Curriculum Information

Student Teaching and Emphasis Curriculum

• Practicum/Student Teaching

 

Student Teaching in Bilingual Education

ITSF 4323 and ITSF 4720

 

            The student teaching experience in the bilingual education is a necessary part of New York State Certification for Childhood Education and the bilingual extension. While the course is open to all students, it is a requirement for all Stream A students and Stream B, and Professional Students who do not have their own classroom. Students in Transitional Stream B, Stream B students with their own classroom, and Students with Initial certification with their own classroom will take ITSF 4323 but will not have to follow the guidelines of the below regulations as their classrooms will serve as their practicum site.

 

Student Teaching Requirements

 

 

• Students will be placed in New York City Classrooms where a language other than English is spoken for at least part of the day. To the degree possible, students will be placed in additive bilingual programs.*

• Students who are placed in someone else’s classroom should take the class for 4 credits.
• Students are expected to student teach in their placements three full days a week. The schedule should be worked out to fit your cooperating teacher’s schedule and your own, but the days must be consistent from week to week.
• You will be visited formally four to six times by a supervisor from the program. Please serve as the go between in facilitating the times of the observations between your cooperating teacher and your supervisor. During the observations, the supervisor should observe you teaching a small group or the whole class. At least half of these observations should be conducted in the language other than English.
• You will submit journal entries reflecting on your day-to-day practice in the classroom to your supervisor. These can be submitted electronically.
• Before entering the classroom, you must have had a TB test and the results must be submitted to the Office of Teacher Education located on the fourth floor of Milbank Library.
• You must also fill out the Student Teaching Packet that can be obtained through the Office of Teacher Education located on the fourth floor of Milbank Library.
• New York State requires that for Childhood Certification students must have a student teaching experience in a classroom 1^st through 3^rd grade and another student teaching placement in a classroom 4^th through 6^th grade. Depending on your previous teaching experiences, the Instructor of ITSF 4323 and ITSF 4720 will place you in the appropriate environment. Please discuss your previous teaching experience with the Student Teaching Coordinator, Dr. Patricia Velasco, so she can put you in the appropriate placement.
• Unless you have prior certification, you may not be put into a situation where you are responsible for an entire class without the teacher present. Please make this clear to the teacher.

 

Patricia Velasco is in charge of all placements and assignments of supervisors. Please contact her with any particular questions at velasco@tc.edu.

 

Student teaching is a critical part of your teacher preparation. As a student teacher, remember you are a guest in someone else’s room. Work on developing a respectful and collaborative relationship with your cooperating teacher. Also, remember that students will see you as another teacher in their classroom. Professionalism that includes how you dress, if you are timely and prepared, and the way you present yourself in classroom, is extremely important.

 

Cooperating teachers are selected because they are both dedicated and successful bilingual teachers. While you should work out convenient times to sit and co-plan, at a minimum you must agree on at least an hour a week (that can be divided into 2 half hour sessions) to co-plan.  Additionally cooperating teachers should be part of post observation conferences with the supervisor to the extent that this is possible.

 

Each student teacher is responsible for keeping track and turning in student teaching hours at the end of the semester to the Office of Teacher Education. These records are necessary in order to apply for State Certification.

 

Course Requirements

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It is hoped that the following information helps you in planning your program of study.

• As an emphasis student who is interested in state certification (Pre- K-12), a supervised teaching experience is required in a bilingual/bicultural classroom setting where the language other than English is the medium of instruction.

• If you do not have your own bilingual/bicultural classroom, sign up with your advisor. You will be placed as a student teacher in a bilingual/bicultural classroom with a cooperating teacher. You will be expected to be at your placement for at least 3 full non-paid days per week for the duration of the College semester as well as meet other requirements.

• Emphasis students who come into the program and are presently full-time teachers in a bilingual/bicultural classroom where the language other than English is the medium of instruction should register for the practicum (ITSF4323).

• If you are a full-time teacher but are not presently in a bilingual/bicultural classroom and wish to register for the practicum (ITSF4323), make arrangements with your school principal so as to ensure that you have a bilingual/bicultural classroom where the language other than English is the medium of instruction during the period of the practicum (ITSF4323).

• An emphasis student who is interested in state certification (Middle or Secondary 6-12) is required to complete a practicum experience.

• If you find yourself teaching at the secondary level, you should make sure that you have a bilingual/bicultural education classroom where the language other than English is the medium of instruction. This needs to be coordinated with some care since your previous teaching experience in a bilingual/bicultural classroom and your practicum (ITSF4323) experience need to complement each other: one should be in Middle School (6-9) and the other in high school (10-12).

• If you are presently teaching in a situation where the above-mentioned does not occur, you should postpone your practicum (ITSF4323) experience until you have such a classroom or, you should be willing to leave your present position and be placed as a non-paid student teacher (ITSF4720) in a bilingual/bicultural classroom.

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Course of Study: Emphasis

 

            Students who wish to obtain an M.A., Ed.M. or Doctoral degree within another cooperating program may choose Bilingual/Bicultural Education as an emphasis.  These students will take interdisciplinary and highly individualized core courses within both programs.  Emphasis students will simultaneously meet both their department’s requirements and the requirements of the Program in Bilingual/Bicultural Education.  Emphasis students who already hold teaching certification and wish to be recommended for the New York State's Bilingual Education Extension Certification, must take the 16 credits of the Advanced Certificate on page 22.

           

The number of points required for Bilingual Emphasis varies with the degree desired:

12 points for an M.A. (no transfer credits accepted)

18 points for an Ed.M.

24 points for an Ed.D.

           

Following is a list of courses recommended for emphasis students. The content and scope of courses will be contingent upon the major, degree, and interest of student.

If you have any doubts, please consult an advisor.

 

ITSF    4021                Foundations of Bilingual/Bicultural Education                 3

ITSF    4020                Bilingualism and Disability[1]                                                        1

ITSF    4024                Linguistic Foundations of Bilingual/Bicultural Education  3

ITSF    4027                Current Topics in Bilingual/Bicultural Education             3

ITSF    4028                Teaching Literacy in Bilingual Settings                            3

ITSF    4075                Cross-Cultural Communication and Classroom Ecology            3

ITSF    4121                Bilingual/Bicultural CurriculumDesgnElem/MiddleSch[2]   3

ITSF    4133                Curriculum& Methods for Bilingual Ed: Science             2-3

ITSF    4134                Curriculum& Methods for Bilingual Ed: Math (see ftn39)           2-3

ITSF    4150                Teacher Inquiry: Bilingual Education[3]                             1-3

ITSF    4323                Practicum in Bilingual/Bicultural Education                                 3

ITSF    4720                StudentTeaching in Bilingual/Bicultural Settings              4

ITSF    5021                Assessment and Evaluation in Bilingual Education                      3

ITSF    5024                Bi/Multicultural Education: International Perspectives     3

ITSF    5032                Guidance Technfor the Bil/Bic Child & Family               3

ITSF    6521                Seminar in Bil & BilEd (Ed.M. or doctoral students)                  1-3