Supervising Teachers Overview

The Willamette University School of Education is a professional school which offers full-time, 10-month and part-time, two-year Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree programs for the preparation of early childhood, elementary, middle and secondary school teachers.

Make no mistake - supervising teachers, and supporting public schools play an essential role in the training of future teachers and it is a role that should not be considered lightly, but can be amazingly rewarding. Simply contact us if you'd like to speak to a current or past supervising teacher about the process and the experience.

The Supervising Teacher

During this process, a supervising teacher serves as a mentor, model and guide for the student teacher. In doing so, a supervising teacher:

Provides regular verbal and written feedback, including both relevant suggestions and positive reinforcement;
Orients the student teacher to the staff, curriculum, routines and resources of the school and classroom;
Confers with the student teacher at least weekly to review plans, assess progress and give feedback;
Cooperates with the university supervisor to support the student teacher in successfully assuming teaching responsibilities;
Attends four MAT School Partner Workshops;
Reviews formal observation with the MAT student.
- Practicum: minimum of two (Fall);
- Student Teaching: minimum of six (Spring);
- Practicum II: minimum of two (November and/or December);
Meets with the student teacher and university supervisor to evaluate the student teacher's mastery of TSPC competencies:
- Practicum: at least one three-way conference (Fall)
- Student Teaching: at least two three-way conferences (Spring)

Review all the roles and responsibilities of a supervising teacher.

MAT Students

A supervising teacher can expect that MAT students:

Enter the program with bachelor's degrees and experience working with youth;
Participate in their classrooms and attend campus courses during fall semester; attend evening classes throughout the academic year (full-time program); or,
Participate in their K-12 classrooms throughout the two years of the program, taking classes Monday evenings and one Saturday a month (part-time Aspire program);
Complete and present leadership projects during December and January;
Complete and present Action Research projects in May;
Meet throughout the year with guide groups, composed of 8-10 MAT students and a University faculty advisor.

Process / Timeline

During the fall field experiences, MAT students:

Observe teachers and students engaged in the teaching-learning process, beginning with the first day of school;
Gain information from school staff about teaching, curriculum, school culture, resources, policies and procedures;
In the full-time program:
- have Pre-Student teaching field experiences in their first level of authorization in the Fall semester (September, October, December), spending an average of 2 days each week in classrooms where they will student teach spring semester;
- have Practicum field experiences in their second level of authorization in the Fall semester (October, November). During that time they observe and then teach a work sample that the co-plan with their supervising teacher.
In the part-time Aspire program
- have Pre-Student teaching field experiences throughout the first year of the program, spending a minimum of 90 hours in classrooms.
- have Practicum field experiences in their second level of authorizatin during the Fall semester of the second year of the program, spending a miinimum of 90 hours in classrooms. During that time they observe and then teach a work sample (November, December, January) that they co-plan with their supervising teacher.
In pre student teaching, their first level of authorization, spend 2 days each week (September, October, December) in classrooms where they will student teach spring semester;
In the practicum, their second level of authorization, spend 2 days each week (October 13 - November 4) in their classrooms and full days (November 7 - December 6) in the practicum classroom. During that time they teach a work sample that they co-plan with their supervising teacher.

During spring student teaching, all MAT students:

Spend full days in their classrooms from mid-January through the end of the school year.
- Elementary student teachers (grades 3-5) assume teaching responsibilities for two or three content areas for the entire semester and assume full-time teaching responsibility for a minimum of 3 full weeks.
- Middle school and high school student teachers assume full responsibility for teaching the equivalent of a half-time teaching load for the entire semester.
Complete a work sample, 2-5 week unit which includes goals, lesson plans and an assessment of students' learning gains. (TSPC requirement)
Attend bi-weekly guide group meetings, methods classes, and professional development seminars on campus;
Must demonstrate that they can meet competencies in planning, evaluation, classroom management, instruction and professionalism (TSPC requirement).
(Part-time MAT Aspire students do their student teaching in the Spring semester of the second year of the program