Field Experience and Clinical Teaching
Required Field Experiences
Candidates for any teaching certificate participate in extensive field experiences in the public schools. Requirements for these activities vary by course and certification area. Teacher candidates must apply and be accepted into the educator preparation program prior to placement in public schools. Teacher candidates will apply for field experiences through the Director of Field Experiences. University students pursuing minors in the College of Education which do not lead to Texas teacher certification, such as the Special Populations minor, will conduct field experiences in appropriate settings in schools or in the community based on requirements of the course. Such students will apply for placement as a non-certification seeking student.
Clinical Teaching, Teacher Residency, or Internship
Clinical teaching or year-long teacher residency is the culminating experience in a candidate's preparation to become a teacher. Candidates who meet the entrance criteria will enroll in clinical teaching or teacher residency in the final year of their preparation program. Arrangements for clinical teaching assignments and teacher residency placements are made by the Director of Field Experiences and Clinical Teaching in partnership with the school districts. Candidates do not arrange their own placements.
All PK-3, EC-6 and 4-8 teacher candidates admitted to the Educator Preparation Program on or after August 15,2024, will participate in the yearlong teacher residency program, with the option to apply for Opportunity Culture (paid residencies). Secondary teacher candidates will have the option of traditional clinical teacher (student teaching) or the yearlong residency program. Teacher candidates currently working in a partner ISD as a paraprofessional who are in the Para2Teacher program will participate in the clinical experience designated for that program.
Clinical Teaching is a semester-long experience for a minimum of 14 weeks. There is no clinical teaching in the summer. Clinical teachers will follow the calendar of the school district where they have their placement and not the UTPB calendar, including the first day of instruction for the ISD (January or August). Clinical teachers have the opportunity to practice the theories and teaching methods from their college classes in the classrooms of our partner districts, under the guidance and support of an experienced mentor teacher and a university field supervisor.
Teacher Residency is a year-long experience in a P-12 classroom to prepare teacher candidates with a deeper experience to enhance their teaching skills for Day 1 success upon entering their career. There is no teacher residency in the summer. Residents will follow the calendar of the school district where they have their assignment and not the UTPB calendar, including the preservice days for the ISD prior to the first instructional day in August. Teacher residents are paired with a master teacher who will supervise and support their hands-on classroom experiences, with additional support by university site coordinators as they collaborate with a cohort of peers. Our partner school districts are currently offering candidates the opportunity to earn up to $24,000 plus employee benefits while participating in the yearlong residency.
Teaching Internships are completed as a contracted teacher for one year and are only available to candidates who have completed a bachelor's degree and who qualify for a one-year intern teaching certificate from the Texas Education Agency.
Candidates for clinical teaching may lack no more than3 courses plus clinical teaching to finish their degree, permission obtained for any exception. Candidates for teacher residency may lack no more than 33 semester credit hours to finish their degree, or permission obtained for any exception. The appropriate TExES exam mush be attempted prior to clinical teaching and prior to the second semester of teacher residency. Candidates for internship mush have a bachelor's degree or higher, and must have passed the appropriate content area TExES exam.
Applications for admission to clinical teaching or teacher residency must be received by the following dates:
Fall Clinical Teaching Application Deadline is March 15th
Year-long Teacher Residency - Fall Start Application Deadline is March 15th
Spring Clinical Teaching Application Deadline is October 15th
Year-long Teacher Residency - Spring Start Application Deadline is October 15th
Certification Testing Requirements
Candidates for certification must pass appropriate Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES): one or more in the content-area and one in pedagogy and professional practices. Candidates seeking Bilingual certification must also pass the Bilingual Target Language Proficiency Test (BTLPT). Candidates who are seeking to take examinations through UT Permian Basin must, prior to approval, demonstrate their preparedness on representative pretests or through satisfactory completion of an approved plan of study. Coursework or tutoring will be recommended and may be required for students who are unsuccessful on pretests.