Mentor Teachers

Welcome UW Mentors!

This site is designed to help you find important information including resources, templates, and timelines related to the student-teaching process. We also encourage prospective STEP applicants to use this site as a means to learn more about our program. In addition, classroom teachers who are considering mentoring a student teacher are welcome to engage in the materials found on this site.

Our Philosophy

The University of Washington College of Education Secondary Teacher Education Program aims to prepare social justice focused teachers for careers in middle and high schools. Developed collaboratively by university faculty and practicing teachers, the program is designed to prepare teachers to respond effectively to the complex challenges of today’s school classrooms, with a particular focus on schools situated in culturally and linguistically diverse communities. Several specific features of the program are aimed at preparing new teachers to use evidence-based strategies to provide equitable and effective opportunities for all children to learn. These features include:

1) A program-wide focus on issues of justice and equity, with particular emphasis on supporting students and their myriad identities

2) Fieldwork in one of our partner or network schools in the greater Seattle region, undertaken concurrently with on-campus courses each quarter

3) Continuous interweaving of coursework and fieldwork experiences, with particular focus on issues related to culturally sustaining pedagogy, English Language Learners, and leveraging healthy relationships with students

4) Co-teaching model for teacher preparation