Education 1301 is designed for students who are considering teaching as a career. The course offers students an opportunity to examine their motives for becoming a teacher and learn what is required to become a certified teacher in the state of Texas. Students will also explore and discuss the current culture of schooling and classrooms, as well as the governance and funding structure of American schools. A 16 hour field experience in the public school setting is required. (can be part of a measure?)

• requirements for becoming a teacher in Texas;                      Some of these could bePerformance Objectives

• characteristics of effective teachers;

• effective teaching methods;

• the four domains of the Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities Standards

• issues and challenges surrounding teaching as a profession;

• social challenges that impact students and schools;

• the importance of diversity, equality, and social justice in delivering high-quality education for all students; teaching practices that are culturally relevant;

• organizational structure of schools, from the local level to the federal level;

• key sources of funding for public schools and issues related to over-reliance on any one of these sources.

Introduction to Teaching and Learning

This course provides an introduction to teaching and learning in a variety of K-12 settings. Through visits to schools, classroom discussions, selected readings, and hands-on activities, we explore the challenges and opportunities of teaching. Topics of study include educational technology, design and experimentation, student learning, and careers in education.

Course Rationale and Overview

This course is designed as the first semester of a two course sequence that introduces MIT students to K-12 teaching and learning. This sequence may be followed by an additional three course sequence involving student teaching that leads to state licensure.

Many factors have shaped this course to date, primary among them have been:

• Time in Student Schedules
• Students do not major in education, but add these on as additional courses
• Learning Styles of MIT Students
• Most MIT students have had math and science come to them easily, have learned well from lectures, and succeeded on multiple choice tests
• Battle Against Efficiency
• Many students feel that lectures are the most efficient way to deliver information to students, and should therefore be the primary mode of teaching
• Lack of Breadth in Student Experience
• Most MIT students have experienced limited teaching modalities, and have primarily had classes with other students who did well in science and math
• Waste of an MIT Degree. Students are influenced by their peers, parents and professors who often tell them that going to teach would be a waste of their degrees

As a result these courses are designed to provide students with maximum exposure to different teaching and learning styles, and provide them with encouragement and support as they pursuing their interests in teaching. The course emphasizes the benefits of a constructivist approach, and the merits of hands-on, project-based, collaborative work. All too many traditional education courses lecture to the students about the virtues of such hands-on constructivist approaches. Instead this course in turn takes a hands-on constructivist approach so that students may experience these methods while they learn about them. Lecturing by the professor takes up only about 10% of class time, with the remainder occupied by class/group discussions, hands-on activities, and student-lead exercises. This approach sometimes confuses students who are not used to such methods. The second semester explicitly addresses these issues, and students consistently demonstrate understanding of this material in their own practice teaching.

1. Students will participate in a 16 hour field experience with varied and diverse student populations.

a) Students will complete observation forms after each observation hour to document effective teaching practices, student behaviors, and knowledge of other course content. A score of 70% or better is required to show mastery of this outcome. b) Students will write a reflective paper at the end of the field experience to demonstrate their understanding of effective teaching practices and issues and challenges surrounding teaching. A score of 70% or better is required to show mastery of this outcome.* 2. Students will view and respond to media observations, participate in discussion forums, and complete four examinations over the textbook material. 70% or better is required to show mastery of this outcome.*

*All written responses must be well written and reflect the student's ability to communicate effectively as per Domain 4 of the Texas Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities Standards.