Shaping the quality of education in the CNMI

Professional educators and teachers-in-training at the Northern Marianas College School of Education share a common belief of teachers as learners and leaders.

NMC’s School of Education believes that if teachers are to help their students become masterful learners, then those teachers must themselves be learners. To be successful in their future classrooms, teachers-in-training need the same kinds of active, hands-on, performance-based experiences they will later design for their students.

SOE believes that education is central to the life of communities. Thus, its faculty work to develop each student’s potential to play a critical role in shaping the future of his community.

In a world of fast-paced changes, SOE faculty teaches the ability to learn continuously. In a society that too often creates barriers among people, they teach the value of collaboration and the importance of diversity.

In short, NMC-SOE prepares teachers to make a difference in the lives of children and adults.

NMC-SOE is dedicated to enhancing the quality of education in the CNMI by providing courses, certificate training, and degrees in the areas of Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education, Special Education, Early Intervention, and Related Services.

NMC-SOE’s Teacher Preparation Program is designed to provide teachers and teachers-in-training with fundamental theories and the rationale with which to plan lessons and with the methods and techniques necessary to improve their performance as teachers.

The TPP is supported by the College Lab School and by a Curriculum Resource Center. The College Lab School provides a venue to students taking School of Education and other NMC courses for observation of and hands-on teaching experience with master teachers and multiage groupings of students.

The Curriculum Resource Center is a specialized educational resource center linked to the main NMC library system and used by mentors, master teachers, and teachers-in-training to access books, videos, software, manipulatives, and the Internet.

The elementary education program depends upon a collaborative relationship between SOE faculty, public and private school mentor teachers, and NMC teachers-in-training. This relationship seeks to develop and ensure a high level of individual attention to the mentoring and socialization of teacher candidates.

The faculty recognizes that this is a labor-intensive process, requiring sustained time and effort by all parties. Work in elementary education must be guided by two principles: first, a commitment to continuous improvement based on reflection, evaluation, and on-going research, and second, a commitment to peer collaboration as a source of professional growth for teacher candidates as well as school and college faculty.

NMC-SOE endeavors to provide individuals with the knowledge and skills necessary to become reflective and collegial professionals capable of creating dynamic educational environments. The program is dedicated to preparing teachers who are able both to understand educational problems and to provide meaningful responses to them.