by Niki Acton '16

Knox College's elementary education program was one of only five Illinois institutions to receive a top ranking in the latest Teacher Prep Review released by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). Knox College tied for fourth out of 42 Illinois Elementary Programs included in the rankings.

Teacher Prep Review 2014 evaluates evidence that education programs across the country are making changes to improve teacher preparation. The review evaluates the core components of teacher preparation: selection, content preparation, and practice teaching. Knox was one of only 26 elementary programs in the nation to receive a Level IV ranking, the highest possible rating.

"We're in very good company," said Diana Beck, professor and co-chair of educational studies. "The three Illinois institutions that are ahead of us are in really large metropolitan areas, so they have resources at their disposal that we don't have."

Beck believes that despite a lack of big-city resources, the education program at Knox is distinctive because of the individual attention given to each student.

"That's one of the benefits of being a smaller program," said Beck. "We work hard to find all of our students practicum experience and student teaching placements where they will be successful."

The program is also unique in terms of the practical experience students are able to gain early in their pursuit of the major. Students begin fieldwork during their sophomore years in educational psychology class. "By the time they come to student teaching, they hit the ground running," Beck said. "They've been in schools, and they know what working with kids is like."

Beck credits the success of the educational studies program at Knox to a combination of this hands-on experience and the personal commitments each faculty member has to their students.

"We know each student's strengths and weaknesses, so we know what to make them work on," said Beck. "We know when to push them, we know when not to push anymore, and we know how to celebrate their accomplishments."