Department of Education

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Department Chair: Sue Jolly-Smith

Education Faculty

Professors: Hal E. Jenkins, II, Sue Jolly-Smith, Barbara Moore
Associate Professors: Twila Alpe, Richard Holden, Monica Riley
Assistant Professors: Jeanne Holland, Linda Mahoney, Royal Toy
Instructor: Kimberly Taylor-Gathings

The Teacher as Reflective Decision Maker is the model for the teacher education program at Mississippi University for Women. The program has adopted the Core Standards of the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards as goals for candidates. Further explanations of requirements and expectations are in the Teacher Education Handbook published by the Office of Field Experiences, and available through the MUW website.

Conceptual Framework - Undergraduate

A teacher who graduates from the Teacher Education Program at Mississippi University for Women should have the following knowledge, skills, and dispositions. He/She is expected:

1. To understand the central concepts, tools of inquiry, structures, and professional standards of the discipline(s) he or she teaches and to create learning experiences that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful for students.
2. To understand how children learn and develop and to provide learning opportunities that support their intellectual, physical, psychological, social, moral, and personal development.
3. To understand how students differ in their approaches to learning and to create instructional opportunities that challenge diverse learners.
4. To understand and use a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students’ development of critical and creative thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.
5. To use an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
6. To use knowledge of effective verbal and nonverbal communication, along with technology, to foster active inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction in the classroom.
7. To plan instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals.
8. To understand and use formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and insure the continuous intellectual, physical, psychological, social, moral, and personal development of the learner.
9. To be a reflective decision maker who continually evaluates the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (e.g., students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community) and who grows professionally, actively seeking out opportunities for self understanding.
10. To work collaboratively with students, colleagues, parents, and agencies in the larger community to support student learning and well-being.

Conceptual Framework-Graduate

1. Teachers are committed to students and their learning.
2. Teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students.
3. Teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring student learning.
4. Teachers think systematically about their practice and learn from their experience.
5. Teachers are members of learning communities.

NCATE Accreditation

All programs in education are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). This accreditation covers initial teacher preparation programs and advanced educator preparation programs. Since many states have reciprocity agreements based on graduation from NCATE-accredited schools, graduates of NCATE-accredited institutions will generally find it easier to apply for licensure when they move out of state.

Quality Assurance Policy

All teacher education programs are covered by the Mississippi Institution of Higher Learning Quality Assurance Policy. The university warrants the quality of our graduates for a period of two years immediately following graduation. Certain guidelines do apply. Contact the College of Education and Human Sciences for more information.

Admission To Teacher Education

Students seeking admission to Teacher Education must submit documentation of the following to the Coordinator of Field Experiences:

1. Application for admission to Teacher Education.
2. Curriculum check sheet and tentative program.
3. Minimum grade of C in ED 300.
4. Overall 2.5 GPA on a minimum of 44 semester hours completed.
5. Satisfactory score on the Pre-Professional Skills Subtests (Reading, Writing, and Math) of the Praxis Series (Praxis I) OR minimum ACT scores at the time of entrance into college, composite of 21 with no subscore below 18.
6. Verification of completed criminal background check through the university approvaed site.

Note to Transfer Students:

Before registering, students transferring to MUW during the junior or senior year who intend to get a teaching license should report to the Department of Education for guidance.

Admission To Student Teaching (Teacher Internship)

Students must submit applications for Student Teaching no later than October 1 for Spring Semester admission or February 15 for Fall Semester admission.

Following admission to Teacher Education, a student must complete a minimum of one semester of coursework before being admitted to Student Teaching (Teacher Internship). Materials for application to student teaching (teacher internship) will be distributed at a required orientation seminar at the beginning of each semester. Students seeking admission to Student Teaching (Teacher Internship) must submit documentation of the following to the Coordinator of Field Experiences, College of Education and Human Sciences:

1. Admission to Teacher Education at least one semester prior to filing application for admission to Student Teaching.
2. Application form for Student Teaching (Teacher Internship).
3. Three photographs.
4. Verification of experience with school age children and/or youth (75 hours).
5. Passing scores on Praxis II: Principles of Learning & Teaching, and Specialty Area Test.
6. Letter of introduction to cooperating teacher.
7. Résumé.
8. Ethics statement/insurance verification and release.
9. Health information and profile.
10. Teaching Center request for placement form.
11. Completion of 84 semester hours of credit (to include all required professional education courses).
12. Minimum grade of C in each of the following: EN 101 and EN 300 (EN 102 if transferred prior to first semester of attendance at MUW); COM 101; MA 113 or higher (excluding MA 123); all professional education courses and all endorsement area courses.
13. In addition to the above, elementary education majors must have a minimum grade of C in MA 111 and MA 112.

Professional Field Experiences

Students in teacher education will be required to complete field-based assignments which are designed as a part of each methods course. Students in teacher education curricula should plan their schedules to allow approximately two to five hours per week in related field activities. These field experiences are assigned and coordinated through the Office of Field Experiences in the Department of Education. Students in field experiences will be required to complete a criminal background check through the MUW Office of Field Experiences.

Students admitted to the MUW Teacher Education Program will plan their schedules to insure one semester of the senior year for the Professional Semester, which consists of a fourteen-week student teaching experience in the schools. The student will also enroll in ED 401, Classroom Management, for which an additional three semester hours credit will be earned. The program of the Professional Semester will be followed without deviation. No regular college course, other than ED 401, may be taken for credit during the Professional Semester, except with the approval of the Admissions/Exceptions Committee for Student Teaching.

Students majoring in elementary education need to plan their schedules so that they can take all their methods courses as a block during the semester preceding student teaching.

Recommendation For Licensure

The student will be eligible for the recommendation by the institution for a Mississippi teacher’s license on completion of all degree requirements and approved teacher education program requirements, to include a minimum grade of C in Student Teaching (Teacher Internship) taken in the professional semester. Students must have an official copy of their scores on the Praxis Series forwarded to both the Mississippi Department of Education, Office of Educator Licensure and the College of Education and Human Sciences, Mississippi University for Women.

Notice Regarding Licensure:

Requirements governing licensure in the State of Mississippi are continually revised. As a result, requirements for degrees leading to licensure are subject to change from those published in this Bulletin. The student is advised to secure a correct current curriculum guide from the College of Education and Human Sciences office to insure that both degree requirements and license requirements are met.

Teacher Education Curricula

All students preparing to teach should follow the appropriate program in the next section. This includes Elementary Education K-6; Special Subject Area-Grades K-12 (Art, Music, and Physical Education) and the various subject areas of Secondary Education-Grades 7-12 (Chemistry/Physical Science; English; Family & Consumer Sciences; Biology; Mathematics; Social Studies). A minimum grade of C is required in each Education course, in EN 101 English Composition and EN 300 Advanced Composition, MA 111-112 Modern Elementary Mathematics I & II (for elementary education majors), MA 113 College Algebra, COM 101 Oral Communication, and in each endorsement area course. See academic advisor for program planning.

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