Welcome

To the Student Teacher:

Congratulations! You are about to begin the most rewarding and challenging phase of your preparation -- student teaching. The student teaching experience is clearly the most critical and valuable component of any teacher education program.  It is an intense experience that requires a great deal of patience, understanding and cooperation between everyone involved.  Student teaching provides you with the opportunity to work closely with a mentor teacher, an experienced educator who has volunteered to share his or her classroom and expertise with you. You will also be working with a university supervisor. These people are there for guidance and support, but it is up to you to gain the most from your student teaching experience. As a student teacher, you must remember that you have been accepted by the school system and classroom teacher as a "guest," and you should conduct yourself at all times in a professional style and manner.

Your transition from student to professional educator will become apparent immediately.  The experiences you have during student teaching including observing, diagnosing, planning, presenting, evaluating, and reflecting on your own teaching performance will help you to develop a repertoire of professional skills and competencies that will prepare you for this challenging career.  The process of learning to teach is rigorous and we hope that you will take full advantage of the many learning opportunities within your school and classroom settings.  Your ability to adapt quickly to many, and sometimes very difficult situations, will demand a professional's approach and attitude. The knowledge, confidence, and skills developed during this time will be the foundation needed for successful teaching.  We support your commitment to a career in teaching and hope that you will find it to be professionally rewarding.

During this next year, you and our office will become closely linked. If any information concerning your academic program, address, phone, email, or personal information should change, please communicate those changes to us as soon as possible. The Office of Clinical and Field Experiences is located in the Education Building, room 106A.  The office's staff and I wish you the very best of luck as you begin to prepare the information for this all-important phase of teacher preparation --student teaching.

To the mentor teacher:

Student teaching is the time for teacher candidates to engage in teaching experiences in a supporting environment with the guidance of university and public school professionals.  The role of the mentor teacher has been cited in research as having the greatest and longest lasting influence on not only the student teaching experience but also the aspiring teacher's growth and development long after student teaching has ended.  This responsibility is a highly significant one and we at the College of Education and Office of Clinical and Field Experiences would like to extend our sincere appreciation for your willingness to share these attributes in this challenging collaborative endeavor.

Contact Information

Coordinator of Student Teachers
(806) 742-1998 x 511
Fax (806) 742-2179

Peggy Johnson, Associate Dean of Teacher Education

(806) 742-2371

peggy.johnson@ttu.edu

Pam Tipton
Certification Officer
(806) 742-1998, x451
pam.tipton@ttu.edu

Sheryl Santos
Dean, College of Education
(806) 742- 1837
sheryl.santos@ttu.edu

Office of Clinical and Field Experiences

                Terri Beard,  Administrative Assistant

                (806) 742-1998 x 461

                Fax (806) 742-2179

Academic Advisors:

Dr. Rosita Moore (4-8) (806) 742-1998 x 441, rosita.moore@ttu.edu                    

Earnestine Frazier (Post Bacs) College of Human Sciences  (806) 742-1998 x 449, earnestine.frazier@ttu.edu

Mickie Martin (8-12) (806) 742-1998 x 432, mickie.martin@ttu.edu

TBA EC-4/Special Education, EC-4/Bilingual Education, EC-4/ESL, College of Education (806) 742-1998 x 444.

Registrar (Transcript Requests)- (806) 742-3661                 Fax (806) 042-0355

Financial Aid (806) 742-2681                                      Fax- (806) 742-0880

Career Planning and Placement (806) 742-2210; online www.careercenter.ttu.edu

Program Information

Mission

The mission of Student Teaching is to help prepare creative, reflective and innovative professional educators with high moral and ethical standards who view themselves as agents of change, who are committed to the welfare of children, and who have the understanding, attitudes and skills necessary for effective teaching.

Program Objectives

The student teacher will learn, via observation and supervised teaching, to:

1. Design instruction appropriate for all students that reflects an understanding of relevant content and is based on continuous and appropriate assessment.

2. Create a classroom environment of respect and rapport that fosters a positive climate for learning, equity, and excellence.

3. Promote student learning by providing responsive instructions that makes up of effective communication techniques, instructional strategies that actively engage students in the learning process, and timely, high-quality feedback.

4. Fulfill professional roles and responsibilities and adhere to legal and ethical requirements of the profession.

(from the State Board for Educator Certification Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities Standards)

Competencies

After completion of the teacher education program at Texas Tech University, a beginning teacher will be able to demonstrate the following competencies:

Domain I: Designing instruction and assessment to promote student learning
1. The teacher understands human developmental processes and applies this knowledge to plan instruction and ongoing assessment that motivate students and are responsive to their developmental characteristics and needs.
2. The teacher understands student diversity and knows how to plan learning experiences and design assessments that are responsive to differences among students and that promote all students' learning.
3. The teacher understands procedures for designing effective and coherent instruction and assessment based on appropriate learning goals and objectives.
4. The teacher understands learning processes and factors that impact student learning and demonstrates this knowledge by planning effective, engaging instruction and appropriate assessments.

Domain II: Creating a positive, productive classroom environment
5. The teacher knows how to establish a classroom climate that fosters learning, equity, and excellence and uses this knowledge to create a physical and emotional environment that is safe and productive.
6. The teacher understands strategies for creating an organized and productive learning environment and for managing student behavior.

Domain III: Implementing effective, responsive instruction and assessment
7. The teacher understands and applies principles and strategies for communicating effectively in varied teaching and learning contexts.
8. The teacher provides appropriate instruction that actively engages students in the learning process.
9. The teacher incorporates the effective use of technology to plan, organize, deliver, and evaluate instruction for all students.
10. The teacher monitors student performance and achievement; provides students with timely, high-quality feedback; and responds flexibly to promote learning for all students.

Domain IV: Fulfilling professional roles and responsibilities
11. The teacher understands the importance of family involvement in children's education and knows how to interact and communicate effectively with families.
12. The teacher enhances professional knowledge and skills by effectively interacting with other members of the educational community and participating in various types of professional activities.
13. The teacher understands and adheres to legal and ethical requirements for educators and is knowledgeable of the structure of education in Texas.

These competencies are clarified with descriptors on the State Board for Educator Certification website.

These competencies will be reflected in a professional portfolio (a requirement of the companion course to student teaching, the capstone course).

Code of Ethics

One of the criteria for being a professional is to behave honestly, ethically, and at a high level of integrity.  In the role of student teacher, a person is required to:

·         treat all students considerately and justly

·         eliminate any biased attitudes

·         maintain a role as a professional with students, peers, other teachers, administrators and parents

·         refrain from any sexual overtures

·         refrain from any financial gain

·         maintain strict confidentiality between students, professional colleagues and peers

·         keep a high standard of educational commitment and responsibility

·         avoid harmful gossip about student, professional colleagues and peers

·         present facts to members of the student teaching team without distortion

·         work with all parents on a professional level

A breach of ethical conduct can result in failure to obtain teacher certification. Texas Tech University College of education requires a signed and dated Code of Conduct.  This form will be supplied to all student teachers by the university supervisor.

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