Education

Steps to Becoming a Teacher

Step 3: Student Teaching

Students apply for admission to student teaching and request a student teaching assignment in the semester prior to student teaching. The deadline for applying for student teaching is Sept. 15 for placement in the spring term, and Feb. 15 for placement in the fall term. Portfolios are also turned into the education office for review by committee at this time.

Requirements

To be eligible for admission to student teaching, a candidate must:

  1. Have been admitted to the Teacher Education Program for one full semester prior to applying for student teaching.
  2. Have maintained a 2.75 overall grade point average (including all grades at all colleges attended) and have a grade point average of 2.75 or better in the major/minor and in all education courses.
  3. Have successfully completed appropriate methods courses.
  4. Have fulfilled the pre-student teaching prerequisite for student teaching in middle childhood through early adolescent or early adolescent through adolescent, which includes completion of the pre-student teaching clinical experiences, general education courses, the major/minor requirement, and the education course requirements.
  5. Have produced a portfolio that is deemed acceptable by the review team. The portfolio rubric depicts the levels of performance by which the portfolio will be evaluated three times formally during the teacher education program. The candidate's portfolio must demonstrate proficiency in the knowledge, skills, and dispositions of the ten Wisconsin Standards. For portfolio information, please consult the texts How to Develop a Professional Portfolio: a Manual for Teachers, and the Carthage Portfolio Kit from the Carthage Bookstore.
  6. Have successfully passed the required interview. The interview rubric depicts interview assessment guidelines.
  7. Have successfully passed disposition reviews from designated classes.
  8. Have successfully passed the appropriate Praxis II, Content Area Test(s).

Procedures

  1. Attendance at the student teacher meeting is mandatory to pick up the application for Student Teaching. This meeting is held in the fall term for those planning to student teach the following fall and in the spring term for those planning to student teach the following spring. Check postings for exact dates.
  2. Complete the application form and return it to the Education Department by the application deadline date.
  3. Sign up for an interview that will be held with members of the Education Faculty and the Education Advisory Committee.
  4. Complete and turn in the portfolio. An education faculty committee will review the portfolio at designated times during the Carthage experience.
  5. If a student interview, portfolio, or disposition review is deemed to be unacceptable by the review team, the student may take suggestions made for improvement and arrange for another review by contacting the Education Office.

Applications to the Teacher Education Program and for student teaching will not be accepted at the same time. Students must be in the TEP at least one semester prior to applying for student teaching (i.e., if a student wishes to student teach in the spring, the student must be accepted to the TEP the prior spring).

Appeals

If a student has not been approved for student teaching, he or she may file a written appeal with the teacher education committee.

Teacher Education Committee

The teacher education committee is a group of faculty members responsible for monitoring the screening procedures used to select and retain candidates for teacher certification. The committee consists of the Education Department faculty and representatives from the physical education and music faculties.

Results of Assessments and Communication

After completing various checkpoints within the program, the education candidate will receive documentation of the results/standing.

  1. Entry into the TEP: notification by letter of acceptance/ or letter noting deficiencies with reapplication process outlined.
  2. Disposition Reviews: copy of the scoring instrument used in each review.
  3. Portfolio Reviews: copy of the scoring instrument used in each review.
  4. Interview to enter Student Teaching: copy of interview assessment and letter of acceptance.

Steps to Becoming a Teacher

Student Voices

"The experience I am getting in the field is far beyond what I had expected. When I am finished with my courses, I know I will feel well-equipped to student-teach because of the experiences Carthage has provided for me."

— Katie Crimmins, '12, Arlington Heights, Ill.

Hear what students have to say about studying education at Carthage.

Inspiration & Ideas

The Center for Children's Literature at Carthage, co-directed by education professor Marilyn Ward, offers future teachers valuable resources, lectures, workshops and seminars. Read more.