Elementary Education

The Education Department of Missouri Western State University is committed to the professional preparation of teachers for employment in elementary education programs.

MWSU is located in  St. Joseph, Misouri.  St. Joseph is a small city in the northwestern part of Missouri.

Accreditation

Missouri Teacher Certification

Information You Will Need

Below will be information that people think about as they consider teaching as a career and about coming to Missouri Western.

Teaching: The Nature of the Work

Teacher Education at Missouri Western

Elementary Education at Missouri Western

Admission Requirements

Elementary Education Classes

Financial Aid & Scholarships

Suggested Sequence of Classes

Teaching: The Nature of the Work

If you are in the process of thinking, "Maybe I should be a teacher," or "I really don't know about becoming an elementary school teacher," you should do some research and reading.

One of the best publications to read is published by the U.S. Government. The Occupational Outlook Handbook: provides information about every possible job in the United States. It is published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. If you are interested in becoming a professional educator or teacher, you need to read this section of the handbook.
Occupational Outlook Handbook: Teaching.

Being an elementary school teacher has many rewards. It can provide a person with satisfaction and a comfortable standard of living. The decision to become a teacher, however, should not be taken lightly.  It is the type of job that requires time outside of work to complete all the tasks involved in teaching elementary school.

Teacher Education at Missouri Western

Repeatedly, school administrators and teachers said that new teachers need to know what teaching, schools, and kids are really like.  The only way that this can be accomplished is if prospective students have an early exposure to teaching and many hours of real teaching experience working with a master teacher.

Academic research into the preparation of teachers said the same thing that area educators were saying: prospective teachers need an early exposure to the classrooms.

The result was the development of a totally new, different and dynamic teacher education program that provided for a marriage of theory and practice. Beginning in 1996, the program underwent another series of improvements to strengthen the performance-based philosophy and ensure that all components of the program are focused on providing our teacher candidates with the skills and knowledge they need to meet current challenges in teacher education.

The four phase model for the preparation of teachers was developed at Missouri Western based upon the following:

• Professional advisory input from "school personnel in the St. Joseph area, representing private, parochial, and public institutions" (Haynes, Gettys, & Coyne, 1969)
• Early exposure to the classroom for the teacher candidate
• The concept of a continuum of courses and field experiences so that "the competency of a student in a future course depends upon the successful completion of and information acquired from a prior one" (Haynes, Gettys, & Coyne, 1969)
• Field experiences connected with specific courses so that theory informs practice, while practice further enlightens the theory
• A commitment to close collaboration between the cooperating teacher and the college supervisor as they work together to support and challenge preservice teachers to standards of excellence

These core beliefs have been incorporated into the current set of values that inform the MWSU Teacher Education Unit.

Becoming a Teacher Leader: Taking Responsibility for Student Learning

Moreover, many teacher candidates will actively participate in additional in-school teaching experiences. For example, teacher candidates seeking certification in Special Education, Early Childhood Special Education, Special Reading, or English Speakers of Other Language are required to successfully complete practicums in host schools. Our education department faculty are often told by P-12 teachers and principals that our teacher candidates look like first or second year teachers by the time they are student teaching in Phase IV. 

• Introduction to Education and Phase I Field Experience (Participation in Teaching I) These two courses, which must be taken concurrently, should be taken the second semester of the sophomore year at MWSU. The Intro class will provide the person with an overview of schools. Later in the semester the MWSU student will be assigned to an area school for four hours each week. An overall goal of the two classes will be for the person to make a commitment about becoming a teacher. Some university students decide that teaching is not for them after spending time in a classroom during the Phase I field experience. It is important to our faculty that students make a deliberate and informed decision about their major before they have heavily invested time, money, and energy. 

• Phase I of the MWSU Teacher Education program has the theme of "Awareness." The emphasis is on gaining awareness regarding the historical and philosophical foundations of schooling, how schools are organized and administered, legal foundations and constraints, and beginning teacher methods. During Phase I, the teacher candidate begins to reflect upon and create his or her philosophy of education after studying the various Western philosophers and how these philosophers affect classroom environments. 
   

• Phase II Methods Course Elementary majors take multiple methods classes that teach them how to teach reading, mathematics, language arts, social studies, science, physical education, art, and music. These classes are taught by qualified faculty members in the Missouri Western education unit. Many of the methods classes also require an authentic application in a teaching environment. 
   
• Applied Methods and Management and Phase III Field Experience (Experience in Teaching II) are the next two companion courses. Again, these classes provide for a marriage of theory and practice. The methods and management class helps the teacher candidate investigate how people learn, how students mature mentally, and how to control/manage a classroom. During part of each day {one hour per day, five days per week for the entire semester}, the MWSU teacher candidate will travel to an area school where he or she will assume the same responsibilities for one class that a student teacher will have all day long. The MWSU student will observe teachers, write lesson plans, teach lessons and evaluate students. Students will keep journals of the actions that they have taken in the classroom as they plan and execute lessons, manage the classroom and evaluate student progress. A requirement for both daily lesson plans, the unit plan, and journal writing is extensive reflection with plans of how to adjust teaching in order to positively affect student learning. 
  
  

• Formal lesson plans (with reflection guides on the back), unit plan guides, the format for the journal writing, conferences with the Cooperating Teacher and the University Supervisor, and discussions and activities in Applied Methods and Management provide the focus of critical thinking.
  
  
• The OUTCOME of using the the Richard Paul processes of critical thinking results in adjusted teaching plans to increase the positive effect upon student learning.
  
  
• Seminar in Elementary Education & Human Relations and Phase IV Student Teaching (Elementary Student Teaching III) are the companion courses of Level IV, the Finding Voice stage of the teacher education program. Due to the extensive application of knowledge and skills prior to Phase IV, the teacher candidate is well situated to find his or her own style of teaching. The emphasis during this stage will be on the synthesis of what has been learned before and a mature application as "the teacher" in the classroom

Becoming a Teacher Leader: Taking Responsibility for Student Learning

What are the benefits to the student of spending so many hours in the classroom? First, the MW teacher candidates are more realistic about schools and high school age students. Second, school administrators commonly report that the MWSU first year teacher will perform at a much higher level than other first year teachers. Thus, our graduates enjoy a high employment rate compared to other Missouri institutions.

Teacher Certification

• Cross-categorical Special Education

• Early Childhood Special Education
• TESOL

Admission Requirements

A complete review of the Admission Requirements for Teacher Education can be found at the following location: Admissions

Low Performance in Major Courses

A student will be removed from the Elementary Education Program or denied admission
if he/she earns a total of three Ds or Fs in Elementary Education major courses.
Even if a course is repeated, all grades are counted toward this total.The student can
appeal removal from or denial of admission to the program to the Teacher Education
Admission and Retention Committee (TEARC) but must present evidence of unforseen
circumstances and/or unexpected emergencies. If the appeal to TEARC fails, the student
will be allowed to re-enter or be admitted to the teacher education program after a fiveyear
academic holiday and a positive recommendation from TEARC.

The student is responsible for monitoring his or her own performance related to this rule.

At any point at which the Education Department becomes aware that the rule has been violated,

the student will be removed from the program as stated above.