Alert Form on Professional Disposition Standards for Pre-Professionals

What are the Professional Disposition Standards for Pre-Professionals?

Personalized Learning

• Identifies evidence-based practices and theory to guide practice.
• Demonstrates a commitment to providing appropriate adaptations for students with diverse needs

Knowledge

• Demonstrates knowledge and competencies related to working with children and adults of various cultural backgrounds, ethnicities, religions, gender identities, sexual orientation, social classes, learning beliefs, and political beliefs.

Community

• Illustrates a willingness to learn and work with multiple aspects of diversity and respect for points of views that differ from their own.
• Can maintain thoughtful, caring, and respectful relationships with
  • university peers, faculty, administrators, and professional staff, as well as
  • PreK-12 students, faculty, administrators, staff, and parents.

Growth and Reflection

• Reflects on and evaluates one’s own life experiences in ways that broaden social, political, and economic perspectives 
• Demonstrates an understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses as a pre-professional seeking to work in an educational context.

Learning Environment

• Demonstrates respect for other’s time and offers flexibility in working with others.
• Exhibits academic integrity through their adherence to the IU Student Code of Conduct

Professionalism

• Adapts behavior to established university, and field experiences/internship policies and procedures.
• Interacts respectfully and effectively with all members of the educational community – on and off campus.

NOTE: These dispositions are focused on behaviors and actions representing what would be expected of someone in a professional education, counseling, or related fields. Issues associated with student academic performance, engagement in classes and attendance should be reported through the Student Engagement Roster (SER) and/or CARE Referral process.

What steps should be taken when a student is not adhering to the disposition standards above?

STEP 1 – Try remediation in the moment.

• Remediation will take place at the time of the event with the School of Education representative and/or school partner witnessing or affected by the event.
• Redirection will take place immediately at the time of noncompliance with the professional disposition standards listed below.
• If the concern is resolved, then no further action will be required. 

If Step 1, of remediation is unsuccessful and noncompliance continues, then ...

STEP 2 – Filing of an ALERT FORM and the development of an improvement plan.

• Who can file and alert form?
  • Faculty, instructors, supervisors, and partner school personnel (e.g., mentor teachers and principals) in practicum contexts are encouraged to use this alert form when a student’s performance or behavior is inappropriate for the educational context and/or does not meet the School of Education’s expectations of a pre-professional.
• What will happen after filing an alert form?
  • The student will receive notification via e-mail from the EDSS that an alert form was filed and will be required to meet with the EDSS to discuss what was reported and provide the student with an opportunity to explain their perceptions of what occurred.
  • The EDSS may choose to also meet with the person who filed the alert form to follow up on any points from the report needing clarification.
  • The EDSS will present the case to the Associate Dean of Undergraduate and Teacher Education, and together the Assocaite Dean and EDSS will devise an improvement plan that will communicate a) the particular professional dispositions that are a concern, b) a set of specific and measurable expectations and processes to achieve the expectations, and c) details about what happens when the improvement plan is met or not met by the student (i.e., accountability).
  • A copy of this improvement plan will be emailed to the student, they will review, and need to sign the improvement plan, indicating they have read and understood everything detailed in the plan.
  • A copy of the improvement plan will also be shared with the person (e.g., faculty, instructors, supervisors, and partner school personnel who submitted the alert form, so they are aware of the next steps.

Remember, the primary function of the improvement plan process is to:

• Outline opportunities for student understanding, learning and growth
• Communicate the process of remediation and mediation
• Explain the potential consequences of a lack of adherence to the standards including suspension or dismissal from the School of Education. 

If Step 2, of the improvement plan is unsuccessful and noncompliance continues, then ...

• The student will be notified via e-mail from the EDSS that they did not meet the improvement plan's expectations and they will need to meet with a committee of three or four School of Education representatives that may include: the Executive Director of Student Success, the Associate Dean for Undergraduate and Teacher Education the Associate Dean for Accreditation Processes, faculty associated with the student’s program of study, staff from the Office of Clinical Experiences, the Director of Advising, and/or school partner.
  • Who from the School of Education serves on the committee depends on the context where professional disposition standards are most often not met. Additionally, the School of Education representatives will first meet, prior to meeting with the student, to review all the evidence of the case and determine whether additional evidence is needed.
• Once the committee feels they have gathered sufficient information, the student will be notified of a time to meet with the committee in person to determine for the purpose of determining if probation or possible dismissal from the School of Education is warranted.
  • The student can have an advocate attend this meeting with them.
• Results of the meeting will be documented and forwarded to the students by the Office of Undergraduate and Teacher Education. When appropriate others (e.g., professional and faculty advisors, Director of Field Placement, field supervisors, and public-school personnel) will be informed of the decision.