Internship and Mentor Teachers

A core feature of the program is that intern teachers engage in the everyday experience of the classroom four days a week or more for an entire school year, August to June, or for those beginning the program in Winter term, January to December.  For a thirteen-week period from the second week in January through early April, interns spend five days a week at their internship sites.  During these thirteen weeks, each intern must schedule two consecutive weeks of solo teaching.

The mentor teacher allows the intern to learn in a safe environment, sharing methodologies in her/his classroom with the intern, collaborating to help the intern understand the curriculum and organization of the classroom, and shifting responsibility to the intern in a careful and responsible manner.

All members of the school, including the principal, other teachers, para-professionals, administrators, support staff, students and parents, are viewed as composing the intern’s learning community.

As the intern gains experience in the classroom and leads activities, mentor teachers observe and provide feedback.  Field advisors visit intern classrooms to observe their teaching and to communicate with mentor teachers, principals and others in the school community.   Faculty advisors, who are instructors in the program, visit as needed and provide an additional link between the school sites and the program.