HELP 2024-25 Catalog Department of Teacher Education Print-Friendly Page (opens a new window) Facebook this Page (opens a new window) Tweet this Page (opens a new window)

Department Chair: DeeDee Mower
Location: McKay Education Building, Room 234
Telephone Contact: Lisa Karle 801-626-7171
Advisement Contacts: Angie Collinwood 801-626-6309; Brogan Stampick 801-626-6636
Professors: Melina Alexander, Vincent Bates, David Byrd, Louise Moulding, Shernavaz Vakil, Natalie Allen Williams; Associate Professors: Shirley Dawson, DeeDee Mower, Daniel Pyle, Clay Rasmussen, Sheryl Rushton; Assistant Professors: Ryan Cain, Sara Gailey, Dustin Grote, Andrea Martinez, Katarina Pantic, Stephanie Speicher, Deborah Vaughn 

The major purpose of the professional education programs in teacher education is to prepare candidates for teaching in elementary and secondary schools. Preparation is also provided for teachers of students with mild to moderate disabilities with the special education mild/moderate license. The department prepares students for endorsements in Mathematics, ESL (English as a Second Language), Dual Language Immersion, Basic Reading (graduate level only), and Education of the Gifted (graduate level only). All programs are accredited through the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC).

The preparation for teaching falls academically within four major categories: University General Education, support courses, subject specialization, and professional education.

1. University General Education requirements – In selecting courses to satisfy the general education requirements, candidates should note the general education courses recommended and/or required in their major and/or professional education requirement sheets available in the Teacher Education Advisement Center (ED 230).
2. Support courses
3. Specializations are required of all elementary candidates. Elementary education majors have two track options; K-6 and 1-8.  The K-6 track requires one 9 credit specialization and a 9 credit early childhood specialization while the 1-8 track requires a 18 credit specialization or a teaching minor.  The professional education program outlines acceptable subject specialization areas and requirements. Special Education majors choose one 9-hour specialization or a teaching minor. Secondary candidates completing a teaching major may be required to complete a teaching minor (refer to the teaching major program requirements). The teaching major and teaching minor must be in subjects taught in Utah public secondary schools.
4. Professional Education courses help the prospective teacher learn about children, the nature of the learning process, and how to provide desirable learning experiences. To meet licensure requirements, secondary school candidates are required to complete a minimum of 24 semester hours of professional course work; 55 semester hours are required of the prospective elementary school teacher.

Professional course work in the program is organized into sequential levels. As students move through the program, they are required to demonstrate in a variety of ways the knowledge, skills and dispositions that embody the department’s organizing theme and program model.

It is important that interested students contact the Teacher Education Advisement Center (ED 230) as quickly as they decide to become a teacher. Specific program admission requirements, required courses, and recommended general education course work are available.

Admission to Teacher Education

Admission to the Teacher Education Programs is a separate process from general university admission. The Teacher Education programs maintain a competitive admissions process. Applicants are provisionally admitted each semester after submitting their application materials and meeting the minimum admission criteria listed below. Students are admitted two times per year: fall semester and spring semester. Applicants are evaluated by cumulative GPA and admission interview score.

Minimum Admission Requirements

1. Formal Application submitted online by the deadline date.
2. At least 40 semester hours of general education and relevant prerequisite courses.

Those intending to teach Special Education or teach at the elementary level, please note:

The Professional Education component of the Special Education major and the Elementary Education major requires four semesters to complete. Therefore, it is very important that candidates have completed the General Education requirements and have taken most of the required Support Courses prior to entering the program. Because of possible scheduling difficulties, failure to do so could mean spending an extra semester (or more) in completing the program.

Those intending to teach at the secondary level, please note:

The Professional Education component of the Secondary Education program requires two semesters to complete. Therefore, it is very important that candidates have completed the General Education requirements and most of the teaching major and minor requirements prior to entering the program. Because of possible scheduling difficulties, failure to do so could mean spending an extra semester (or more) in completing the program.

3. Passing the appropriate Praxis II Content test or passing the ACT with the composite score of 21 with a verbal/English score no less than 20 and a mathematics/quantitative score of no less than 19 is reguired for all programs.  The Utah State Office of Education specifies the passing score for each test.  Students will not be considered for admission if they do not meet the state specified passing score on the Praxis II or ACT. 
4. Sign up for an interview in the Advisement Center when you turn in application materials (the schedule will be available approximately one (1) month prior to the interview dates).
5. Composition general education requirement completed (grade “C” or above in ENGL 2010 EN2 , or equivalent). 

• Quantitative Literacy requirement completed (see General Requirements  in this catalog).

  Note:  MATH 2010 , MATH 2015 , MATH 2020  are required of all Elementary, Special Education, and Early Childhood Education majors.  

• Quantitative Literacy requirements for all Elementary, Special Education, and Early Childhood Education majors is fulfilled after completing MATH 2020  which follows MATH 2015  which follows MATH 2010  .
• There are many prerequisite options to enter MATH 2010 though the most popular methods include earning a C or better MATH 0970  , MATH 1030  , ACT Math score of 23 or better, or ALEKS math score of 46 or higher.
• Any Elementary, Special Education, and Early Childhood Education major pursuing the Middle School Mathematics Teaching minor is encouraged to take MATH 1050  and MATH 1060  or MATH 1080  as soon as possible as part of the requirements for that minor. 

   

3. Communication competency completed (grade “B-” or above in COMM 1020  or COMM 2110  or equivalent).
4. University Computer and Information Literacy competency completed (see General Requirements  in this catalog).
5. EDUC 1010  Exploring Teaching or approved equivalent course completed.
6. Teacher Education also recognizes specific program and diversity needs of professional education and reserves the right to consider such factors in the admission of candidates.
7. For teacher education applicants who are English language learners, an additional requirement of 6.5 on each of the four sections of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test is required for admission.

Additional Notes

1. Fingerprinting/background check must be completed immediately after being admitted. Go to the following link for more information: https://weber.edu/fingerprinting
2. Students are provisionally admitted to a specific teacher education program: (1) early childhood education; (2) elementary education; (3) special education; (4) secondary education.
3. Provisional admission to a specific program is valid for a period of five years. If a student has not completed the program within the five-year period or desires to pursue a different program, he/she must seek readmission under the current admission standards and complete current course/program requirements. Changes in state licensure requirements may necessitate more immediate program changes.
4. Professional education credits older than five years at the time of program admission generally will not be counted. However, students may revalidate outdated course work by following procedures available in the Teacher Education Advisement Center, ED 230.
5. A Graduate Certificate in Teaching is also available through the Master of Education program.
6. Applicants who hold Bachelor’s degrees older than five years and who have not had more recent relevant course work or work experiences related to their major and minor must take at least two courses in their major and one course in their minor as designated by the academic department.
7. Applicants with an earned graduate degree seeking initial licensure must satisfactorily complete requirements 1, 2, 4, and 5. They are then placed in the pool with others seeking provisional admission.
8. Data are collected on students admitted to the Teacher Education program for the purposes of national accreditation and program improvement. No personal information is used in this process.

Early Childhood Education Major

The Departments of Child and Family Studies and Teacher Education offer a major in Early Childhood Education with licensure for teaching in programs which serve children from birth through eight years of age (Pre-K through 3rd grade). Requirements are listed under the Department of Child and Family Studies. See Room ED 248 for additional information.

Elementary Education Major

Students preparing to teach in elementary schools graduate with a major in Elementary Education.  The elementary education major has a K-6 track and a 1-8 track.

The Teacher Education Advisement Center and faculty advisors from the Department of Teacher Education are available to advise prospective teachers. A program requirement sheet is available from the Teacher Education Advisement Center in Room 230 in the McKay Education Building. It is to the student’s advantage to begin program planning early.

Interdisciplinary Minors

The Teacher Education Department participates in the interdisciplinary Linguistics Minor Program. Students who wish to enroll in this program should indicate their desire to do so with the program coordinator who will help them work out a proper combination of courses to fit their particular needs. (See the Engaged Learning, Honors, and Interdisciplinary Programs  section of this catalog.)

Courses

Teacher Education Course Descriptions  

Programs

• Education (AS)

• Paraeducator Certificate of Proficiency

• Elementary Education (BS)
• Special Education (BS)

   BIS emphases are also offered for most programs with a minor.

• Education - Non-Teaching (BIS)

• ESL (English as a Second Language) Minor

Note: Endorsements are not Weber State University degrees. Please work with the applicable department on requirements for endorsements.

• Dual Language Immersion Endorsement
• ESL (English as a Second Language) Endorsement

• Secondary Education Licensure