Professional education courses are designed to prepare students to develop the necessary skills and dispositions required for a successful entry into the teaching profession. The field experiences allow pre-service teachers to move from simple classroom observation to more involved interaction with students in the classroom setting and culminate with two semesters of student teaching. Pre-service teachers must acquire specific knowledge, develop competencies, and gather pieces of evidence as proof of their preparation. This information is displayed in the working portfolio that is completed in Responsive Pedagogy. Sample copies of these portfolios are available in the documents room.
General education includes courses from across the university s curriculum.
These courses build a broad liberal arts knowledge base. Art, English, history, humanities, mathematics, and science are among the areas in the general education curriculum. All students who matriculate at the university must complete a minimum of 40 credit hours of general education. These hours do not include developmental skills courses. Students interested in teacher-education programs are assigned an advisor after their freshman year or as soon as they declare their academic major.