For teacher candidates
Pre-student Teaching Experience
Prerequisites
Teacher candidates must meet all prerequisites specified by their program prior to the field experience semester. Most field experiences require admission to the School of Education and designated courses. Please consult your advisor to determine the best timing of field experiences in your respective program.
Field Experience Application Process
A separate electronic field experience application must be completed for each clinical field experience or school experience. The application includes the mandatory forms related to conduct for that particular experience and the electronic signature indicates understanding and agreement to follow the policies.
Early in the semester, you will receive information on pre-student teaching field experiences, including a link to the pre-student teaching electronic application by email. You must complete the electronic application, complete appropriate course/program pre-requisites, and be in good standing in order to be eligible for pre-student teaching field experiences.
PETE and SHE teacher candidates will receive field experience information from their advisors and program faculty.
Criminal Background Checks
Teacher candidates who are registered for clinical field experience courses will receive an email with the criminal background check instructions prior to the field experience semester. Teacher candidates must complete the designated national criminal background check within the specified time and be cleared by the Office of Field Experience before entering the schools or field experience site. Please see the criminal background check policy for more information.
Clinical Field Experience Placement Procedures
All clinical field experience placements are arranged through the Office of Field Experience in collaboration with course instructors. Placements will be made with our contracted schools in a 50-mile radius of La Crosse based on school needs and requests each semester. The School of Education has developed partnerships with several local schools and placements for these sites will be honored first. Teacher candidates may not attempt to arrange a placement or contact schools, principals, and teachers to discuss placements according to the agreements between UW-La Crosse School of Education and school districts. Prior to the field experience semester, teacher candidates are encouraged to provide preferences and requests on the field experience application, which will be considered along with other factors in meeting program requirements for certification. Every effort will be made to provide a neutral setting for teacher candidates and placements will generally not be made in schools that teacher candidates attended, or where relatives have worked or attended. More information about placements will be provided on or before the first day of the field experience course each semester. Any questions regarding field experiences or any other school experience should be directed to the Office of Field Experience.
Name Badges
Teacher candidates must wear UW-La Crosse name badges at all times while at schools and clinical field experience sites. Name badges are available here to those who are registered for clinical field experiences and other approved experiences. Teacher candidates may be expected to pay for name badges.
Transportation
Teacher candidates are responsible for providing their own means of transportation to and from schools. Carpooling is encouraged.
Absences
Excused absences include personal illness, illness in the family, or death in the family. Absences due to work schedules and student schedules are not acceptable. In rare instances when teacher candidates need to miss an assigned placement time, they must communicate with both the cooperating teacher and the university supervisor immediately to make alternative arrangements. Excessive or repeated absences in either the field experience or related courses may result in removal from the program.
Criminal Background Check Policy
All teacher candidates must complete the designated national criminal background check process prior to entering the schools for their first clinical field experience or any other school experience at the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse. This is a requirement of the school placement sites, and it is the teacher candidate’s responsibility to follow the instructions and complete the process by the dates specified. Teacher candidates are responsible for all costs associated with the criminal background checks. Policies and procedures must be followed for teacher candidates to receive a placement. Prior to student teaching, teacher candidates must complete a second designated national criminal background check if more than one year has passed since their last criminal background check. The Office of Field Experience will record the criminal background checks conducted each semester.
Procedure
- The Office of Field Experience will e-mail the criminal background check instructions and electronic forms to those teacher candidates registered for clinical field experience courses and other approved school experiences prior to the semester.
- The mandatory electronic forms related to conduct, including the Questionnaire for Admission to Student Teaching, Internship, Practicum, and Clinical Field Experiences self-disclosure form, must be completed by teacher candidates each semester they participate in any field or school experience. The electronic signature indicates understanding and agreement of the policies and teacher candidates are encouraged to read each form carefully before signing.
- Teacher candidates who have ever been charged for any criminal conduct must mark “yes” and indicate the charge and date in the space on the questionnaire.
- Teacher candidates must notify the Office of Field Experience of any new offenses as soon as possible, according to the terms stated on the Authorization, Acknowledgement, and Release Form.
- In the event the background check discloses criminal activity or information the teacher candidate has failed to report, the teacher candidate may be required to meet with the Director and/or Assistant Director of Field Experience to discuss the discrepancy. The result of this discussion may alter or terminate the teacher candidate's participation in a field experience or student teaching assignment.
- Students who have criminal charges that would prohibit them from obtaining teacher certification will not be allowed to participate in field experiences.
- Course instructors will discuss the criminal background check process at the beginning of the course. Before students enter the field, instructors will confirm with the Office of Field Experience that all students have completed the required electronic forms and criminal background check process.
- The Office of Field Experience staff will notify course instructors when teacher candidates have been cleared to enter the schools. Students may not participate in a clinical field experience or any other school experience before the Office of Field Experience confirms that they have completed the required procedures.
Early in the semester, you will receive information on pre-student teaching field experiences, including a link to the pre-student teaching electronic application by email. You must complete the electronic application, complete appropriate course/program pre-requisites, and be in good standing in order to be eligible for pre-student teaching field experiences.
In the case of an extenuating circumstance, students may request an extension to a benchmark or application window. Requests for an extension should be made prior to the deadline whenever possible. To make a request, the student should make a request by completing this linked survey. The survey will ask you to provide the following information:
- Indicate the request
- Provide an explanation of the extenuating circumstance
- Provide an explanation of why the application was not able to be submitted within the submission window
- Identify a UWL faculty member who can speak to the extenuating circumstance
Early Childhood-Middle Childhood (EC-MC)
Field Experience Courses
- ECE 213
- ECE 327/425
- EDS 402 (Field I)
- EDS 445 (Field II)
Middle Childhood-Early Adolescence (MC-EA)
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 402 (Field I)
- EDS 445 (Field II)
- SPE 461/561 (Special Education Minors)
Early Adolescence-Adolescence (EA-A) - STEP
English
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- ENG 405 Teaching and Learning (Field II)
Math
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- MTH 421 Teaching and Learning (Field II)
Science
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- BIO 469 / CHEM 469 / PHY 469 Teaching and Learning (Field II)
Social Studies
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- HIS 408 / GEO 408 / POL 408 / SOC 408 / PSY 408 Teaching and Learning (Field II)
Early Childhood-Adolescence (EC-A)
Art
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- EDS 450 (Field II)
Music
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- EDS 450 (Field II)
Modern Language
Field Experience Courses
- EDS 351 (Field I)
- EDS 450 (Field II)
Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE)
Field Experience Courses
- ESS 225
- ESS 322
- ESS 325
School Health Education (SHE)
Field Experience Courses
- SHE 310
- SHE 410
Teacher Candidate Progress Review (TCPR)
The Teacher Candidate Progress Review (TCPR) Committee is charged with overseeing the development and assessment of knowledge, skills, and dispositions among teacher candidates as assessed by the multiple measures of the established teacher education assessment system.
The faculty and staff (including clinical and student teaching personnel) of the School of Education recognize that all individuals seeking certification may not meet certain minimal professional standards; therefore, a procedure has been established to identify and to counsel candidates in need of directed guidance. Additional measures may be taken if deemed necessary. The referral process may lead to the candidate's removal from the teacher education program(s).
Academic and non-academic misconduct (plagiarism, cheating, etc.) are referred directly to the Office of Student Life as outlined in the university's student handbook.
Student Teaching
Exemplary teacher candidates may apply for out-of-area experiences with the Milwaukee Immersion Experience, Arizona Student Teaching, Educators Abroad, or Wisconsin Improvement Program (WIP) internship experiences. Applications for these programs are part of the student teaching application. Candidates should indicate their interest in any of these programs when submitting their electronic application. These are all selective / competitive programs, and applicants will be carefully screened and reviewed before being approved.
For more details, please see the information in the Field Experience/Student Teaching Handbook
Teacher Candidate Progress Review (TCPR)
The Teacher Candidate Progress Review (TCPR) Committee is charged with overseeing the development and assessment of knowledge, skills, and dispositions among teacher candidates as assessed by the multiple measures of the established teacher education assessment system. The faculty and staff (including clinical and student teaching personnel) of the School of Education recognize that all individuals seeking certification may not meet certain minimal professional standards; therefore, a procedure has been established to identify and to counsel candidates in need of directed guidance. Additional measures may be taken if deemed necessary. The referral process may lead to the candidate's removal from the teacher education program(s).
Academic and non-academic misconduct (plagiarism, cheating, etc.) are referred directly to the Office of Student Life as outlined in the university's student handbook.
In the case of an extenuating circumstance, students may request an extension to a benchmark or application window. Requests for an extension should be made prior to the deadline whenever possible. To make a request, the student should make a request by completing this linked survey. The survey will ask you to provide the following information:
- Indicate the request
- Provide an explanation of the extenuating circumstance
- Provide an explanation of why the application was not able to be submitted within the submission window
- Identify a UWL faculty member who can speak to the extenuating circumstance