Teacher Education in the Disciplines
Coordination: Dean of the College of Professional Education and Council for Educator Preparation
Location: Stoddard 211
Telephone: 940-898-2829
Fax: 940-898-2830
Advising: Office of Educator Preparation Services, Stoddard Hall 211
Teaching certificates in the disciplines require an undergraduate degree and completion of required courses in teacher education. Students may earn the teaching certificate in two ways:
- Earn a bachelor’s degree by completing a major in an approved certification area and a minor in education, or
- Earn teaching certification as a post-baccalaureate student with a previously completed degree.
Students preparing to teach elementary school, middle school English Language Arts and Reading, or middle school core subjects must major in Education. Students seeking a secondary or EC-12 certificate must select a major in the specialization area and minor in Education. Academic advising is available to all students from both the academic departments and the College of Professional Education.
Teaching Certificate Plans for the Majors
Requirements for majors with teaching certificates vary among academic departments and according to the grades to be taught. Plans for grades 6-12, 7-12, and 8-12 are considered secondary education. Students should contact the major department in their target certification area to develop a plan of study. In some areas, certificates are available for teaching a single subject in all grades of the public schools.
Teaching Certifications Available in the Disciplines
Arts
Biology
Chemistry
English
History and Political Science
- 4-8 Social Studies (Advising completed in Office of Educator Preparation Services, College of Professional Education)
Kinesiology
Mathematics
Background Checks
Background checks will be required for early field experiences, clinical student teaching experiences, and for certification in the state of Texas. Teacher candidates pay all fees incurred. Applicants who have been convicted of a felony must identify themselves on the criminal background application form. Applicants who fail to disclose a personal felony conviction will be removed from the educator preparation program. If you have ever been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor and would like to check your eligibility for teaching, you can go to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website. On this page, you will find a Preliminary Criminal History Review for Educator Certification Candidates for a non-refundable fee. This service will allow those individuals who are contemplating obtaining a Texas Teacher Certificate in the future the opportunity to have a review of an existing criminal history performed by TEA staff. The review will be based solely on the information provided by the candidate and will result in a non-binding opinion issued by the agency as to whether or not the candidate would be eligible for Texas Teacher Certification at the time of the evaluation. This process does not preclude a candidate from being required to submit to a national criminal history review as required by statute at the time of application for educator credentials. Note: the preliminary criminal history review does not guarantee students will be able to complete field experience if rejected by a TEA-accredited site.
Failure to provide any documentation upon request by an agency, program, or school may result in the candidate being unable to complete field experiences and the certification requirements for the TWU Educator Preparation Program.
Early Field Experiences Requirements
Students complete early field experiences prior to clinical student teaching. These experiences are designed to introduce students to diverse classroom settings and provide opportunities to generalize course content in an applied setting. Please refer to course descriptions for the number of field hours required for specific courses. The Office of Clinical Practices works with faculty to place students in approved districts; faculty will provide information about required assignments related to field experiences.
Clinical Student Teaching Requirements
Clinical student teaching in a TEA-accredited school occurs during the student's last semester at TWU. For information regarding clinical student teaching, please contact the Office of Clinical Practices in Stoddard Hall, Room 213A, phone 940-898-2828.
- A minimum 2.75 overall grade point average;
- Satisfactory completion (as defined by the major department) of all coursework leading to degree and certification requirements (except clinical student teaching); and,
- Passed all TExES exams.
