Student Teaching

Student teaching is a full time 12 week field placement in a carefully selected school under the immediate supervision of a highly competent Cooperating Teacher, in selected cases a classroom-based adjunct clinical instructor, and the general supervision of the Drexel University Field Experience Coordinator. It approximates full-time teaching and is viewed as a culminating experience that provides opportunity to demonstrate what was learned in the professional education courses.

Student Teachers are expected to be committed to excellence in the development of their proficiency as an outstanding teacher. The Student Teacher is a representative of both the University and the teaching profession and in this capacity is expected to uphold high standards of personal and professional standards and ethics.

The twelve weeks devoted to student teaching is a full student load. Student Teachers are to be free from outside responsibilities so that they can function as a full-time member of the staff in the school to which they have been assigned.

Student Teachers may not take an additional course after the school day without specific permission from the Field Experience Coordinator. Under no circumstances will a Student Teacher be allowed to take an additional course during the Student Teaching placement hours.

Objectives

The objectives of student teaching are:

1. To provide an opportunity for the Student Teacher to observe a model teacher and to work collaboratively with other field placement university students in the same classroom.

2. To introduce the Student Teacher to the auxiliary services of the school and to explain the relationship of these services to the total educational process.

3. To provide the Student Teacher with experience and the opportunity to participate in the current best practices in education.

4. To refine curriculum planning, designing lessons, units and projects that include learning and assessment activities for diverse learners and to adapt instruction to individual differences in the classroom.

5. To refine skills in the process of student evaluation and assessment methods.

6. To develop the strategies of classroom management that promote student participation.

7. To engage in reflection and self-evaluation for the improvement of teaching by becoming aware of his or her own strategies for learning and using this awareness to better understand the learning process.

8. To provide the Student Teacher with increasingly complex tasks until he or she demonstrates the ability to assume complete classroom responsibility.

9. To provide the Student Teacher with opportunities to experiment and explore his or her philosophy of education by applying and integrating principles and concepts learned in course work for both the content areas and cross-cutting competencies, such as communication, collaboration, leadership, and lifelong learning.

10. To provide the Student Teacher with opportunities to observe other teachers’ classrooms and attend school faculty meetings and events whenever possible.