Preparing Future Teachers: Student Teaching at George Fox University
by Kris Molitor, EdD
What is student teaching?
Student teaching is an opportunity for teachers in training (also known as teacher candidates) to work in a real school and practice and learn teaching skills. The traditional placement involves working in a classroom with an experienced teacher, who is there to mentor and support the student teacher. The experience typically begins with observation and gradual hand-off of responsibility until the student teacher becomes the lead teacher for a minimum of nine full weeks.
What’s different and/or better about doing student teaching at George Fox compared to other schools?
George Fox offers a great deal of support. In addition to having a classroom teacher (CT) mentor and university mentor, the faculty, cohort leaders and advisors for the programs also stay actively engaged with student teachers throughout the experience. George Fox also has strong partnerships with many districts, which helps us to make strong placements.
Do I have to find my own placement, or do I get help? How are teaching placements selected?
Our clinical practice office arranges this experience for you, based on your preferences and the district response.
For a traditional placement, George Fox will reach out with a preference list for the content area, location, and grade level that the candidate would like to teach. We then reach out to districts in order of preference to find a placement. The districts determine the outcome of these requests. We have many district partners that facilitate this well with George Fox.
If I’m already working at a school, can I do my student teaching there?
Typically, yes. We work with district partners to make sure the placement will meet requirements established by the Teacher Standards Practices Commission. For example, there must be a licensed classroom teacher (CT) or administrator in the school who has three years of experience, is endorsed in the appropriate content area, and can serve as a mentor. We refer to these as internships.
Can I work while student teaching at George Fox?
This is dependent on the role. If you are an instructional assistant (IA), we may be able to devise a plan to work partially with this role in your school. If you have a current teaching position, we can also often work with that. We do not recommend taking on another job outside of the teaching field, as this is an extremely important part of the experience and the focus should be on teaching.
Do you get paid for student teaching as a George Fox University student teacher?
If you have a paid district position, you may be able to continue in that role for your student teaching. For a traditional placement, you do not get paid for the experience.
How long does student teaching last? Do I teach for the full school day?
Student teaching typically occurs in the last term(s) of the program, after all coursework has been completed.
For our online accelerated teaching degree and master of arts in teaching (MAT), the experience is one full 16-week semester. For the traditional undergraduate program, student teaching is part time in the fall and full time in the spring for a year-long experience.
Candidates are expected to be in the classroom, following teaching hours, all day and every day, for the duration of the experience. There is a gradual hand-off of responsibility as you progress. The minimum requirement is to spend nine weeks as the lead teacher, taking over all main teacher duties.
Am I on my own while student teaching? How does supervision and observation work?
At George Fox, you’ll have both a classroom teacher (CT) and a university supervisor, as well as a cohort leader or advisor support. Oregon TSPC requires a CT and university supervisor for all experiences. Both the CT and the university supervisor do classroom observations and evaluations throughout the term.
What are common student teaching challenges? What are the best things about student teaching?
Student teaching is when candidates transition from being students to being teachers. This transition can be challenging as candidates learn how to implement all the strategies, skills and ideas from their coursework into a space with real, live students.
Classroom management is typically a place where candidates experience much growth. What comes with working through those challenges is the opportunity to form strong connections with students, families, cooperating teachers and the school community.
What else should prospective students know about student teaching?
It’s important to know that student teaching is one of the most impactful experiences of a teacher education program, so prioritizing time for it is very important.
Another thing to be aware of is that TSPC requires a Teacher Performance Assessment (TPA). This is typically completed during the student-teaching experience. George Fox has an internal TPA, and we work closely with students to successfully complete this during their classroom experience.