Teacher Education

To be eligible to receive an initial teaching certificate in Georgia, a student must complete an approved teacher preparation program designed to meet state and national certification and accreditation requirements in a specific teaching field, as well as institution requirements.

The Teacher Education Department in the College of Education is dedicated to preparing professionals who embrace access to education, health, and wellness through effective teaching and learning, advocacy and service, and intellectual engagement. At the undergraduate level, our programs include degrees in Elementary Education/Special Education, Middle Grades Education, Secondary Education, and P-12 programs in Physical Education, Music, and Art. At the University of North Georgia (UNG), undergraduate students interested in majoring in education complete their college core first and then apply to begin the education programs in their junior year. Along this journey, our advising team works closely with students to ensure that they are prepared each step of the way. Students should note that some programs are only offered on specific campuses.

Course requirements for the education programs are found in each of the following sections. Academic requirements related to the Secondary (6-12) teaching programs in the other teaching fields are found in the area of the catalog devoted to that specific academic major (e.g., English Education (6-12) may be found in the catalog under English).

The University of North Georgia offers a number of programs leading to the Master of Education (M.Ed.) and Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree. Specific information about the M.Ed. and MAT is found in the Graduate Bulletin.

Undergraduate Admission Requirements

Individual programs may have differing requirements. These requirements are available from the Teacher Education Department and are listed on the application for admission to Teacher Education. All College of Education Admissions Requirements are posted in the program specific description sections. Admission requirements are subject to change based on the Georgia Professional Standards Commission requirements for teacher certification.

Program Cohort Groups

Students are admitted in the Teacher Education Program as part of a cohort group. Each cohort group completes the professional education sequential coursework together. This provides each group of students with a common set of experiences, ensures access to required classes within the College of Education, and allows for coherent advisement and progression to graduation. The College of Education limits the size of cohorts to the number that can be served in class and public school settings.

All Teacher Education Programs are planned according to the semester that the student begins upper-division professional education course work. This requires that the student remain in sequence with a cohort group in order to complete the professional education program of study on schedule. Please note that some programs require attendance during summer terms.

Teacher Education Policies

The Teacher Education polices applicable to all students are posted on the College of Education web site.

Retention in the Teacher Education Program

One important aspect of the Teacher Education Program is the constant vigilance exercised by the faculty to ensure that standards of quality are maintained. The following standards must be maintained for continued retention in a program:

compliance with rules and regulations prescribed for all students at UNG;
adherence to the Code of Ethics of the Georgia Professional Standards Commission;
completion of all courses in the academic major with a grade of “C” or better;
demonstration of competence in the use of oral and written language;
maintenance of an overall grade point average of 3.0 for graduation (2.75 is required for admission to all Teacher Education programs); and
satisfactory performance in all field experiences, including the on-going demonstration of dispositions required of teachers as professionals.

Students whose overall GPA drops below a 3.0 or who receive “D’s” in major courses will be placed on teacher education probation the next semester. If the problem is not corrected within the next semester of enrollment, the student could be withdrawn from the program.

In order for a student to be considered a program completer by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission, the student must attempt all assessments required for certification in addition to completing a UNG Teacher Education Program.

Field Experiences

For all courses with a field component, a teacher education student must complete all requirements and earn a grade of “C” or higher in the field component in order to pass the course. Students must complete all courses with a field component with a grade of “C” or better before enrolling in any teacher education courses in a subsequent semester.

Only under extreme circumstances will a student be allowed to extend or repeat field-based coursework at the 4000 level. A student who must extend or repeat the pre-internship block will have only one opportunity to complete internship. However, a student who successfully completes block in one semester without extension will have one opportunity to extend or repeat internship.

The College of Education has contractual agreements with designated systems and schools for placement of teacher education students for field experiences and internships. Field placements are limited to those school sites. All public school field placements will be arranged through the College of Education Field Placement Coordinator.

Teacher education students will not be placed for field experiences in a school which they attended within the last seven years or in which they have immediate family employed or enrolled.

Program Probation and Suspension

Due to the highly sensitive nature of working with children and youth in public school settings, the following policy also applies to the Teacher Education Program: Any faculty member or administrator of UNG and/or the co-operating school system who has supervisory responsibility for the on-site university student may immediately remove said student from the school site if, in that person’s professional judgment, the university student has acted in an inappropriate manner involving children, youth, staff, or parents or if the student’s continued presence in the classroom is detrimental either to the intern or to the educational progress of the students in the classroom. The university student may also be removed, prior to the completion of her/his assignment in that school, should the university or school personnel judge that the university student does not adequately perform her/his assignments or conform adequately to the policies and procedures of the school. Removal from a school placement may result in a failing grade for the field experience and expulsion or suspension from the program.

Technology

All Teacher Education candidates are required to successfully meet the state mandated technology requirement. A candidate can satisfy this requirement by completing a technology-embedded teacher education program. All University of North Georgia’s teacher education programs are technology-embedded programs.

The Internship

The internship is that part of the pre-service education program in which the prospective teacher works full time in a cooperating school with an assigned cooperating teacher. Depending on the program, the internship will take place during the last full year or the last entire semester of the program. During internship students are expected to assume all of the responsibilities of a classroom teacher, therefore permission for outside employment or enrollment in courses not associated with internship must be obtained from the Field Experience Coordinator. A student must complete an Internship application, which is found on the Teacher Education website. Application deadlines are March 1 for fall Internships and September 1 for spring Internships.

The following are prerequisites for the Internship:

admission to the Teacher Education Program;
completion of all professional education courses and courses appropriate to the teaching field (exceptions must be approved by the academic advisor) with a grade of C or better;
maintenance of a minimum grade point average of 3.0;
senior classification as determined by the Registrar’s Office;
satisfactory completion of all previous field-based assignments;
completion of the appropriate GACE Content Assessments examination.

For a complete listing of internship policies, see the program-specific internship handbooks at https://www.livetext.com/doc/8630187, which is the Livetext resource for the College of Education Field Experience Central.

Program Completion Requirements for Teacher Certification

In addition to the successful completion of the program of study and satisfactory performance in all field experiences, Teacher Education students must also pursue assessments required by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. To be considered a UNG Teacher Education program completer and graduate, a student must meet the following requirements:

attempt the Georgia Educator Ethics Exit Assessment, GACE Content Assessment, and edTPA;
submit the GaPSC and UNG Completer Surveys;
earn a grade of “C” or higher in all major coursework; and
maintain an overall 3.0 GPA.

In order to be eligible for teacher certification, you must receive passing scores on the Georgia Educator Ethics exit exam, the GACE content assessments for your degree field, and the edTPA portfolio.

Accreditation

The Teacher Education Program of the University of North Georgia has state program approval through the Georgia Professional Standards Commission and national accreditation through the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education.

Programs

Associate of Science

Bachelor of Science