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Program Coordinator Coordinator Phone: home Office: E-mail:
| University Field SupervisorsField Supervisor’s name will be the cohort field supervisor for student teachers in these schools: Phone: E-mail: |
Attend These Events!
- Job Search Tools Workshops
- Career Fair
- Recruiters Panel Discussion
Plan for Yourself First!
Make a plan for taking care of yourself throughout the semester! Get the sleep, relaxation, exercise and nutrition that you need! Wash your hands frequently. Student teaching requires tremendous emotional and physical energy. Be generous with your smile and your vitality will be contagious!
You Are Not Alone!
Be patient with yourself! You are a beginner in a very challenging and fulfilling career. Seek assistance immediately from your cooperating teacher, field supervisor or program coordinator if you are experiencing confusion, excessive anxiety—or if you simply need encouragement! Your fellow cohort members are also ready to lend a listening ear!
Basics
- Read and follow all written guidelines and policies provided by UT College of Education personnel and by the Student Teacher Teaching Materials Web page (link to Student Teaching Materials), and the Handbook for Student Teachers (link to Student Teaching Handbook).
- Attend student teaching placement, classes and seminar as scheduled.
- Should an absence be necessary, provide prior notification by telephone to your cooperating teacher and UT field supervisor.
- Arrange a back-up plan so you can reach your placement should you experience automobile problems.
- Check e-mail messages daily, Monday through Friday, and on Sunday evenings. If an individual message from your field supervisor or coordinator requests a response, please reply within 24 hours.
- Complete all required cohort student teaching assignments (lesson plans, reports, etc.) on time, following written guidelines.
- Follow all stated or written guidelines provided by your cooperating teacher, school and district. Seek clarification promptly when needed.
- Maintain timely, accurate, and courteous communications with cooperating teacher, university field supervisor and program coordinator.
Student Teacher Notebook
Your Student Teacher Notebook must be visible in the classroom throughout the school day for reference by your cooperating teacher, university field supervisor, and program coordinator. However, due to the confidentiality of contents, this notebook must be off-limits to students, school visitors, parents, etc. Notebook contents will provide significant data for formative and summative evaluation. The notebook should be carried home daily by the student teacher, who must accept responsibility for its security.
Personal Notebook
Use your personal notebook to record informal observations, “to do” lists, questions, concerns, ideas, or the details that mere mental notes could overlook. Review your pages regularly. Consider setting aside a section for recording complaints! Your notebook is a good place for any whining! Prioritize your lists so that the most pressing and important items get addressed during periods of your highest energy.
Dialogue Journal
Plan to use your Dialogue Journal as a back-and-forth means of brief, efficient written communication with your cooperating teacher. While your cooperating teacher is teaching, several questions/comments may occur to you. Jot them down and leave the journal on your cooperating teacher’s desk for responses. Your cooperating teacher may respond in writing while you are teaching; or he/she may prefer to highlight certain items to discuss when conferring with you later. You may pick up the journal once again, read any responses, and continue with brief questions or comments when your cooperating teacher returns to teaching. Your cooperating teacher may use the same tool for comments/questions when you are busy with students. Keep the journal handy for reference during conferences with your student teacher. Check off highlighted items when they have been covered during discussion. Many cooperating teacher/student teacher pairs have found this to be an invaluable tool.
Lesson Plans
Present a copy of your lesson plans for the following week no later than Friday at 7:30 a.m. to allow your cooperating teacher some time to review them. If revisions are needed, you can complete those over the weekend and e-mail them to your cooperating teacher for approval. The weekly checklist must be signed by your cooperating teacher and placed with the field supervisor’s copy into your Student Teacher Notebook before you begin teaching each week. Please accommodate your cooperating teacher by providing earlier plans if requested.
Use the week-long planning calendar and/or the 3-week planning calendar to sketch brief notes for longer-range planning.
Practicum Contribution Project
Work with your cooperating teacher to determine how you will contribute to this class by preparing one of these: an interactive bulletin board, a set of manipulative materials, a learning center, a series of stations, or a thematic unit that will support learning success for your students this semester. Seek cooperating teacher suggestions.
This contribution can be completed independently or cooperatively with one or two fellow cohort members. Make copies of materials so that one set will remain with your host school and the second set can go with you to your own classroom. Incorporate at least some elements of listening, speaking, writing, handwriting or spelling to reflect your work in EDC 370E Reading last semester. Provide documentation of planning through completion of a written form (provided) and photographs / video showing how your project engages your students in content. Consider realistic time factors before undertaking this project. Although this project will not be graded, it will be considered as one of many factors relating to practicum evaluation
Volunteer Service Record
Please print the form provided and keep it in the OBSERVATIONS section of your Student Teacher Notebook. Items to be recorded on the form include: service at your placement school before the official beginning of practicum; attendance at evening PTA/PTO meetings or student performances; providing environmental, social or academic service to the school’s community. Discuss opportunities with your cooperating teacher.
Cooperating Teacher
Your relationship with your cooperating teacher is a key factor in your success. Your conscientious efforts will foster mutual respect between professional colleagues. Provide assertive, courteous communication of your own needs, concerns, ideas and preferences. Remember that your cooperating teacher once shared your path as a beginner in this challenging profession.
No two teachers would handle every issue identically. Remember the role that consistency plays in successful classroom management. Please defer to your cooperating teacher teacher’s judgment and preferences for this semester. You will have your own classroom soon! Meanwhile, appreciate your cooperating teacher teacher’s willingness to help you enjoy a successful student teaching experience.
University Field Supervisor
Your field supervisor will be on your campus weekly for observations and conferences. Your field supervisor will provide you with observation schedules for selecting formal observation times. In addition, field supervisors will perform informal observations and notebook checks. In your personal notebook, jot down questions or concerns to discuss with your field supervisor. You may request additional private conferences as needed. You have the right to expect university support!
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During the first week of student teaching, please e-mail me any requests for anticipated absences due to religious observance. Notify your university field supervisor and cooperating teacher regarding any other anticipated absences as early as possible. These might include events such as a scheduled job interview, family wedding, or a physician appointment.
Making Up Absences
University policy provided in the Student Teaching Handbook requires that absences be made up. Any exceptions will be considered on an individual basis. Excessive absences could jeopardize completion of your student teaching.
Transportation Emergencies
Plan for transportation problems. Call on fellow cohort members should you need an emergency ride to school. When this will not work, call a taxi service!
Laptop Eligibility of Cooperating Teachers
As a public school cooperating teacher of a UT College of Education student teacher, your cooperating teacher may wish to take advantage of the deeply discounted price for an Apple Laptop package available through the Campus Computer Store. We will provide more information to facilitate cooperating teacher purchase, but your cooperating teacher may see the Web site Website https://webstore.hiedcampuscomputer.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CampusComputer.woacampuscomputer/for actual specifications.
Evaluation: EC – 6 ESL Student Teaching Summative and Formative Assessments
These instruments are research based and correspond to teaching competencies published by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, TEA endorsed TxBess and PDAS.
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Each section of the form contains a comments section requiring subjective (but critically important) professional comments. They These forms can be found under Evaluation Forms at http://www.edb.utexas.edu/education/edservices/fieldexperiences/5183/evaluations/at the Student Assessments Web page.
Suspected Physical or Sexual Abuse?
Remember your moral and legal obligations! Immediately contact your cooperating teacher, school nurse, counselor or administrator. A referral to Child Protective Services may be warranted.
Photographing or Video/Audio Taping at School
Please use the form provided during the first class to seek parent permission. Discuss this issue with your cooperating teacher and obtain approval from your principal before proceeding.
TB Test - No student teacher in ______ needs another TB test.
Addressing Emotional, Physical, Intellectual and Social Development
Consider how you will support your students in the following areas while designing and implementing developmentally appropriate instruction:
- self-esteem
- sense of belonging to a community of learners
- increasing independence
- self-discipline
- self-expression
- responsibility
- accepting and learning from mistakes
- communication skills
- self-awareness of thought processes
- self-monitoring of learning
- maintaining a sense of humor and fun
- positive motivation
- establishing and maintaining positive peer relationships
- understanding and coping with feelings
- recognizing relationships between beliefs and behaviors
- social interaction
- physical activity
- civility
- respect for self and others
- physical outlets for excess energy
- adequate rest
Questions to Consider
How will you…..?
- Facilitate meaningful student engagement in learning
- Demonstrate that you care about each student
- Respond to incorrect student responses in ways that encourage academic risk-taking
- Encourage participation by all students (even those
- Involve students in the evaluation process
- Model self-acceptance
- Allow cooling off periods (for teacher and student)
- Involve the student in problem-solving during individual conferences, class meetings
- Give students a “voice and a choice”
- Establish and maintain an atmosphere of mutual respect
- Provide a safe environment for the risk-taking business of learning
- Involve students in limits-setting
- Provide ample noncontingent attention to each student. (Sprick, Module 5)
Reflective Teaching
- Evaluate and reflect upon your teaching experiences daily
- Analyze problems.
- Seek solutions through brainstorming, readings, and consultations with professional colleagues.
- Implement new strategies and assess the effectiveness of changed teaching behaviors.
- Remember that problem-solving is much more productive when you are rested.
- Make consistent efforts to improve.
- Complete the self-assessment Notes sections frequently following instruction.
Demonstrate Professionalism
- Recognize the connection between teacher behaviors and student attitude, behavior and achievement.
- Adhere to the Code of Ethics and Standard Practices of Educators in Texas.
- Take careful notes during planning sessions and other meetings.
- Be flexible.
- Take initiative.
- Show creativity.
- Maintain a sense of humor.
- Accept responsibility.
- Consider suggestions.
- Accept constructive criticism.
- Accept your own mistakes.
- Be a reflective teacher.
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