Field Based Experiences
This is an exciting time in your program and an opportunity for you to represent UMass Dartmouth's commitment to excellence in the preparation of future teachers.
The STEM Education & Teacher Development Department is committed to providing teacher preparation, licensing, and professional development opportunities for aspiring candidates and teachers who are working in schools.
We aim to develop reflective practitioners who seek to understand the complex social contexts of learning, education, and schooling in both urban and suburban settings. In addition to providing a rigorous preparation in subject-matter fields, we encourage students and teachers to develop their ability to apply pedagogical theory to practice and to reflect on the complexities inherent in their craft.
Apply theory to practice in classroom settings
The Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3 pre-service teacher Field Based Experiences are designed to provide you with the opportunity to apply coursework learning and theory to actual practice inside a variety of classroom settings. Initially, at the start of your teacher education program, your field experience allows you to observe and interact in the classroom and in expanded educational settings such as the school library or resource room. As you progress through your program of study, the amount of time you interact with students and mentor teachers increases, as will the structured performance expectations are embedded into your Field Based Experiences. Throughout this time, you will complete field assessments assigned by university faculty and your site fieldwork supervisor that will assist in determining your readiness for entry into the field.
Related information for field experiences
School Partner site applications: UMassD Education sites
CORI checks: All Massachusetts schools require volunteers and visitors to undergo a CORI background check in combination with federal registration using the fingerprint process.
Fingerprinting: Currently, the closest facility to UMassD that processes fingerprint registrations is online with IdentoGo. Explore other processing locations and for completing your fingerprint registration at IndentoGo Massachusetts
CORI check: All CORI checks are completed by the host school and must be completed before the student is placed in a field based experience in the school district.
The Field Experiences Coordinator will connect you with the paperwork to begin the process to connect with your host teacher in the school district.
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Diagram of field based experiences
Pre-service teacher field based experiences provide opportunities to apply coursework learning and theory to actual practice within a variety of classroom settings.
Outline of field based experiences & expectations
| EDU 536: FB Experience 1 | EDU 537: FB Experience 2 | EDU 538: FB Experience 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Focus | School structure | Teacher | Students |
| Kinds of activities | Observations Interact with key players (administrators, teachers, etc.) Focused observations Attend planning meeting Learning demographics Interview with community members Study of school and its structures |
Co-planning Co-instructing Small group support Listening to students Attention to formative assessment: What is it? How is it used? What counts as formative assessment? Participation in teacher collaboration time |
Focus on engaging in teaching Teach 2-3 lessons or parts of lessons (PST1,3,4): engaging in teaching activities including co- teaching of whole group or small group instruction Engage in common planning time with teachers |
| Evidence of learning |
Reflection on the culture of the school and the ways in which it supports high expectations. This will include at least 3 pieces of evidence from fieldwork such as student work, mission statement for school, etc. as well as observation data. Purpose of the evidence is to demonstrate the ways in which the teacher candidates interacted with the school environment. |
Reflection on how a teacher creates a safe learning environment, meets diverse needs, and adjusts practice, as well as the ways in which the classroom is managed. Evidence to be included in the reflection should include observations and interview with the classroom teacher. There should be 3 pieces of evidence in this reflection, including a required interview focused on the role of the teacher. |
Reflection on own experience as a teacher. Evidence should be used to make a case for what went well and what changes you would like to make. |
| Course alignment | EDU 511 Culturally Responsive Curriculum & Instruction |
EDU 547 Introduction to Special Education |
EDU 552 Sheltered English Immersion EDU 452 Sheltered English Immersion |