North Carolina Wesleyan University has, from its beginning, accepted the responsibility for educating students who plan to enter the teaching profession. The University continues that emphasis and the unit has formulated six goals for students majoring in one of the areas of teacher education: Elementary Education, Middle Grades Education, Special Education or licensure in Secondary Education. The goals are based on the role of the teacher as a reflective decision maker. The goals are aligned with the NC Professional Teaching Standards which are used to assess the performance of students in teacher education.

Graduates will be expected to demonstrate proficiency related to the goals/standards:

1. Teachers demonstrate leadership.
2. Teachers establish a respectful environment for a diverse population of students.
3. Teachers know the content they teach.
4. Teachers facilitate learning for their students.
5. Teachers reflect on their practice.
6. Teachers contribute to the academic success of students.

The Teacher Education program is accredited by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and the National Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).

Admission Policies

Admission to the University does not guarantee admission to the Teacher Education Program. A student seeking admission to the Teacher Education program at Wesleyan should apply during the spring of the sophomore year. A student must be admitted to the Teacher Education Program before enrolling in upper-level education courses or must have permission from the Teacher Education Program. Permission will not be granted to students who have less than a 3.0 GPA.

Entrance Criteria

A student must meet the following criteria for admission to teacher education:

1. Have passed the PRAXIS Core tests (reading, writing and math) as required by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Students who have earned a total score of 1170 on the SAT (reading and math) or 24 on the ACT (reading and math) are exempt from Praxis Core testing requirements. Students who have at least 570 on the SAT Math or 600 on the SAT Reading sections may be exempt from part of Praxis Core.
2. Have achieved an overall grade point average of 3.0 on all previous college work completed at North Carolina Wesleyan University.
3. Have a successful interview with a subcommittee of the Teacher Education Council. This interview will deal with personal, social and professional knowledge, skills and dispositions related to teaching.
4. Have two positive recommendations and the required admission paperwork.

Licensure-only students must be admitted as non-degree students and should check with the Director of Teacher Education for specific programs of study. Teacher licensure only programs are approved for Department of Veterans Affairs benefits for those individuals who have earned a degree(s) and who have met the entrance requirements for teacher licensure.

The certification of the student to the Department of Veterans Affairs must be accompanied by a copy of the advisor’s evaluation which lists the subjects needed for the teaching license, professional objective being sought and which shows the total number of credit hours needed for the teaching license. Only those subjects and credit hours needed for teacher licensure may be certified to the Department of Veterans Affairs for benefits payment purposes. Electives are not permitted.

Retention Policies

Once a student has been admitted into the Teacher Education Program, he or she will be expected throughout the program to maintain at least the entrance criteria. That is, adequate language skills must be apparent, grades must meet the entrance levels and personal, professional and social characteristics must be demonstrated in classwork, extracurricular activity and personal life.

A continuous monitoring of academic performance will be done by the Teacher Education Council through the dispositional rating analysis system. The Education faculty reserves the right at any time during the program and for any cause, to remove a student from the Teacher Education Program. Any student removed will have the right to appeal to the Teacher Education Council. All students will be expected to maintain a 3.0 GPA overall.

Field/Clinical Experiences

Education courses include clinical experiences in area K-12 schools. Placements for the field experiences are coordinated by the Director of Field Placements in the Education Department.

The Student Teaching Block Program

The culminating experience of any student preparing to teach is the Student Teaching Block at the level of licensure being sought. Included in this program are seminars in classroom management. Care should be taken to ensure that all prerequisites for the block have been met prior to registration. Admission policies are as follows:

1. Students’ teaching assignments in the block program must be made in cooperation with local schools. It is imperative that information concerning interns be received in adequate time for these assignments to be completed. Students must apply for the block program no later than three months prior to the term in which they plan to student teach.
2. All teaching area courses, all methods courses and PPAT Tasks 1 and 2 must be completed before student teaching.
3. All applicants to the block must have maintained high standards of performance in their collegiate program with a minimum GPA of 3.0. Course grades below a C will not be accepted.
4. Because of the nature of the Teacher Education Program and its relations with local schools, the University reserves the right to refuse to admit or retain any student in the block program.
5. Students who enroll for the block program must enroll for the full course load and may, with permission, be allowed to work part-time or participate in outside activities during the student teaching block.
6. Guidelines from the state require students to be admitted to Teacher Education one full semester prior to the student teaching semester.
7. Students must pass all licensure tests in their area(s) or concentration prior to being admitted to student teaching. Official scores must be received in the Teacher Education office no later than August 1 (Fall Semester) and December 15 (Spring Semester).
8. SNCAE membership