RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE COOPERATING TEACHER:
How each cooperating teacher handles the observation and assessment of the student teacher is a matter of individual preference. Regular and frequent observation of the student teacher with descriptive comments communicated to the student as soon as possible will facilitate his/her learning the skills and attitudes necessary to become an effective teacher.
GUIDELINES FOR
WEEK ONE WITH A STUDENT TEACHER:
GUIDELINES DURING
SUBSEQUENT WEEKS (WEEKS 2-10):
To assist the student teacher:
To provide planning assistance:
To assess progress of the student teacher:
To facilitate communication between the university and
your school:
RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE STUDENT TEACHER:
Prior to student teaching:
1. Learn of your student teaching placement and meet with your university supervisor.
2. Obtain personal liability insurance coverage. The teacher, the school, and student teacher are legally responsible for injuries or other situations that may occur when working with students. This insurance may be obtained by joining Education Minnesota, or by purchasing insurance from a private company. Application forms for Education Minnesota are in the appendix.
3. Register with the University of Minnesota-Morris Career Center to establish your credential file for placement purposes. See appendix.
4. Arrange for housing and transportation. It is strongly recommended that you reside in the community in which you are assigned to student teach.
5. Call your cooperating teacher(s) to arrange a meeting so that you can plan what units and lessons you will teach during your student teaching experience.
6. Ask for copies of any textbooks, teacher’s manuals, and other materials that will assist you in preparing for your classes.
7. Cut down on your commitments. Student teaching is exhausting!
During student teaching:
Become familiar
with general expectations of the University of Minnesota-Morris during this
field experience:
1. Submit the Student Teaching Placement and Schedule form to the UMM Education Office as soon as placement information is finalized.
2. Inform your university supervisor of your local address and phone number.
3. Abide by the philosophy, regulations, policies and standards of behavior and dress of the school. Ask your cooperating teacher for a copy of those policies and discuss them with him/her.
4. Follow the same regulations regarding calendar, daily time schedule as the teachers in the school to which you are assigned. You are expected to arrive at school at the time set for teachers in your school.
5. Conduct yourself as a regular member of the teaching faculty in line with relevant laws and the Code of Ethics for Minnesota Teachers. See appendix.
6.
Call your school office and cooperating teacher
immediately if you cannot attend school because of illness or other extenuating
circumstances. A student that misses
more than three days of student teaching for any reason during a term must make
a plan for the extended time and discuss it with his/her cooperating teacher
and university supervisor.
7. Accept extra curricular assignments that appeal to your interests and enhance your marketability if they do not detract from your performance in the classroom, which is your first responsibility. At the discretion of the school, a student teacher may be paid for supervising extra curricular activities. However, the local teacher collective bargaining contract may forbid this or specify conditions under which it is permissible.
8. Maintain daily a reflective journal in which you record your perceptions, observations, insights, anecdotes, self-assessment of lessons, etc. This journal must be available to your university supervisor each time he/she visits and is a part of his/her assessment of your student teaching. See appendix.
9. Become familiar with the course syllabus/course content, course texts and materials, and course expectations.
10. Continue collecting material applicable to each of the ten Standards of Effective Practice for your portfolio, which will be assessed during the professional development course following student teaching.
11. Collect materials from lessons, projects, photographs of the classroom and student work, bulletin boards, etc., which can be used for the Teaching Exposition during the professional development course following student teaching.
12. Start a file or notebook of teaching ideas, activities, and resources.
13. Videotape a lesson after a few weeks of teaching and self-assess it. (See appendix) Repeat the process toward the end of your student teaching and compare your skills and abilities with the earlier tape. Record insights in your journal.
14. Design and distribute a student evaluation form asking your students for feedback on your teaching.
Become familiar with the classroom and students:
1. Observe your cooperating teacher’s classroom, the teaching area, and related areas at several grade levels.
2. Become familiar with resource materials in the classroom.
3. Become familiar with resource materials you could use outside the classroom, in the media center, and in the community.
4. Analyze the physical arrangement of the building and classroom, and available resources. Notice the arrangement of tables/desks, the placement of teacher’s desk in relation to student desks, the use of posters/pictures/student work on walls, the use of plants or music.
5. Become familiar with classroom routines and policies, i.e., what is the homework policy? What is the policy for late work? What is the attendance and tardiness policy? How are students assessed and graded?
6. Learn how to use electronic attendance and/or grading systems.
7. Learn the students’ names as soon as possible and use them at every opportunity. Get to know students as individuals by observing them both within and outside the classroom.
8. Develop an understanding of the social and cognitive needs of students as individuals and as members of groups.
9. Observe your cooperating teacher and other teachers teaching style and classroom management techniques. Observe their instructional strategies and the circumstances under which they use direct or indirect instruction. Note their use of group work to accomplish lesson objectives.
Become familiar with the school and school
authority:
1. Ask your cooperating teacher to introduce you to key personnel in your school—the principal, vice-principals, the nurse, counselors, the media specialist, special education staff, etc.
2. Learn what is expected of classroom teachers by conversing with your cooperating teacher(s), the principal, special education teachers, secretaries and others in the school.
3. Learn about the school and additional responsibilities of teachers by attending teachers’ meetings and parent/teacher association meetings.
4. Find out about innovative programs and practices in the school system.
5. Become informed about school and district policies regarding attendance, passes, makeup assignments, discipline, textbook adoption and conditions of teacher employment.
6. Become acquainted with school facilities, services and equipment.
7. Become familiar with areas of access to computers and the Internet.
8. Learn the school’s procedure for duplicating materials for use in the classroom.
9. Learn how to use the photocopier if teachers are allowed to access it.
10. Note the location of the counselors’ offices and under what circumstances you can access student records.
11. Become aware of all sources of information in the school concerning students, the information each provides, and the appropriate use of this information. Discuss the Data Privacy Act with your cooperating teacher.
Become familiar with the role of the teacher:
1. Plan lessons and units suitable to the needs and interests of your students. Consider both short-term and long-term objectives.
2. Conduct long and short-term lesson planning with your cooperating teacher. The University of Minnesota-Morris Education Department expects a lesson plan filled out according to one of the templates in the appendix (or approved by your university supervisor) for each lesson you teach. These lesson plans must be available to your university supervisor each time he/she visits and are a part of his/her assessment of your student teaching.
3. Discuss beforehand with your cooperating teacher all lessons you teach.
4. Know and apply the Standards of Effective Practice to your lesson planning. Use a variety of instructional strategies. Include motivation, active participation, and assessment in every lesson.
5. Whenever possible, participate in team planning and team teaching.
6. Accept expanding teaching responsibilities that culminate with your participation in the full range of teacher and teaching activities.
7. Engage in reflective practice. Analyze lessons and assess your teaching. Make connections among previous, current, and future lessons.
8. Ask for specific, concrete feedback from your cooperating teacher and university supervisor.
9. Confer regularly with your cooperating teacher regarding individual lesson plans, unit plans, observations, progress, and special problems.
10. Ask questions!
Complete assignments:
Secondary:
1. Prepare, teach, and evaluate a two week (10 class session) detailed unit plan for one of your classes. Use the format you learned and used for the unit you created in your Ed. 4102 class.
2. Select
one student and complete a case study of that student following the guideline
in the appendix. This case study is to
be given to your university supervisor following the completion of student
teaching and is a course requirement for successful completion of student
teaching. (See appendix)
3. Maintain
a daily reflective journal of your teaching.
This journal is to be available for your university supervisor each time
he/she visits and is a course requirement for successful completion of student
teaching. (See appendix)
4. Prepare
written plans for every lesson, using one of the templates in the appendix or
one approved by your cooperating teacher and university supervisor. These lesson and unit plans are to be
available for your university supervisor each time he/she visits and are a
course requirement for successful completion of student teaching.
5. Self-assess in writing at least one lesson each day. The assessment can be done on the lesson sheet and/or in your reflective journal.
6. Assume sole responsibility for the full range of teaching and learning activities in the classroom for a minimum of two weeks in each class to which you are assigned.
7. Integrate activities into your teaching that demonstrate your understanding of diversity and your ability to fulfill the diversity requirement. The diversity assignment is due during the professional development course.
Complete tasks and assignments after student
teaching:
1. Remind your cooperating teacher(s) to complete and submit the Summative Evaluation of Student Teaching and Teacher Recommendation form (See appendix).
2. Complete
the diversity assignment to hand in during the professional development course
(See appendix).
3. Prepare
a senior presentation to deliver during the professional development course
(See appendix).
4. Select
a book about teaching and learning to discuss and review orally during the
professional development class. Watch
your e-mail for the professional development course syllabus and book
suggestions.
*You will complete and submit your application for a teaching license during the professional development course.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE UNIVERSITY SUPERVISOR:
1. Assist students in preparing for their student teaching assignments.
2. Assure student teaching assignments are appropriate.
3. Meet with the cooperating teacher(s) in each school to answer questions and/or clarify information shortly after the student teacher arrives in the school.
4. Meet with the student teacher to answer questions and/or clarify information before he/she begins the student teaching assignment. Meet with him/her again shortly after he/she arrives at the student teaching school assignment to further clarify information and answer questions.
5. Monitor each placement carefully to prevent problems, concerns, or conflicts.
6. Visit the school at least four times to observe the student teacher. Complete Student Teaching Formative Evaluation forms during each visit (See appendix).
7. Confer with the student teacher and the cooperating teacher about your observations and the student’s progress in the school setting.
8. Meet with relevant school administrators. Gather information about the student teacher’s progress, and resolve any concerns about the student teaching experience and relationships between the school and university.
9. Remind cooperating teachers to share their Student Teaching Formative Evaluation forms with you.
10. Remind cooperating teachers to complete the Summative Evaluation of Student Teaching and Teacher Recommendation forms and submit them to the University.
11. Adjunct faculty supervisors of UMM students must also complete and submit the Student Teaching Formative Evaluation and Summative Evaluation of Student Teaching and Teacher Recommendation forms for inclusion in the student’s placement file (See appendix).
12. Advise each student teacher on lesson and unit planning.
13. Ask to see lesson plans for the day you visit and also all other lesson plans created by the student teacher. Ask to see these plans each time you visit. Share observations and insights.
14. Remind student teachers to videotape a lesson early in their student teaching and again near the end of the experience. Ask the student to share his/her observations/insights.
15. Ask to read the reflective journal each time you visit the student teacher. Share your observations and insights.
16. Remind students to keep student projects/ bulletin boards, lessons, photographs and other materials for the Education Exposition to be held during the professional development class.
17. Remind students to constantly add artifacts to their Standards of Effective Practice portfolio, which will be assessed daily during the professional development course.
18. Submit a grade of S (satisfactory) or N (not satisfactory) for the student’s University of Minnesota, Morris transcript.