Students who wish to major or minor in education at Carthage, and complete the Teacher Education Program, must complete a series of steps during their four years at Carthage.
Major and Minor Requirements
Carthage prepares students to teach students in middle childhood/early adolescence (elementary/middle school), cross-categorical special education, and early adolescence/adolescence (middle/high school). Please click on one of the categories below for a list of requirements for that major or minor.
Current students: You should follow the official College Catalog from the year you entered Carthage and work with your advisors and the department chair to ensure all requirements are met.
elementary education
Students who want to teach in grades 1-8 must complete a major in elementary education and a minor in their subject area.
SECONDARY EDUCATION
Teacher candidates seeking grades 5-12 (Early Adolescence through Adolescence) certification must complete a major in their subject area and the secondary education minor.
Cross-Categorical Special Education
The cross-categorical special education major requires a Middle Childhood/Early Adolescence licensure or an early adolescent/adolescent licensure along with the CCSE program.
Music Education
Students can pursue a major in vocal or instrumental music education. The major meets the K-12 Wisconsin licensure requirements as well as the standards set forth by the National Association of Schools of Music.
BROAD FIELD SOCIAL SCIENCE SECONDARY EDUCATION
The broad field social science education major emphasizes breadth over depth in the social sciences and is solely for students pursuing teacher certification in Secondary Education (Early Adolescence to Adolescence, grades 5-12).
Urban Education Minor
For teacher candidates seeking grades 1-8 (Middle Childhood through Early Adolescence) certification or grades 5-12 (Early Adolescence through Adolescence) certification.
Natural Science/Stem Minor
The Natural Science/STEM minor for prospective elementary and middle school science teachers offers two tracks: Physical Science/Project Lead The Way or Environmental, Earth, and Life Science.
Broad field Science Minor
Teachers are often asked to teach general science classes that stretch beyond their major fields. The broad field science minor supplements a science major and EA-A education certification, preparing students to teach science in middle and high schools.
Educational Studies Minor
The educational studies minor provides the background information on basic educational theories, child and adolescent psychology, and foundational knowledge about how their majors connect with the ability to teach, manage, and lead groups of people.
Additional Licensure Programs
Art Education K-12
Carthage offers licensure in Wisconsin to teach art, grades K-12.
Physical Education K-12
Carthage offers licensure in Wisconsin to teach physical education and health, grades K-12. Students may also pursue licensure in adaptive physical education and athletic coaching.
theatre education k-12
Carthage offers licensure in Wisconsin to teach theatre, grades K-12.
Important Steps: Planning a Program
In each of the licensure programs, there are specific course sequences students must follow to achieve licensure. Students are expected to plan and confirm their programs with an education department faculty member and/or appointed advisor.
NOTE: Completion of the Carthage Teacher Education Program does not guarantee licensure. State requirements (such as student teaching, content tests, criminal background checks, etc.) in addition to program completion must also be met for teacher certification.
The Education Department also requires students in the Teacher Education Program to take and pass the Praxis II test as a requirement for student teaching.
Core Basic Skills Testing
The Core is comprised of three tests: Reading, Writing, and Mathematics. You can take one, two, or all three of these tests at a time. If you don’t pass one or more of the tests you only need to retake the one(s) you didn’t pass. To enter the Teacher Education Program (TEP) at Carthage and to be in compliance with Wisconsin state requirements, you must pass all three tests.
Praxis II Content Area Testing
Students may not achieve admittance into their professional semester of student teaching without achieving the minimum score required for their specific Praxis II test. Students majoring in Elementary Education and Cross Categorical Special Education must take and pass the Middle School Content Knowledge test; students minoring in Secondary Education must take and pass content tests in their academic subject majors.
FORT exam
The Foundations of Reading Test (FORT) is required for students majoring in Elementary Education and/or Cross-Categorical Special Education, Reading Teachers, and Reading Specialists in order for them to obtain their Wisconsin Teaching License.
*Please note that students may qualify for alternatives to testing based upon certain GPA and coursework requirements with approval from the Education Department chair.
edTPA Portfolio
All teacher candidates must pass an edTPA portfolio to obtain their Wisconsin Teaching License in their major field; Elementary Education majors must pass the edTPA Literacy portfolio and Secondary Education minors must pass the edTPA portfolio for their major subject areas.
