Student teaching is the culminating experience in the MA PreK-12 leading to Initial Certification track and involves a synthesis of all the dance skills, knowledge and experience of the teacher candidate. Working within the public school setting for an extended period of time, students combine theory and practice. A field-based internship engaging the teacher candidate with the natural setting of the public school environment, the student teaching experience provides the candidate with the opportunity to further develop competencies under the mentorship of a school-based teacher educator (SBTE). Working with the college faculty supervisor, the SBTE, who is certified to teach in dance, works to expand the teacher candidate's pedagogical knowledge and further develop skills required of successful teaching.
Of importance to note, all teacher candidates must complete all assigned courses established within the teacher candidate's plan of study including 105 observation hours before entering the student teaching internship. Student teachers must have maintained a 3.0 GPA academic average prior to student teaching. A demonstration of professional maturity as established through dance teacher dispositions indicates a student is ready to enter the field of student teaching. A satisfactory performance in both elementary (DNS 584/Children's Dance II) and secondary field teaching experiences (DNS 581/Secondary Schools I) is necessary to ensure the student is ready to enroll in the student teaching experience. Students who submit a student teaching application and are approved by the college faculty supervisor are permitted to enroll for a student teaching internship.
A student teaching application includes a letter of intention, which states the specific dimensions of the proposed teaching internship i.e. what will be taught (academic subjects e.g. history, anatomy, kinesiology, cultural studies and technical styles). The proposal must also include the teaching schedule in terms of when classes start (day and date) and conclude, the sites/schools the candidate is interested in applying for and the names of all SBTEs involved. A two-page resume listing dance and teaching experiences must also be submitted.
The student teaching experience is a 9 credit semester internship distributed across two 8-week quarters (two equal halves of a full semester) full-time. Each student teacher is required to provide professional service in each placement for the entire time school is open. The time schedule for each public school semester varies. However, for each placement, a minimum of eight weeks must be completed by the student teacher. A student teacher is not excused for planning periods or activity periods unless specifically approved by the college faculty supervisor and the SBTE. A student teaching internship must include an elementary experience (grades preK-6) and secondary experience (grades 7-12).
The following documents are resources for the student teaching experience: