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Education The Teacher Education Program at Bluefield College has graduated highly qualified teachers for more than 30 years. These graduates serve in distinctive careers as teachers and administrators in public and private schools throughout Virginia and the United States. Their schools and communities have richly benefited from their service and leadership. The Teacher Education Program reflects the liberal arts nature of the College as demonstrated by a program of general education courses, carefully chosen content knowledge courses, and professional studies courses that the teacher candidates must follow. Courses have been selected and designed to provide opportunities for the achievement, application, and refinement of knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary for entrance into and effective performance in the teaching profession. In conjunction with extensive fieldwork in the local public schools, their courses of study enable the teacher candidates to design learning experiences responsive to the individual academic, cultural, socio-economic, and physical differences of learners. Students are encouraged to apply theories presented in the college classroom to their practical experiences in the schools and to engage in continuous reflection in their approach to teaching. The overall aim of the Teacher Education Program is to prepare competent, caring, and qualified teachers who are reflective practitioners. The goals of the Teacher Education Program are to develop teachers with…
· Reflective Practice, seeking to continually improve as a teacher
and as a reflective learner.
· Subject Matter Knowledge, a deep understanding of one or more
content area specialties.
· Pedagogical Knowledge, a deep understanding of the teaching/learning
processes related to effectively teaching content to a variety of learners.
· Caring Teaching Skills, applying pedagogical knowledge and skills in a
caring and professional manner to help all students reach their optimal
educational goals.
· Diversity, using the knowledge of the rich diversity among people in
terms of gender, race, class, ethnicity, abilities, and individual differences,
to provide educational opportunities for all students.
· Technology, skill in using the wide array of technological tools for teaching,
communicating, and life long learning.
· Licensure, completing the requirements to obtain a Collegiate Professional
License for Virginia in one or more endorsement areas.
The cooperative involvement of the total college faculty and public school practitioners is built into the planning, administering, and evaluation of the Teacher Education Program. Students who have been admitted to the program are evaluated continuously in order to maintain eligibility for the program and to assure that teacher candidates who exit the program meet the highest standards. Students seeking teacher licensure in Virginia major in a liberal arts or science area and receive either the Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree. Bluefield College is a member of the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) with candidate status. The teacher education programs have been aligned with the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) and have been reviewed and approved by the Virginia State Board of Education and the Bluefield College liberal arts and education faculty. Bluefield College offers programs leading to initial teacher licensure in the following endorsement areas: Secondary Grades 6-12 Biology English Business History & Social Studies Chemistry Mathematics Elementary Grades PreK-6 Interdisciplinary Studies Elementary and Secondary Grades PreK-12 Art Health & Physical Education Vocal/Choral Music Add-on Endorsements Algebra I Journalism Speech Biology Chemistry Information relative to the required courses for each of the teaching areas can be found in the Endorsement Areas section below. Students should be aware that licensure requirements exceed graduation requirements in most areas. More information concerning the Teacher Education Program can be found in the Teacher Education Handbook and in the Academic Catalog TEACHER EDUCATION HANDBOOK The Division of Education may be contacted by phone: (276) 326-4242 or by email: dwatson@bluefield or jthorn@bluefield.edu Title II Institutional Report All
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