The unit designs, implements, and evaluates curriculum and experiences for candidates to acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to help all students learn. These experiences include working with diverse higher education and school faculty, diverse candidates, and diverse students in P–12 schools.

The University of Hawaii Strategic Plan calls for cultivation of a sense of place, and it is the uniqueness of this place that resonates throughout the document. The College promotes diversity in its service to multiple publics in local, regional, and global arenas. Diversity is not simply a characteristic of our community; it is also embedded in our discourse and interactions.

The COE Long-Range Plan states explicitly that faculty will practice and promote excellence in teaching that sets the highest standards, respects diversity, and models best practices. Subsequent to the attainment of this goal:
• The policies of the College guarantee respect for and understanding of diversity in recruitment, retention, and professional development of faculty and students, and its curriculum and field placements.
• All College faculty and graduates demonstrate knowledge and skills in working with culturally diverse populations.
• College curricula address a broad range of educational issues beyond Hawaii with emphasis on Asia and the Pacific.

The COE Diversity Committee recommends Multicultural Guidelines for Practice as means to achieve this goal. Go to the website for a complete list. The Multicultural Guidelines for Practice reflect the College's dedication to preparing educators who are knowledgeable, effective, and caring and who contribute to a just and democratic society. The college vision emphasizes a need to celebrate diversity and call upon cultural knowledge, values, and ways of learning and viewing the world in order to promote learners’ intellectual, creative, social, emotional, and physical development.

The College's commitment is evidenced by curricula, field experiences, and internships that facilitate candidates’ demonstration of knowledge, skills, and dispositions that honor diversity in their lives. As such, the college strives to create inclusive communities that allow equitable access, opportunity, and treatment of all members. The following initiatives affirm the College's efforts related to diversity:
• Two publications--Celebrating Diversity, a bi-annual Dean’s Office publication that focuses on diversity issues, and the College Journal, Educational Perspectives, which produced a recent issue dedicated to Indigenous Education;
• Two of the 15 Teacher Education Committees that focus specifically on diversity issues--the TEC for Multicultural Education and TEC for Second Language;
• The Ka Lama Teacher Education Initiative, which is a model for culturally responsive elementary teacher education;
• The Multicultural Toolkit, which is an example of faculty collaboration to produce easy-to-read, practical and informative handouts for pre-service, in-service, and graduate students about relevant and controversial topics related to teaching. The Multicultural Toolkit was created for a panel discussion on racism in Hawaii’s schools; and
• EDCS 433: Interdisciplinary Science Curriculum, Malama I Ka 'Aina, Sustainability, which is a course designed specifically for Hawaii's teachers. The course serves as a foundation for improving the academic success of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students who are underrepresented in the field of science.

4. 1 Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of Curriculum and Experiences

NCATE defines diversity as difference among groups of people and individuals based on ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, gender, exceptionalities, language, religion, sexual orientation, and geographical area (p.53). The learning experiences of candidates, therefore, provide opportunities to interact with and learn from faculty and peers who represent the diversities they will encounter in classrooms and communities (see Elements 4.2 and 4.3).

Documenting diversity is challenging because many characteristics, such as exceptionalities, depend on self-disclosures. The College and its Diversity Committee work to reduce discrimination issues, as well as physical and communication barriers for persons with disabilities, in an attempt to enhance faculty members' and candidates' understanding of racial, ethnic, and cultural differences and disabilities. Faculty and candidates with disabilities are increasingly present in the College.

Proficiencies Related to Diversity
College faculty design and implement courses and experiences that prepare teacher education candidates and other educators to address the needs of diverse students in P-12 school settings. They address diversity issues and employ culturally sensitive and responsive strategies in classes (e.g., cooperative and collaborative learning, role playing and simulations, journaling, and portfolio assessment) to model approaches that are applicable to public school settings. They expect candidates to develop and demonstrate multicultural proficiencies, which coincide with the Diversity Committee’s Multicultural Guidelines for Practice. See Multicultural Proficiencies for an outline of course syllabi content and multicultural proficiencies.

Required Coursework and Experiences
Candidates in initial and advanced programs take courses where topics of diversity and exceptionalities are central to and permeate content. The courses introduce candidates to issues, trends, and research about students with disabilities, as well as others with diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural heritage or who may otherwise be at-risk for school failure. In addition, the courses provide candidates with exposure to the causes and reality of oppression and racism, classism, sexism, and homophobia in U.S. society and the public schools. Instructional activities enable candidates to explore the impact of isms on themselves and people from other backgrounds.

Initial Programs
As shown in course syllabi, classes address differentiated instruction and assessment strategies to meet P-12 students’ academic and social learning needs. For example, initial candidates and continuing teachers enroll in EDCS 433: Interdisciplinary Science Curriculum, Malama I Ka 'Aina, Sustainability, a science education class that recognizes the importance of educating teachers about the host culture and indigenous perspectives on science.

Initial program candidates also participate in field experiences and internships that provide opportunities to: (a) apply emerging knowledge, skills, and dispositions within diverse settings; (b) use a variety of perspectives to enrich teaching and learning experiences; and (c) prepare students to function within a multicultural society.

Advanced Programs
Candidates in advanced programs often are practicing professionals employed in classroom, counseling, and/or administrative settings. Advanced program course content guides, focuses, and enhances candidates’ experiences to work with diverse P–12 learners, including students with disabilities, through research, theory, and reflection that strengthen their practice.

In Initial Preparation Required Courses and Advanced Preparation Courses related to diversity, candidates develop awareness for diversity in teaching and learning through self-reflection, critical analysis and interaction with society, and culminating projects, in which they envision socially just classrooms. See Awareness of Diversity, Knowledge of Diversity, Skills of Diversity, and Dispositions of Diversity for course assignments that help candidates acquire knowledge, skills, and dispositions to be culturally sensitive and responsive educators.

Evidence of Candidates’ Proficiencies Related to Diversity
Initial Programs
Mentor teachers and university coordinators use various scales to evaluate initial candidates on the Hawaii Teacher Performance Standards. Three standards are of particular relevance to diversity: HTPS 1: Focuses on the learner, HTPS 3: Adapts to learner diversity, and HTPS 10: Fosters parent and school community relationships. See Table 1.16, EECE Final Evaluation of Student Teaching and Secondary Final Evaluation of Student Teaching. See Standard 1, Element 4, and Tables 1.18 and 1.19 for a comprehensive overview of initial candidates' performance on all HTPS, including mentors' and principals' follow-up assessments of proficiencies on HTPS 1, 3, and 10.

Beginning Spring Semester 2005, the Institute for Teacher Education (ITE) and the MEd in Special Education used Chalk & Wire to assess candidates’ diversity proficiencies, among other areas. The M.Ed. in Special Education discontinued its use. However, the undergraduate cohort used it from Fall Semester 2004 through Spring Semester 2006 to record candidates' entire program of study. Portfolio artifacts are rated as unacceptable, acceptable, or target using rubrics for each of three areas under the diversity standard.

The MEd in Counselor Education requires candidates to develop a case conceptualization, which necessitates considerations of cultural diversity and other diversity variables (e.g., Case Conceptualization Format and Assignment in course outlines: EdCG 751 and EdCG 733C/EdCG 734C).

Advanced Programs
As stated previously, faculty design and implement courses and experiences that prepare candidates to address the diversity of Hawaii's P-12 and university populations. For example, the MEd in Educational Technology requires candidates, who enroll in 400-level electives, to complete a learning unit in which they address diversity issues. Assessment of candidates' knowledge relies on rubrics and is based on ISTE standards, which consider diversity, social justice, assistive technologies, special needs, and inclusion.

Other evidence of advanced candidates' diversity proficiencies includes MEd theses and Plan B research projects as well as doctoral dissertations, completed during the past six years. Candidates completed 349 theses and projects of which 204 (58%) addressed diversity topics and issues. See Diversity Theses and Dissertations.

Candidates’ Ability to Work with Diverse Populations, Incorporate Diversity into Curricula, and/or Establish a Climate that Values Diversity
Initial Programs
As shown in Table 1.16, 304 of 307 BEd EECE student teachers (99.32%) attained acceptable or target ratings on HTPS 3, Adapts to learner diversity, and 178 of 187 BEd and Post-Baccalaureate Secondary Education student teachers (95.45%) attained proficient or accomplished ratings, as judged by mentor teachers. Of 7 EECE candidates enrolled in ITE 317: Field Experience, 57% earned acceptable and 43% achieved target scores.

A further breakdown shows 88 BEd and Post-baccalaureate Secondary Education candidates with field experience and student teaching ratings during Spring Semester 2006. The mean score for HTPS 3 was 3.4 on a scale that ranges from novice to accomplished. Five (5.68%) candidates earned relatively low ratings of developing, 40 (45.45%) earned proficient ratings, and 43 (48.86%) earned accomplished ratings.

Of the 28 MEdT candidates with student teaching evaluations during Spring Semester 2006, the mean for HTPS 3 was 3.5 on a scale, which ranges from needs major improvement to exceeds expectations, with 46% receiving proficient ratings and 54% receiving accomplished ratings.

Advanced Programs
As stated previously, the learning unit in educational technology requires candidates to evidence work with diverse populations throughout the curriculum. In addition, candidates routinely discuss diversity, equity, and social justice issues, as well as learning styles. Moreover, instructors use candidates' diverse heritage to bridge discussions about equity and diversity.

Another example is the MEd in Curriculum Studies, which has two goals relevant to diverse populations: (a) increasing understanding of educational issues related to diversity and multiculturalism; and (b) enhancing ability to implement culturally responsive teaching practices.

Lastly, the MS in Kinesiology and Leisure Science affords candidates opportunities to discuss diversity issues and to demonstrate cultural sensitivity and responsiveness in the Athletic Training specialization clinical experiences.

Candidates' Use of Assessment Data on Diversity to Improve Practice
Initial Programs
Candidates' field experience grades reflect their ability to demonstrate competencies on state and professional standards. Mid-term and final assessments, which include self-evaluation as well as feedback from mentor teachers and field supervisors, are the bases for improving candidates' performance over the course of a semester and entire program. See Field Experience and Student Teaching Evaluation for an example of how thorough feedback may help a candidate.

Assessment results suggest that most candidates use effective strategies to: (a) teach appreciation of and respect for human and cultural differences; (b) address a broad and diverse range of student needs, learning styles, and interests; and (c) adapt instruction to include all students in learning processes. Chalk & Wire artifact scores for 24 general education candidates show that 58% received acceptable ratings and 42% received target ratings with a mean score of 1.4 (1 = Acceptable and 2 = Target). Special education candidates (n=38) performed competently on projects about teaching students from diverse communities, with mean score of 1.9.

As discussed in Standard 1, candidates in the BEd and MEd programs in Special Education attain acceptable or target ratings related to assessment and instructional interventions. They demonstrate these skills in class projects and interactions with P-12 students with disabilities and others at-risk of educational failure who represent diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural populations. Candidates' use of assessment data to improve practice with diverse P-12 students indicates that they attain overall acceptable and target ratings on behavior change, case study, and ecologically based interventions. See BEd Assessment_5, PB Assessment_5, MM Section_IV__5, D HOH Assessment_5, and Sev Assessment_5.

Candidates in the MEd in Counselor Education, as part of practicum and internships, use disaggregated assessment data to determine educational and social inequities and needs of P-12 students based on diversity variables.

Advanced Programs
Candidates in the MEd in Educational Technology must show how they incorporate constructive feedback about diversity and social justice issues into future projects and curricula. The feedback process, which is emphasized throughout the program, includes formative reflection within courses and summative experiences regarding the program.

Candidates in the MEd in Educational Administration take courses that focus on using data to examine a variety of organizational and educational problems (e.g., personnel, student learning, gender/ethnic fairness in organizations).

MEd and PhD candidates in Educational Psychology gain understanding about the implications of various methods to assess the performance of diverse learners and to analyze the relationships between assessment and diversity.

4.2 Experiences Working with Diverse Faculty

Diversity Characteristics of College, University, and School-based Faculty
The information in Table 4.1 illustrates faculty members' racial, ethnic, and gender distributions. College faculty and those from other campus units reflect a higher concentration of White, non-Hispanic members than candidates and P-12 public school students. The school-based faculty is more representative of the P-12 student body race and ethnicity.

Candidates' Interactions with Higher Education and School Faculty of Diverse Heritage
Candidates interact with faculty members of diverse backgrounds as they enroll in Arts and Sciences and other discipline classes, as well as affiliated-school personnel. Candidates also have opportunities to present and discuss instructional and research ideas with faculty and peers. As shown in Table 4.2, unit and clinical faculty represent diverse backgrounds; each department and school is diversified by ethnicity, gender, and subject matter.

Unit and Clinical Faculty Members' Knowledge and Experiences to Prepare Candidates
Unit and clinical faculty value and respond to diversity issues and infuse related content into courses and field experiences. They are knowledgeable of and have experiences teaching and learning about cultural differences and exceptionalities, and their instructional implications. In addition, faculty members have numerous experiences in multicultural settings with diverse P-12 student populations, which include but are not limited to: (a) teaching in public schools; (b) supervising field experiences, student teaching, and/or internships; (c) investigating diversity and exceptionality issues in education; and (d) participating in state, regional, national, and international workshops. Faculty vitae evidence their competencies and experiences regarding multicultural education. Faculty research and scholarship also demonstrate expertise in preparing candidates to work with diverse students. An impressive quality and quantity of faculty publications focus on diversity issues, including exceptionalities (see Faculty Publications on Diversity Issues). Faculty members also generate grant-funded projects, and work with special teacher education cohorts and other activities that enhance their expertise and experiences in diversity issues (see Faculty Activities Related to Diversity).

Efforts to Recruit and Retain Diverse Faculty
As stated previously, College policies guarantee respect for and understanding of diversity in recruitment, retention, and professional development of faculty and students, and its curriculum and field placements (COE Long Range Plan). The college, therefore, engages in good faith efforts to recruit, hire, and retain faculty and staff members who represent diverse groups, including outreach to persons with disabilities, to ensure that candidates experience people from divergent populations. One major concern regarding recruitment and retention, however, is that low faculty salaries in conjunction with Hawaii's high living costs may be unattractive to potential candidates and new faculty members.

Departments implement orientation programs aimed at retaining diversity among all faculty members. In addition, they emphasize teamwork in an attempt to create cohesive work environments. Furthermore, many experienced faculty members mentor new faculty in one-on-one relationships, as well as writing, research, and publication groups, such as the Native Hawaiian and women of color groups. The mentoring relationships often lead to scholarly publications and grant-funded research projects.

Faculty members of Hawaiian ancestry meet on a regular basis to support each other's efforts. In addition, since Fall Semester 2001, one faculty member of color has gathered a diverse group of women junior faculty and Ph.D. candidates of color to meet monthly, with two goals in mind: to share and review research papers for the purpose of publication, and to lead and discuss relevant professional topics (e.g., writing contract renewal papers and dossiers, learning about micro-ethnography, and publishing educational curricula).

4.3 Experiences Working with Diverse Candidates

Diverse Education Candidates in Initial and Advanced Programs
Hawaii’s diverse population is reflected in the University student body; an estimated 74% of students are non-white. The ethnic group with the largest enrollment is Japanese (18.5%).

As shown in Table 4.2, candidates in initial and advanced preparation programs mirror students in the university and across the state. Data indicate increases in Filipino, Samoan, and Native Hawaiian candidates in pre-service programs. Similarly, the College's intensive effort to recruit members of underrepresented ethnicities results in higher percentages of Hawaiian, Part-Hawaiian, and Filipino candidates in advanced programs. An under-representation is obvious for American Indians and Alaska Natives, Blacks (non-Hispanic), and Hispanics. Gender data continue to show that more females than males are attracted to the education profession.

Candidates' Opportunities to Interact with Diverse Candidates
Initial and advanced candidates are primarily from the Island of Oahu as well as the neighbor islands, US mainland, and countries and territories throughout the Pacific region and the world. They represent a mix of urban and rural areas; socioeconomic, gender, and disability groups; and their racial, ethnic, and cultural heritages are rich and complex. Committees, class projects, and assignments afford opportunities to interact with other candidates of diverse backgrounds. Ethnic Breakdown of Candidates in Initial Certification Programs provides a semester-by semester analysis of ethnicity enrollment for five years.

The college works closely with university organizations that promote and assist students who represent Asian, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, African American, Hispanic, and International backgrounds as well as those of same sex orientation. The college also collaborates with the KOKUA Program to ensure successful inclusion of candidates with physical and/or cognitive disabilities in programs and classes (kokua is a Hawaiian word meaning help). The Office of Student Equity, Excellence, and Diversity (SEED) coordinates campus-wide projects and committees that concern diverse student populations. Academic advisors in the Office of Student Academic Services work closely with and participate in SEED sponsored activities.

Efforts to Recruit and Retain Diverse Candidates
The College of Education’s recruitment and retention efforts address the need for a culturally diverse population; they underscore the University’s commitment to champion diversity and respect for individual differences. The College is very specific in its commitment to diversity as demonstrated by its mission, which promotes working as a diverse and democratic community in the areas of teacher preparation and professional development, research and scholarship, and service. Special recruitment efforts are directed toward candidates of diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural heritage and other underrepresented groups.

Recruitment and retention efforts also apply to advanced preparation programs. College of Education faculty members are a visible presence in Hawaii's public schools as a result of the field-based nature of initial preparation programs. They utilize these opportunities to recruit teachers for masters and doctoral level programs.

Recruitment and enrollment of candidates from diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds is only part of the story. Actual degrees awarded evidence the College's ability to retain students through completion of their degrees. Tables 4.3 and 4.4 identify the degrees awarded by race and ethnicity to candidates in initial and advanced programs, respectively.

4.4 Experiences Working with Diverse Students in P–12 Schools

Diverse Racial, Ethnic, Gender, Low Socioeconomic Students and those with Exceptionalities in Field Experience and Clinical Practice Settings
Initial Programs
Nationally, increases in racial, ethnic, and cultural groups result from population growth and immigration. A similar situation exists in Hawaii, where there is a substantial indigenous population of Hawaiians and Part-Hawaiians who comprise an estimated 5.2% of the state's inhabitants and 26.5% of public school students.

As expressed in the core value caring, the unit is committed to developing professionals to work with P-12 students with diverse racial, ethnic, and linguistic heritages; exceptionalities; socioeconomic backgrounds; sexual orientations; and others at-risk of educational failure due to the effects of negative environmental variables. Changing population demographics offer opportunities for candidates in teacher education and advanced programs to experience diverse students. Of the racial, ethnic, and cultural composition of all students enrolled in Hawaii's public schools, about 86% of the students are non-white.

Candidates’ field placements and internships are in public school settings that are racially, ethnically, and culturally diverse and inclusive of students with disabilities as well as others from lower socioeconomic groups. The College uses 173 (61%) of 284 Hawaii DOE schools for field experience and clinical practice sites; many of the remaining schools have partnerships with other colleges and universities (e.g., Brigham Young University and University of Hawaii Hilo).

In addition, the Hawaii Department of Education has a demonstrable commitment to inclusive education; thus, a majority of students with exceptionalities are taught in general education classroom settings. Table 4.5 illustrates the special student populations (i.e., exceptionalities, second language learners, and lower socioeconomic levels) in these schools.

Advanced Programs
Candidates in advanced programs are not required to complete supervised field experiences or clinical practices; they enroll in these courses on an elective basis. However, most candidates are practicing professionals in schools throughout the State and therefore interact with P-12 students who represent diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural heritages, socioeconomic levels, exceptionalities, and environmental variables that cause them to be at-risk of school failure. In addition, the majority complete theses and/or research projects that investigate issues related to diversity.

Candidates in the MEd in Educational Foundations report, as a result of program participation, that they (a) understand the contributions of different social and cultural groups to furthering the human project; and (b) maintain open perspectives to diversity issues.

Candidates Develop and Practice Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions Related to Diversity in Field Experience and Clinical Practice Settings
Initial Programs
An essential component of evaluation is candidates’ impact on P-12 students' learning. All field experiences occur in settings where candidates apply newly acquired theoretical knowledge and skills. Clinical faculty and university supervisors model best practices, observe candidates, and provide informal and formal feedback regarding teaching and assessment strategies.

Field requirements align with the Hawaii Teacher Performance Standards. Four standards underscore the need for candidates to make instruction meaningful for all students. HTPS 1: Focuses on the learner considers candidates' ability to engage students in appropriate experiences that support their development as independent learners; HTPS 3: Adapts to learner diversity concerns candidates' ability to provide opportunities that are inclusive and adapted to diverse learners; HTPS 6: Designs and provides meaningful learning experiences addresses candidates' ability to plan and implement meaningful learning experiences for all students; and HTPS 7: Uses active learning strategies addresses effective and consistent uses of a variety of active learning strategies to develop students’ thinking, problem solving, and learning skill.

Discussion under Element 4.1 provides evidence of initial candidates’ proficiencies related to HTPS 1 and HTPS 3 based on mentor teacher evaluations of EECE and Secondary Education student teachers. Table 1.16 also shows evaluations of EECE and Secondary Education student teachers' proficiencies on HTPS 6 and HTPS 7. See Standard 1, Element 4 and Tables 1.18 and 1.19 for a comprehensive overview of initial candidates' performance on all HTPS; discussion also considers mentors' and principals' follow-up assessments of proficiencies on HTPS 6 and 7.

As discussed previously, evaluation of student teachers in the BEd and MEd programs in Special Education shows that they attain overall acceptable and target ratings in their ability to demonstrate appropriate knowledge and skills, dispositions, and assessment and instructional strategies in their interactions with P-12 students of racially, linguistically, and culturally diverse backgrounds and others who represent different socioeconomic, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and geographic experiences.

Examples of field experiences and clinical practices that require candidates to demonstrate knowledge and skills in helping all students learn and for which they receive feedback include:
• Creating lesson plans, learning experiences, and instructional materials that are developmentally appropriate, logically sequenced, based on desired student outcomes, and adjusted to meet individual learner needs;
• Using instructional strategies that facilitate P-12 students’ active involvement in learning, such as discovery learning, integrated or interdisciplinary learning, varied methods of inquiry, problem-based learning, and cooperative learning strategies; and
• Utilizing instructional strategies that link content to prior knowledge; rely on multiple representations, examples, and explanations; and respond to students' individual, group, and cultural differences.

Candidates Use Peer and Supervisor Feedback to Reflect on their Skills with Diverse Students
See Standard 3 Element 3 for an extensive discussion of reflection and feedback in field experiences and clinical practice with diverse students.

Summary

The College of Education is committed to preparing candidates to work in changing educational contexts. This commitment is evidenced by curricula, field experiences, and internships that help candidates demonstrate knowledge, skills, and dispositions related to diversity. In addition, candidates have numerous opportunities to interact with university and school-based faculty members and administrators who represent diverse backgrounds. Candidates also participate in university classes as well as public school and community agency settings with other candidates and P–12 students representative of different backgrounds. All of these experiences help candidates to challenge disability and diversity issues and develop strategies that improve teaching and learning and the effectiveness of teachers and other school personnel.

The College’s mission and core values provide evidence of the intent to honor diversity. Clear goals guide a general approach to building a warm, accepting, healthy, safe, and inclusive college community. Faculty members recognize the need to recruit candidates, staff, and faculty from a wide range of backgrounds and beliefs.

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