The first year of field experiences focuses on analyzing effective instruction and incorporating the elements of effective instruction into your initial interactions with students. Teacher candidates in Early Childhood, Elementary, Middle School, and Special Education enroll in two courses, Field Experience 1 and Field Experience 2. Candidates in Secondary Education enroll in a single course, Instructional Coaching 1, which is always offered during the Spring semester.
Individualized Coaching and Field Experience 1 & 2
Early Childhood Education
Candidates in Early Childhood Education fulfill their first and second required field experiences through enrollment in 1 credit hour courses, Individualized Coaching and Field Experience 1 and 2. The courses meet remotely 1 hour per week for 16 weeks using Zoom. The instructional goal is to develop candidates’ understanding of effective instruction with infants and toddlers and pre-school students through careful observation and engagement with Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum and Practices (DAP). DAP resources are the primary tool used to strengthen candidates’ understanding of effective instruction, but candidates also are introduced to the Danielson Framework for Teaching, the Illinois Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards, Illinois Social/Emotional Learning Standards, the edTPA, and other program- or content-specific assessment tools.
Candidates in Early Childhood Education develop their emerging instructional skills and knowledge through a sequence of 25 hours (FE 1) and then 50 hours (FE 2) of observation and practice teaching. Field Experience 1 requires a placement in an infant-toddler classroom and Field Experience 2 requires a placement in a pre-school classroom. In each field experience, instructional coaches observe teacher candidates one time (FE 1) and two times (FE 2) during the semester as they practice teaching and provide feedback to candidates using an Instructional Look For’s Assessment Tool. This tool gives significant attention to seven key elements of effective instruction.
Teacher Candidate Time Commitment for Field Experience 1:
6 hours of instructional video observation and review assigned by your instructor
10 hours of large group analysis and reflection on instruction and instructional frameworks
8 hours of reading and writing assigned by your instructor
25 hours of observation and practice teaching
1 hour of individualized coaching provided by the course instructor
50 hours
Teacher Candidate Time Commitment for Field Experience 2:
5 hours of instructional video observation and review assigned by your instructor
15 hours of large group analysis and reflection on instruction and instructional frameworks
8 hours of reading and writing assigned by your instructor
50 hours of observation and practice teaching
2 hours of individualized coaching provided by the course instructor
80 hours
Elementary, Middle School and Special Education
Candidates in Elementary, Middle School and Special Education fulfill their first and second required field experiences through enrollment in 1 credit hour courses, Individualized Coaching and Field Experience 1 and 2. The courses meet remotely 1 hour per week for 16 weeks using Zoom. The instructional goal is to develop candidates’ understanding of effective instruction through tutoring and careful observation and analysis of age- and grade-appropriate instruction depicted in ATLAS, a library of authentic video cases developed by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. The Danielson Framework for Teaching is the overarching tool used to strengthen candidates’ understanding of effective instruction, but candidates also are introduced to and use the Illinois Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards, Universal Design for Learning Guidelines, Illinois Social/Emotional Learning Standards, the edTPA and other program- or content-specific assessment tools.
Candidates in Elementary, Middle School, and Special Education develop their emerging instructional skills and knowledge through a sequence of 25 (FE 1) and then 50 hours (FE 2) of observations and practice teaching in a public or private classroom or tutoring (MCTC tutoring only, available to the Elementary program only). Course instructors observe teacher candidates one time (FE 1) and two times (FE 2) and provide one-on-one coaching to candidates over the duration of both experiences using the Instructional Look For’s Assessment Tool. This tool gives significant attention to seven key elements of effective instruction.
Teacher Candidate Time Commitment for Field Experience 1:
6 hours of instructional video observation and review assigned by your instructor
10 hours of large group analysis and reflection on instruction and instructional frameworks
8 hours of reading and writing assigned by your instructor
25 hours of observation and practice teaching
1 hour of individualized coaching provided by the course instructor
50 hours
Teacher Candidate Time Commitment for Field Experience 2:
5 hours of instructional video observation and review assigned by your instructor
15 hours of large group analysis and reflection on instruction and instructional frameworks
8 hours of reading and writing assigned by your instructor
50 hours of classroom observation and practice teaching or tutoring (MCTC – Elementary)
2 hours of individualized coaching provided by the course instructor
80 hours
Instructional Coaching 1
Secondary Education
During the first year of study, candidates in Secondary Education fulfill their field experience requirement through enrollment in a 3 credit hour Instructional Coaching course. This course focuses on analyzing instruction and delivering microteaching (practice teaching targeted at an audience of peers) within a culturally responsive framework. A key resource for the instructional coaching that takes place is the video library ATLAS, which contains a multitude of authentic video cases developed by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. The Danielson Framework for Teaching is the primary tool used to strengthen candidates’ understanding of effective instruction, but candidates also are introduced to and use the Illinois Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards, Universal Design for Learning Guidelines, Illinois Social/Emotional Learning Standards, the edTPA and other content-specific assessment tools.
Time Commitment for Instructional Coaching 1:
10 hours of instructional video observation and review assigned by your instructor
37.5 hours of microteaching and large group analysis and reflection
72.5 hours of reading and written reflection or instructional performance
120 hours