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Mission Statement
The Wells College Teacher
Education Program proceeds from the belief that classroom teaching done
well is enormously complex. Mastery of subject matter is necessary
but hardly sufficient; to help their students understand and embrace important
knowledge and skills, teachers must understand learners as diverse intellectual,
emotional, and social beings. To help our students develop this understanding,
we take advantage of and build upon the foundation laid by a Wells general
education—the ability and inclination to engage with (rather than retreat
from) complexity, to examine arguments critically but also to imagine constructively,
and to exercise a strong ethical sense. We aim to graduate great
students who can model these liberal arts traits for their own students,
who can draw upon a rich store of instructional principles and practices,
and who collaborate with others to fulfill one of the major goals of Wells
College: “sharing the privileges of education with others.”
Programs We Offer
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Childhood (Elementary, grades
1-6) Certification (click here for details)
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Adolescence (Secondary, grades
7-12) Certification (click here for details)
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Education Minor Without Certification
(click here for details)
Distinguishing Features of Our Program
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Small classes (averaging about
10 students) enable close personal attention from faculty.
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Supervision during your student-teaching
semester is handled by Education Program faculty who know students well
and thoroughly understand the program’s commitments.
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All of our faculty are former
K-12 teachers who remain active in local schools. Here are some examples
of Education faculty and student involvement in the community:
Brain
Awareness Week
No
Excuses University
Readers
are World Leaders
More About Our Program's Commitments
The Wells College Teacher
Education Program implements the standards for teacher preparation in New
York State in a strong liberal-arts context. We are committed, for
example, to preparing teachers who can serve as all-around intellectual
and citizen role models for their students; who possess strong oral and
written communication skills that enable them to exchange ideas compellingly
with students, parents, colleagues, and the wider education community;
and who can bring learning standards alive by situating them within the
“big ideas” that help to define the disciplines but also transcend them.
This vision stands alongside a deep awareness of the practical challenges
and moral obligations of teaching in diverse classrooms. To create
powerful learning opportunities for all students, teachers must have the
desire, the will, and the tools to differentiate their instruction, as
well as principles and practices to guide classroom management. Our
program therefore emphasizes the design and use of diagnostic and formative
assessments (to help students and teachers see where they are), the use
of different amounts and kinds of support for learning (to help all students
reach important goals, even if by different routes), and the effective
use of challenging pedagogies (e.g., inquiry learning, Socratic dialogue).
Of course, none of this preparation
will be effective unless our students can practice what they are learning.
Our program is field-based, with each course requiring students to spend
time observing and/or interacting with K-12 students in schools, applying
the principles and strategies they have learned in class. Students
complete at least 100 hours of field experiences, as well as an internship,
before they do a full semester of student-teaching in the senior year.
Reflecting on the student-teaching experience in a multimedia portfolio,
and articulating these reflections in an oral defense, is how our students
document both their emerging knowledge and skill as a teacher and their
liberal arts strength.
Details about Our Programs
Childhood
(grades 1-6) Certification
• Students major
in one of the fields on the list
of approved majors.
• Required Education-related
courses
EDUC 105 Introduction
to Teaching
EDUC 275 Using Children’s
Literature in the Classroom
EDUC 315 Inclusive Classroom
EDUC 301 Balanced Literacy
I
EDUC 302 Balanced Literacy
II
EDUC 325 Managing and Motivating
Classrooms
EDUC 405 Elementary Methods
in Math & Science
EDUC 408 Portfolio Development
& Analysis (taken with student teaching)
PSY 210
Child Development
EDUC 320 Teaching for Social
Justice or
SOC 350 Sociology
of Education
• Student Teaching (EDUC 410):
Two 7-week placements
• Education Internship: Prior
to student teaching, students complete at least one education-related internship
during the January break or over the summer.
• For additional requirements,
please click here.
Adolescence
(grades 7-12) Certification
• Students major
in one of the fields in which we offer certification:
Biology
Chemistry
Physics
French
Spanish
English
Mathematics
History (for certification
in Social Studies)
• Required Education-related
courses
EDUC 105 Introduction
to Teaching
EDUC 275 Using Children’s
Literature in the Classroom
EDUC 315 Inclusive Classroom
EDUC 325 Managing and Motivating
Classrooms
EDUC 331 Reading & Writing
in the Content Areas I
EDUC 332 Reading & Writing
in the Content Areas II
EDUC 406 Instructional Strategies
in SecondaryEducation
EDUC 408 Portfolio Development
& Analysis (taken with student teaching)
PSY 318
Adolescent Development
EDUC 320 Teaching for Social
Justice or
SOC 350 Sociology
of Education
• Student Teaching (EDUC 410):
Two 7-week placements
• Education Internship: Prior
to student teaching, students complete at least one education-related internship
during the January break or over the summer.
• For additional requirements,
please click here.
Education
Minor Without Certification
Students who complete an
Education minor will not be immediately eligible for certification.
However, this coursework would provide a strong foundation for students
wishing to pursue certification through a Master of Arts in Teaching
(MAT) program.
Elementary Education
The following courses are
required for the Elementary minor:
EDUC 105 Introduction
to Teaching
EDUC 315 Inclusive Classroom
EDUC 301 Balanced Literacy
I
EDUC 302 Balanced Literacy
II
EDUC 405 Elementary Methods
in Math & Science
PSY 210
Child Development
SOC 350 Sociology
of Education or
EDUC 320 Teaching for Social
Justice
Secondary Education
The following courses are
required for the Secondary minor:
EDUC 105 Introduction
to Teaching
EDUC 315 Inclusive Classroom
EDUC 331 Reading & Writing
in the Content Areas I
EDUC 332 Reading & Writing
in the Content Areas II
EDUC 406 Instructional Strategies
for the Secondary Classroom
PSY 318 Adolescent
Development
SOC 350 Sociology of Education
or
EDUC 320 Teaching for Social
Justice
MEET
THE FACULTY
Notes
• During the 2008-2009 academic
year, 51 students were enrolled in Wells College’s teacher education program.
Three of these students participated in student teaching during that academic
year, teaching an average of 35 hours per week for a period of 15 weeks.
These same three students completed the teacher education program
at Wells during 2008-2009 and 100% of those who took the state ATS-W (Assessment
of Teaching Skills-Written) passed the test. For the LAST (Liberal Arts
and Sciences Test) as well, 100% of those who took it passed the test.
The statewide pass rate for the ATS-W during this same period was 100%,
while the statewide pass rate for the LAST was 98%. For the CST (Content
Specialty Test), 100% of Wells students who took it passed the test. The
statewide pass rate for the CST was 95%.
• This year, Title II legislation
requires us to report an update on pass rates for students who completed
the education program during the 2005-2006 year. Of the nine who took the
ATS-W, 100% passed. Of those who took the LAST, 100% passed. The comparable
statewide pass rates were 98% and 99%, respectively.
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