The BHSU College of Education’s field placement process includes multiple opportunities for candidates (BHSU students) to gain expertise in real classroom experiences, helping them develop conceptual understandings combining theory and practice. The field experiences are completed throughout the College of Education’s Professional Teacher Preparation Program and are designed to enhance the candidate’s level of professional development in professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions. All field experience placements are made by the Office of Field Experiences in collaboration with P-12 schools. Specifically, candidates engage in the following practicum coursework.

During the first field experience, the Pre-Admission Teaching Practicum, students observe and assist a classroom teacher for a minimum of 40 hours. Specifically, this course is designed for all education students prior to their admission into the College of Education’s Professional Teacher Preparation Program. It is designed to give candidates the opportunity to see a classroom from a teacher’s perspective and to begin interacting with students in real PK-12 classrooms. Candidates observe practicing teachers in their major field, learn about the INTASC Standards for new teachers, and interview teachers in relation to teaching.

The second field experience is the Pre-Student Teaching Practicum. This course is designed for all education major candidates and is taken in the semester immediately prior to the student teaching semester. The course consists of 45-135 contact hours (depending on the candidate’s teaching major) and has increased requirements including the planning and teaching of a minimum of four lessons to a classroom a students under the guidance of the cooperating teacher. During this practicum, students experience real classroom conditions and continue to develop their knowledge, skills, and dispositions in preparation for student teaching.

The culminating field experience is the student teaching internship. This is an experience lasting a minimum of 16 weeks in a PK-12 classroom during which the student teacher works under the direct supervision of a master teacher. During this experience the student teacher gradually assumes full responsibility for the classroom. Students majoring in elementary or secondary education complete this experience in a single classroom. Students in K-12 majors and students with two majors complete this experience in two different classrooms at two different levels (elementary, middle, or high school).

Student teaching internship placements are made as follows:

1. Student teaching internships last a minimum of 16 weeks at single school site that represents a full-time commitment. In cases of K-12 majors or double majors, students may be placed at two schools for a minimum of 8 weeks in each school.
2. The final student teaching internship placement for candidates is made by the Professional Teacher Preparation Program through the Office of Field Experiences. 
3. The clinical faculty members (cooperating teachers) selected to work with BHSU candidates have a minimum of three years of successful teaching

"My student teaching experience has given me an opportunity to prepare myself for my own classroom. I have been able to try many of my own ideas. I have enjoyed my students and my student teaching experience and I feel I am ready to become a teacher."
Jeremy Klingsmith
Student teaching with Mr. Hoff
Central Elementary,
Lead, SD