COE Diversity Proficiencies

EPP Diversity Proficiencies*

The University of Central Arkansas Educator Preparation Programs (UCA EPP) promote every educator’s sense of professional efficacy. Professional efficacy affects an educator’s sense of responsibility and competence to contribute to the growth and development of all learners and includes respect and value for all the forms of diversity that exist in society. The UCA EPP and its candidates are dedicated to supporting all learners respectful of individual race, ethnicity, color, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identification, age, religion, spiritual beliefs, language, national origin, geographic origin, marital status, socioeconomic background, physical ability, political belief, and intellectual perspective. Candidates engage their learners in authentic practices that develop awareness, understanding, respect for diversity that exists in society, and the importance of diversity in teaching, learning, and schooling through enacting the UCA EPP Diversity Proficiencies.

  1. Demonstrate efficacy by adapting planning and practice to meet learner needs and by advocating for learners. (TESS 1)
    • Plan for all learners as individuals with differing backgrounds, abilities, perspectives, languages, and dialects to achieve at high levels; persist at helping each learner reach full potential
    • Design learning experiences using strategies that build on learners’ diversity, self-direction, and ownership of learning
    • Differentiate instruction and assessments for use with each learner’s strengths to promote growth and development
    • Modify and accommodate teaching, learning, and schooling for relevance, accessibility, and rigor
    • Analyze assessment data for patterns that emerge specific to learner subpopulations and to minimize bias within assessments.
  1. Promote harmony within the classroom and among family, school, and community spheres of learning; build local and global learning communities; and respect and value diversity within all communities. (TESS 2)
    • Respect families’ beliefs, norms, and expectations; seeks to work collaboratively with learners and families in setting and meeting challenging goals.
    • Work with learners, colleagues, families, and communities to establish positive and supportive learning environments.
    • Use technological tools, techniques, and a variety of communication strategies to build local and global learning communities that engage learners, families, and colleagues.
  1. Use multiple perspectives to enhance learning and relationships. (TESS 2, 3)
    • Reflect on personal biases and access resources to deepen understanding of cultural, ethnic, gender, gender identity, and learning experiences to build stronger relationships and to create more relevant learning experiences.
    • Incorporate personal identity, world view, and prior experience on perceptions and expectations.
    • Bring multiple perspectives to the discussion of content, including attention to learners’ personal, family, and community experiences and cultural norms and acknowledge and appropriately respond to bias.
  1. Respect each learner’s culture and language and the influences on learning; incorporate tools of language development into planning and instruction of content. (TESS 3)
    • Acknowledge each learner’s cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, physical development influences on learning; make instructional decisions that build on learner’s strengths and needs.
    • Incorporate tools of language development into planning and facilitation of curricular content, instructional strategies, and assessment techniques, including strategies for making content accessible to English language learners and for evaluating and supporting all learners’ development of English proficiency. With assistance of ELL personnel, seek to evaluate English language learners’ prior content knowledge.
  1. Advance cultural competence to increase learner engagement and achievement and enhance teacher self-efficacy. (TESS 4)
    • Reflect on practices, maintain records, and communicate frequently with learners and families in ways that respect and support learners’ cultural characteristics, academic strengths and challenges, and social interactions.
    • Collaborate with colleagues and attend professional development related to advancing cultural competence and incorporate new cultural competence into practices.
    • Strengthen connections between and among classrooms, homes, and communities and seek resources to enrich curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
    • Distinguish and articulate the significance of students’ educational benefits and impact from diversity, inclusion, and equity.

* Approved by EPP on March 1, 2016.

EPP Diversity Proficiencies – Revised Spring 2016