The mission of the Education Department is to develop professional and compassionate teachers who have the skills and teaching strategies necessary to create a rigorous and stimulating classroom climate where learning takes place for all students.
– March 3, 2013
Pacific Union College is dedicated to preparing students for “service to humanity.” As stated in the General Catalog, “The mission of the college is therefore partly realized when its students leave the campus well prepared for advanced study and for selfless service to humanity in productive careers marked by uncompromising personal integrity.” (General Catalog, p. 12) No occupation is more important than teaching children and young people the knowledge and life skills needed to be successful and contributing members of society. No occupation calls on its members to embody selfless service” more than those who teach in the Pre-K – Gr. 12 education system.
Recognizing the need for caring and competent teachers in California schools, Pacific Union College and our Education Department are committed to teaching and coaching best-practice beliefs and strategies with our pre-service candidates. We desire candidates to see the unique potential in every student and then to plan and implement instruction, aligned with CA subject-matter standards and frameworks, that will grow that potential into tangible life skills. We desire our candidates to be skilled in forming positive, supportive relationships with students, but more than that, to identify and support students experiencing difficulty or trauma. Further, we desire candidates to be able classroom managers, relying first on engaging and relevant instruction, but also relying on non-coercive management skills where students are taught to become self-regulated and self-managers. Finally, our vision includes not only helping them achieve their teaching credential, but also helping them connect to potential employers when their credential is completed.
Our vision to inspire and train these kinds of knowledgeable and skilled pre-service teachers is rooted deeply in our Seventh-day Adventist worldview, which calls on us to be a part of God’s loving plan to restore humankind with the love, freedom, power and joy with which He originally endowed us. This worldview leads us to see the wholeness in every child – cognitively, emotionally, physically, and spiritually – and to see the wholeness in every human being’s potential life experience – now and for eternity.
Autumn Quarter. 11 weeks (September through December)
Winter Quarter. 11 weeks (January through late March)
Spring Quarter. 11 weeks (late March through end of year)
Placements will be in an elementary, middle school, or high school in one of the following schools or school districts:
Calistoga Unified School District
City of Santa Rosa School District
Fairfield-Suisun School District
Howell Mountain School District
Middletown Unified School District
Napa Valley Unified School District
St. Helena Unified School District
Vallejo City Unified School District
Windsor Unified School District
Foothills, Napa Christian, PUCE, PUC Prep or Redwood Adventist Christian Academy (SDA credentials only students)
Student teaching is the capstone experience of the credential program and involves full-time extended teaching experience in the classroom of an excellent, experienced, and credentialed teacher.
By the end of the student teaching experience, the candidate will demonstrate that s/he has successfully met the teaching competencies as outlined by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC) and the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists (NADSDA).
The requirements and expectations of the student teaching experience are outlined in the Student Teaching Handbook.
Teacher Candidates are required to enroll in and attend the following concurrent courses:
EDUC 498 Student Teaching Seminar – Meets weekly during the entire student teaching experience and will be arranged by PUC faculty and candidates.
EDUC 492 TPA Cycle 2 – Candidates will complete the CalTPA Cycle 2 assessment during full time student teaching. Cycle 2 focuses on Assessment Driven Instruction. This cycle involves recording a series of videos over the course of 3 - 5 lessons to demonstrate effectiveness in implementing the plan, teach and assess, reflect, apply cycle. The videos along with annotations will be assessed through Pearson through the use of rubrics to document effective mastery of the TPEs. This is required for California State certification.
Please note the following exceptions:
Candidates may also complete EDUC 491 TPA Cycle 1 during full time student teaching if requirements have not been met in previous field experiences.
Candidates must make sure students included in videos have a media release clearance through the school; those students who do not must have permission slips in order to appear in videos.
The teacher candidate may be held personally liable for accidents and/or injuries caused by his/her negligence during the student teaching experience.
The following assessment activities will occur during the student teaching experience:
The Mentor Teacher will conference with the Teacher Candidate on a daily/weekly basis regarding all aspects of their classroom teaching, giving oral and written feedback.
Throughout the student teaching experience the College Supervisor will observe the Candidate on a weekly basis a minimum of 9 out of the 11 weeks. At each visit the Supervisor will provide oral and written comments to the Candidate and will have the opportunity to conference with the Mentor Teacher.
Mid-way through the experience the College Supervisor, Mentor Teacher, and Teacher Candidate will complete the Mid-Term Evaluation (TPE assessment) form and discuss growth with the Candidate.
Candidates will develop a draft of their Individual Development Plan (IDP). The IDP is a "bridge" document that follows candidates into their Induction Program, the pathway from the CA Preliminary Teaching Credential to the CA Clear Teaching Credential. TPEs that require more emphasis can be documented on the IDP draft at the Mid-term. Be prepared to share the draft with the Mentor and College Supervisor at the Mid-Term Evaluation Conference.
At the end of the student teaching experience, the Teacher Candidate, Mentor Teacher, and College Supervisor will each independently complete a formal Final Evaluation of Student Teaching. They will conference together to discuss evaluation data and the student teaching experience as a whole. To receive a satisfactory grade for student teaching, the evaluations must indicate the Candidate has successfully met at least 90% of the Teacher Performance Expectations (TPE) set by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and/or the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists Department of Education. The evaluations will become part of the Candidate’s permanent record in the Education Department.
The final draft of the IDP document is due at the Final Evaluation meeting to be shared with the Mentor and College Supervisor. The IDP will go with the Candidate to be shared with their Induction Mentor (not their employer) and guide the development of their IIP (Individual Induction Plan) that will be part of their Induction Program.
Student teaching is graded as Satisfactory or Fail. In order to receive a grade of Satisfactory, teacher candidates must:
satisfactorily completed all the days required for the student teaching assignment, including four weeks of co-teaching/solo teaching;
submitted three Mid-Term Student Teaching Evaluations and three Final Student Teaching Evaluations (six total) indicating they have successfully met at least 90% of the Teacher Performance Expectations (TPE).
completed an Individual Development Plan (IDP) in collaboration with the Mentor and Supervisor.
submitted a fully completed Student Teaching Notebook.