research, teaching, and service, which is consistent with Oklahoma State University's land-grant mission. To paraphrase the college's mission statement, basic and applied research form the foundation that informs and improves education; excellence in teaching illustrates a commitment to continuing learning, cultural diversity, and use of appropriate technology; and service is augmented through linkages with the college's constituents who develop, disseminate, and apply knowledge. This integration of research, teaching, and service advances professional education for Oklahomans and people throughout the world.

While the college's primary instructional emphasis is the preparation of professionals for all sectors and levels in education, its influence extends beyond these traditionally defined boundaries. It provides strong emphases in human resource development and preparation of personnel for positions requiring specialized skills in human understanding and education; training program management; and human and material resource development. The college's undergraduate and graduate programs prepare students for academic careers as teachers, counselors, principals, superintendents, and administrators, and for professional careers as media specialists, commercial pilots, flight instructors, human resource development program directors, and mental health and vocational rehabilitation counselors--in short, for a variety of roles that require an understanding of and personal contact with other people. Each year, the college awards approximately 400 bachelor's degrees, half of OSU's doctoral degrees and a fourth of OSU's master's degrees.

The college's 135 faculty and staff members are engaged in a variety of sponsored and unsponsored research, development, and dissemination activities that support its mission of research, teaching, and service. To assist faculty and staff in maintaining the college's position at the forefront of new ideas and knowledge being generated in the education field, the college's academic programs are organized into the Departments of Applied Behavioral Studies in Education; Aviation and Space Education; Curriculum and Instruction Education; Educational Administration and Higher Education; the School of Occupational and Adult Education; and the School of Health, Physical Education, and Leisure. The Office of Administrative Affairs and Research provides technical assistance and service to faculty, staff, and departments in support of their research and development activities. The Office of Education Extension facilitates the dissemination of the faculty's teaching and research expertise to many diverse groups including educators, aviation personnel, social service agencies, business and industry, and government agencies.

Project Highlights

During FY 96, College of Education faculty were professionally active in dozens of sponsored and unsponsored research and development activities. Some developmental efforts supported by state-allocated research funds resulted in awards from external sources. External awards ranged from one year to contracted support spanning several years, which has provided research stability to ongoing endeavors. Highlighted below are some of the College of Education's projects that are representative of faculty research and development efforts.

Department of Applied Behavioral Studies in Education

In addition to behavioral research traditionally conducted by its faculty, the Department of Applied Behavioral Studies in Education continues to provide a paid practicum program for doctoral students enrolled in supervised field placements. Located in seven separate clinics this program gives graduate students opportunities to apply the knowledge gained during classwork toward practical experience in counseling.

Department of Aviation and Space Education

Since October 1979, the College of Education has, through the Department of Aviation and Space Education, administered the Aerospace Education Services Program (AESP) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). AESP provides teachers, students, and the general public nationwide with information about NASA's latest programs and research. Information is disseminated through demonstration and lecture programs provided by 33 aerospace education specialists who are based at nine space flight and research centers across the nation, and by faculty of the college.

Through the College of Education, OSU has administered this NASA public affairs program for 27 of its 34 years in existence. Specifically, AESP provides aerospace education community involvement programs; courses and workshops for elementary and secondary school teachers; assistance with curriculum revision and development activities of national, state, regional, and local programs; presentations for delivery on educational television and radio; presentations before civic clubs and professional organizations; special services at science and technology centers; in-service programs for aerospace specialists; and the development of instructional materials for various aerospace activities. The program offers several of these activities in selected inner city areas. Another NASA contract allows the College of Education to direct the administration of the Teaching From Space Program and the disbursement of its funds. The college also provides logistical support for workshops and conferences associated with the program.

Department of Curriculum and Instruction

Activities directed by the faculty of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction include the Center for Environmental Education. The Center is committed to enhancing communication and the coordination of environmental education activities. It provides curriculum materials and resource personnel to public school teachers, higher education faculty, special interest groups, and the general public. The Center is supported by Phillips Petroleum, the Nature Conservancy, and others.

In collaboration with the College of Arts and Sciences, in 1996 the Department of Curriculum and Instruction established Teaching Teachers to Teach with Technology, a summer workshop in which secondary mathematics and science teachers were taught how to author interactive multimedia lessons, create World Wide Web documents, and use these in their classroom instruction and public presentations. Teachers learned how to use the Internet to share materials, locate resources, and communicate among themselves and with university scientists. The program provided the teachers with the multimedia software and communications hardware and software necessary to continue producing and using them at their schools.

Department of Educational Administration and Higher Education

Faculty of the Department of Educational Administration and Higher Education have conducted research in a variety of fields including school leadership, educational politics, curriculum development, and effectiveness of schools. The faculty presented papers at professional conferences and published results of their research in some of the premier journals in Higher Education. Among the funded projects, the department has contracted with Siam University in Bangkok, Thailand, to offer courses toward a doctoral degree in educational administration and higher education to Thai faculty members. The courses are offered in both the U.S. and Thailand.

School of Health, Physical Education, and Leisure

A well-established program at Oklahoma State University is the National Youth Sports Program (NYSP), conducted through the School of Health, Physical Education, and Leisure. For the 23rd consecutive year, the NYSP brought approximately 500 children from surrounding areas to campus to participate in sports activities. Students commuted to OSU for 25 days of activities, which included hot lunches provided by USDA and the Stillwater Public Schools. The School's "Physical Education for 'Every' Body" Teacher Training Institute provided 60 physical education and special education teachers with the knowledge base and activities needed to aid them in successfully including children with disabilities, and all school children, into the least restrictive environment of physical education.

School of Occupational and Adult Education

The School of Occupational and Adult Education was again very active in the international arena during FY 96. The International Vocational Teacher Educator Institute, sponsored for the second year by The Coca-Cola Foundation, was held to prepare participants to design, implement, and direct a comprehensive workforce teacher educator program that will meet the needs of the 21st century. Participants from nations worldwide came to OSU and shared their vocational-technical experiences as well as broadened their knowledge of occupational and adult education.

A large, ongoing project conducted by Occupational and Adult Education faculty is the Kabupaten Roads Master Training Project in Indonesia. Its emphasis is on teaching the use of competency-based education techniques to engineers and technicians of the Indonesian Department of Public Works. They, in turn, will become trainers of roads employees in the provinces of Indonesia.

The Ministry of Education in Brazil has contracted with a faculty member in the school to provide distance learning and curriculum and human resources development in the secondary and technical-professional education at the federal, state, and local level for the nation of Brazil.

Teacher Education

While the College of Education is working to bridge the physical and culture gaps that separate us from fellow humans in other parts of the world, it is making similar efforts to construct cultural bridges in our own community. It has joined the increasing numbers of universities and public schools that are developing cooperative programs and addressing the global nature of educational issues engendered by a culturally diverse student population. Combining resources creates opportunities to develop and examine innovative programs. Specifically, sharing resources enables the university to provide to the public school its research and expertise, while the public school provides the university with field site experience for undergraduate and graduate students.

Created in the spring of 1990, the OSU Educational Alliance serves a twofold purpose of addressing issues of cultural diversity in a rural school setting and providing multicultural experiences for OSU College of Education students. The Alliance links 3 separate entities: OSU, Frontier Public Schools, and the Otoe-Missouria Tribe. The Frontier Public School District is a consolidated rural school site providing K-12 schooling for approximately 425 students, of which 52 percent are of Native American descent. The Otoe-Missouria Tribe is a federally recognized tribal government with 1,564 members, with more than half of the members living within or close to the original Otoe-Missouria Tribal reserve boundaries; these boundaries encompass the Frontier School District.

The Alliance was created to enhance the educational environments and opportunities of the diverse organizations and populations contained within the cooperative. The project is designed to (1) provide clinical experiences for OSU College of Education students in a multicultural setting, (2) impact the day-to-day lives of Frontier School students, and (3) enhance the instructional skills of Frontier Public Schools faculty. Participation is voluntary in all phases of the Alliance activities.

Department of Administrative Affairs and Research

A long-running program conducted under the auspices of the Department of Administrative Affairs and Research is the National Clearinghouse for Rehabilitation Training Materials. Funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Rehabilitation Services Administration, its purpose is to support the collection and dissemination of human resource development materials created by the national vocational rehabilitation community. The Clearinghouse, established at OSU in 1961, reaches an international audience of rehabilitation practitioners and counselor education programs, special educators, state vocational rehabilitation agencies, and community rehabilitation programs. Its library contains more than 7,000 titles of printed and audio-visual materials on topics related to people with disabilities. It provides document delivery, reference, and research services to the national rehabilitation community.

Education Extension

More than 200 Oklahoma school teachers and College of Education students attended A Celebration of Teaching, a conference held by the Education Extension department in conjunction with Oklahoma Teachers of the Year (OKTOY). Sponsored by the Geraldine Dodge Foundation, the 1996 program focused on minorities in education. Its purpose was to recruit the brightest and most able students, particularly members of minority groups, to the teaching profession and provide experiences designed to increase the cultural sensitivity of students and educators. It featured the skills, talents, and expertise of Oklahoma's finest educators, facilitated mentor relationships among conference participants, and established a cadre of minority students and educators as a research resource for improved instruction and academic excellence.

Consult the following pages to find individual data listed for each project.