Teacher education students have many opportunities to work with children and teachers in the local schools; in fact, we in the School of Education consider fieldwork integral to success. We believe that your skills will develop rapidly and effectively when you are learning from a professional teacher who is working with a UE professor. The UE School of Education provides three types of field placements:

Practicum

A practicum is a field placement within which a student performs a number of related teaching activities, but does not actually have many teaching responsibilities. In the practicum associated with EDUC-150 or EDUC-200, for example, undergraduates work with students and teachers in the school setting once or twice a week, usually for about two hours. This 9-12 week practicum is designed to help teacher education students experience life in a real classroom and get an accurate feel for teachers' responsibilities. In addition, the practicum provides an opportunity for students to work with small groups of children in very diverse classroom settings. Because students are working in the public schools, a limited criminal background check is done prior to the field placement.

Internship

Internships are much more intense than most other placements; candidates usually have regularly scheduled (4-5 times per week) planning and teaching responsibilities. During internships, candidates work closely with their respective mentor teachers, and although the teaching responsibilities are not full-time, they can be intense and challenging. For this reason, the standards for internships are quite high; after all, candidates must be accountable for not only their own learning, but the children's learning that is taking place when they are teaching.

Student Teaching

Student teaching is full-time teaching in a local school for an entire semester. Student eligibility for student teaching requires the following:

• Completion of all education course work with a C or better, while maintaining an overall GPA of a 3.0 or above.
• A GPA of at least 3.0 in the major teaching field
• A GPA of at least 2.75 in any minor field

Above and Beyond Activities

UE education majors are involved in the Evansville community, competently making life better for its citizens. Students are encouraged to get involved with one or more of the many student and community organizations connected to UE. Many education majors love to volunteer for events such as Family Literacy Day, after school programs, Best Buddies, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and College Mentors for Kids. Giving back and getting connected is easy at UE. Student organizations range from academic or professional groups to service-oriented, social, recreational, and religious groups. There is something for everyone! Students even have an opportunity to form their own student organizations through UE's Center for Student Engagement. No matter how students get involved, these activities help students prepare to better serve the world as compassionate and conscientious citizens.