The MAT students student teach (EDT 519) for 10 weeks and use the
remaining 6 weeks to complete their research project for EDT 690 Field
Practicum in Instruction. Since they only participate in 10 weeks
of student teaching, a split assignment is not a possibility. The
ten weeks meets minimum state standards for student teaching experience.
For each student teaching (EDT 519) placement the student teacher
is assigned a cooperating teacher, who is a classroom teacher with
the appropriate certification and teaching experience in 712 science
and who serves as the student teacher's primary clinical professor
(mentor, teacher, and guide). Among other duties, the cooperating
teacher confers regularly with the student teacher and assists with
and requires the planning of lessons and units by the student.
For each placement the student teacher is assigned a university supervisor,
who is the university representative and instructor of record, responsible
for ensuring the presence of effective interactions between the student
teacher and the cooperating teacher, for serving as the student teacher's
secondary clinical professor, for conducting the seminars, and for
grading the student at the end of the term. To the extent possible
the terms of faculty schedules, AYA science student teachers are supervised
by science education professors with 7-12 science teaching experience.
Most university supervisors have training in Pathwise™ and/or
Praxis III™, the Educational Testing Service's systems for mentoring
and evaluating first and second year teachers, which has been adopted
as the system on which the state of Ohio will base licensure application
decisions for beginning teachers. The department's immediate goal
is to ensure that all cooperating teachers have Pathwise training
also. In order to increase familiarity with this system and to enhance
the capability of program graduates to successfully pass their Praxis
III evaluations and receive State licensure, nurturing procedures
and evaluation instruments based upon the four domains and 19 criteria
of Pathwise and Praxis III are used by the cooperating teacher and
university supervisor during student teaching.
The schedule and topics of the student teaching seminars are determined
by the university supervisor. The seminars may or may not have predetermined
agenda, since significant seminar discussions arise from the current
concerns and interests of the student teachers. The university supervisor
may conduct the seminars or he or she may utilize special seminars
organized or conducted by the Career Planning and Placement Office
or by the Office of Student Teaching. Attendance at these seminars
is mandatory.
