Overview

If you are pursuing a degree or teacher licensure in the College of Education and Public Policy (CEPP), you are required to participate in the prescribed field experience program. Field experience courses are numbered M101, M201, M301 and M401, and must be taken as shown in the degree requirements.

In the field experience program, you are introduced to teaching, educational concerns, goal setting, and professionalism. This distinctive program provides an organized series of courses designed to integrate all professional education courses with field experiences. The program allows you repeated opportunities to participate with teachers/pupils in classrooms. You must complete each phase before enrolling in the next.

EDUC F200 Examining Self as Teacher

The field experience component of the Examining Self as Teacher course includes 30 hours of observation/reflection in the students’ area(s) of interest. All course assignments coordinate with the candidate’s observation experiences. The EDUC F200 is an introductory level course examining issues in education as they relate to students deciding on teaching as a future career. By the end of EDUC F200, students should be able to describe major aspects of the education field and feel comfortable with their decision to pursue a major in education.

Early Childhood Education

The field experience component of the Early Childhood Program consists of two primary elements— lab experiences and practicum placements. The lab experiences are defined as sixty hours of observation of young children/early learning environments in a variety of settings, rural, urban, suburban, in conjunction with four courses— E330, Infant/Toddler Learning Environments; E337, Classroom Learning Environments; E333, Inquiry in Math and Science for Early Childhood; and P249, Child Growth and Development. The practicum placements provide an additional clinical experience in developmentally appropriate, early childhood settings. The practicum field experience incorporates the practice of designing appropriate lessons/experiences for young children in the early learning environment context, teaching lessons, assessing student learning needs, performing authentic assessments (formal and informal), and meeting with parents for conferences.

Elementary Education

All elementary education majors participate in the T.E.A.M. I program. The program includes two educational psychology classes (P250 and P251), language arts methods (E339), reading methods (E340) and a 70–80 hour field experience in Fort Wayne Community Schools (FWCS), East Allen County Schools (EACS), or Northwest Allen County Schools (NACS). The T.E.A.M. I field experience is not merely observation, but includes individual tutoring, small and large group instruction and participation in all school activities. Updated technological training takes place before the internship begins and is utilized throughout the elementary classroom work. Campus assignments include lesson planning and delivery, daily journaling, reflective papers on twelve assigned topics, etc.

T.E.A.M. II candidates serve as classroom interns in elementary schools in FWCS, EACS, and NACS. The T.E.A.M. II methods block requires the interns to complete a minimum of 50 hours in the classroom. During the T.E.A.M. II internship the principals and cooperating teachers agree to provide IPFW preservice teachers with an opportunity to teach lessons in math, science, and social studies as well as assist the classroom teacher as needed with the other content areas addressed. T.E.A.M. II students are encouraged to assist the classroom teacher in every way possible and continue to gain as much authentic classroom experience as possible. After the successful completion of T.E.A.M. II, most students are then eligible for Student Teaching.

Secondary Education

The field experience component of the Secondary Education Program consists of field observations. The field observations are defined as thirty hours of observation in middle and senior high classrooms in conjunction with three courses—P250 and P251, Educational Psychology; and M443, M445, M447, M448, or M449, Methods in the Content Area. Eleven school districts in six counties participate with IPFW to provide field experiences and observations for preservice teachers. The field experience for the Secondary English and Social Studies Methods is held at an on-site experience at a local urban public high school. This field experience moves beyond observation and allows candidates to practice designing lessons in the classroom context, teach lessons to secondary students, diagnose student learning needs, perform formal and informal assessment/grades, and conduct conferences with parents.

Special Education

Candidates have the choice of 35 school districts in Fort Wayne and surrounding counties to fulfill their observation and practicum experiences in the Special Education Program at IPFW. The program has 60 hours of field experience attached to two courses, K352 Education of Children with Learning Disabilities and K371 Assessment and Individual Instruction. Additionally, candidates have an eight-week student teaching experience in M470, Practicum in Special Education. In the practicum experience candidates prepare lessons plans, instruct, and assess P-12 students with special needs.