Hands-on Learning
Clinical Experiences in Teacher Education
All education students are required to complete one 30 hour of non-credit clinical observation experience in a K-12 school during their second or third semesters. This experience is completed in conjunction with ED 201 Philosophical Foundations of Education. Transfer students need to begin and complete their clinical experience as soon as possible.
Clinical experiences are designed to allow students to better understand the profession by observing actual situations. Through these experiences, they will come to appreciate what goes on behind the scenes in the schools and other professional settings. Students will have a new appreciation of the unique learning styles and often the unique learning challenges of children and youth.
Observations in schools and participation in various school activities will give them real encounters with professionals (teachers, administrators and other school personnel), children and adolescents. These early experiences will assist the student in determining if they are committed to teaching as their profession.
Education Practica
All education students are required to take three one-credit education practicum courses that are connected to specific methods courses in their educational program. During each practicum, students spend 30 hours in a school learning under an experienced teacher. Students will also develop and teach lessons that will be observed by a Husson faculty member. These lesson plans, along with the artifacts (student work, test questions, work sheets, project work), can become part of your ePortfolio.
In the Practicum I, II, and III, students need to teach one, two, and three lessons respectively. At the end of each practicum, students are required to write a reflective essay analyzing their practicum experiences. Reflective practice is a significant component of their total experience in the Teacher Education program. Reflecting on the lesson as prepared and taught is important to growth as a professional.
Student Teaching
Student teaching is an immersive full time, 16-week professional experience supervised by a cooperating teacher from a local school and a Husson faculty member. Student teaching follows the cooperating school district's academic calendar.
Students will produce a capstone ePortfolio at the end of their student-teaching experience. In conjunction with the teaching experiences, students are required to return to campus to take a seminar in teaching course each week. This capstone course is designed to provide education students with the opportunity to reflect and assess their knowledge, skills and attitude in preparation for beginning a teaching career. As students engage in student teaching in schools, they accumulate a wealth of experiences that can be discussed in this class. The seminar is designed around Maine's Teaching Standards and the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).