College of Education and Human Services

Return to: University Curricula

The College of Education and Human Services holds many distinctions, including a legacy as the first chartered state teachers college in Pennsylvania. Our long-standing commitment to children, families, and individuals is reflected in our degrees and major areas of study with minors, certificates and licensure at the undergraduate, post baccalaureate, graduate, post-graduate and doctoral levels.

Our college is charged with upholding a learning environment in which faculty, administration, staff, and students work together to develop a lifetime commitment of service to others. Together, we define who we are and who we aspire to become as members within the College of Education and Human Services community.

Degrees

The College of Education and Human Services offers programs leading to Bachelor of Science degrees in Criminal Justice and Exercise Science, and a Bachelor of Social Work.  It also offers undergraduate students the opportunity to earn a Bachelor of Science in Education degree and to qualify for licensure known as initial certification to teach in public schools in Pennsylvania.  Undergraduate students can choose certification in: Grades PK-4, Grades PK-4 and Special Education Grades PK-8, Middle Level Grades 4-8 with a variety of concentrations, and Secondary Education in Grades 7-12.  Post Baccalaureate programs for teacher certification include Grades PK-4 and Middle Level Grades 4-8, among others.  All teacher education programs are approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.       

The College also hosts the Military Science Department (Army Reserve Officers Training Corps) and provides opportunities for students of all majors to earn a commission in the United States Army.  Available to men and women, the Army ROTC program develops students’ ability to organize, motivate, and lead others.   

The College is home to undergraduate and graduate programs, including majors, minors and certificates.  Additional minors and certificates are offered in other colleges.  Teacher Education in Art K-12, Biology 7-12, Chemistry 7-12, Earth and Space Science 7-12, English, French K-12, General Science 7-12, Mathematics 7-12, Physics 7-12, Social Studies 7-12, and Spanish K-12 are housed in the College of Arts, but education related courses are sponsored by the College of Education and Human Services.

Internships and Practicums

Departments in the College of Education and Human Services are highly involved in creating and sustaining real world experiences for students as they expand their knowledge and skills in their areas of interest.  To that end, each department in the College offers a number of credit barring internships and practicum opportunities as part of students’ elective or required course of study.  While completing field-based, professional experiences, faculty monitor students’ progress and evaluate students’ learning outcomes.  Data generated from field placements indicates that students thrive in field sites across our region.  See each department’s program of study for more information.   

Accreditation

The College maintains national accreditation for a number of programs, including accreditation at the undergraduate levels in Criminal Justice certified by Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS), Social Work and Gerontology sponsored by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), and Teacher Education sponsored by the National Council for the Accrediation of Teacher Education (NCATE).  Graduate programs in Counseling and College Student Personnel, Criminal Justice, Educational Leadership, Special Education, Social Work, and Teacher Education are presented in the Graduate Catalog at www.ship.edu/catalog. 

Majors Leading to Degrees

*indicates an undergraduate and graduate program

+indicates a graduate program  

Certification of Teachers

To insure a consistently high quality of instruction in PK-12 public schools in the Commonwealth, all teachers are required by law to have a teaching certification.  This license to teach is issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Education to an individual who has successfully completed specific course requirements in the area or areas of instruction and is recommended for certification by Shippensburg University.  Teacher certification programs are approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education based on specified standards and guidelines as outlined in Shippensburg University’s courses programs of study for each teacher education major.  University curricula prepares Bachelor of Science in Education graduates to be recommended for initial teacher certification, known as Instructional I.  The College of Education and Human Services is responsible for ensuring that teacher education graduates are recommended for licensure in the state of Pennsylvania and other states as requested.

Conceptual Framework Alignment with Programs of Study

The Apprenticeship Model: Synthesizing Concepts in Collaboration with Experts

Our faculty, clinical partners, and candidates are committed to implementing the following eight goals and competencies that have been collaboratively designed by members of the faculty, students and stakeholders in our professional communities. Goals are identified as linked concepts and competencies are identified as candidates’ outcomes in classrooms and communities.  Overarching themes of teacher effectiveness are represented in these goals and competences.  We have integrated foundational principles from the Council for the Accreditation of Education Professionals, Charlotte Danielson’s Domains, and programs have connected this Apprenticeship Model competencies with Specialized Program Accreditation and the Pennsylvania Department of Education standards.  In addition, each competency is linked to CAEP/INTASC, SPA, and PDE standards to ensure alignment with national and state compliance expectations for accreditation.    The Apprenticeship Model goals and competencies include:

1. Content Knowledge Linked with Learner Development: Candidates Comprehend, Apply and Value Discipline-Based Knowledge in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 3, 4, and 5, Danielson Domain 1 and 3)
2. Professional Standards Linked with Instructional Planning: Candidates Plan and Examine Standards-Based Instruction and Integrated Technology Use to Impact P12 Learning in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 1, 4, and 5, Danielson Domain 1, 2, and 3) 
3. Purposeful Pedagogy Linked with Classroom Environment: Candidates Implement and Evaluate Instructional Methods to Impact P12 Learning Outcomes in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 1, Danielson Domain 1, 2, and 3)
4. Assessment Outcomes Linked within a Systematic Analysis: Candidates Evaluate and when appropriate Redesign Instruction to Strengthen P12 Learning Outcomes in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 4, 5, Danielson Domain 1, 2, and 3)
5. Theory and Research Linked with Intentional Instruction: Candidates Use P12 Data Driven Evidence and Decisions to Impact P12 Learning and Development in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 3, 4, and 5, Danielson Domain 1, 2, and 3)
6. Diversity Linked Across All Stakeholders: Candidates Demonstrate a Respect for All Students’ P12 Diverse Learning Needs in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 3, 4, and 5, Danielson Domain 1, 2, 3, and 4)
7. Dispositions Linked with Reflective Practice: Candidates Contemplate Attitudes, Skills and Beliefs to Ensure Fair and Equitable Treatment of P12 Learners and Professional Partners in Classrooms and Communities. (CAEP Standards 3, 4, and 5, Danielson Domain 4)
8. Clinical Practice Linked with Professional Responsibilities: Candidates Collaborate with P12 Partners in Classrooms and in Communities. (CAEP Standards 3 and 4, Danielson Domain 1, 2, 3, and 4)

The framework for the Apprenticeship Model allows all teacher education programs at Shippensburg University to contextualize the documentation of candidates’ learning outcomes in relation to our philosophy, our mission and our Conceptual Framework competencies that impact Leadership through Service.  Key assessments have been collaboratively designed and vetted by an Assessment System Protocol.  Each assessment is linked to a specific point in time and reported to the Teacher Education Council to ensure that candidates’ knowledge, skills, and dispositions are evaluated, but also that continuous documention of candidates’ professional growth and development in monitored and measured.  Key assessments are noted in the Gates and Status Levels Matrix.  Each academic year, stakeholders review data generated from these assessments and use the results to ensure that courses, programs and teacher education as a whole are meeting and even exceeding state and national standards.   

The Whole Child, the Whole School, the Whole Community

Fundamental to the Apprendicship Model, candidates’ learning outcomes within and across courses are linked to field experiences with the intent of expanding candidates’ prespectives in relation to factors that impact academic success in PK-12 schools, including technology, poverty, culture, trauma, and mental health.  To esure that teacher certification candidates are skilled in responding to the growing and changing needs of children, their families and the community, the College of Educaiton and Human Services has leveraged inter-professional collaboration of mental health providers and teacher preparation professionals.  At the course and field experience levels, candidates experience strategies used to develop a socioemotional and mental health framework to ensure our teacher candidates are developing knowledge, skills, and dispositions that recognize the diverse needs of youth and families from a holistic professional context.

Teacher Education Council

The Teacher Education Council (TEC) is to design, implement, and continuously evaluate each undergraduate and graduate teacher education program.  Moreover, the Council is charged with the responsibility for making policy recommendations for the development of appropriate standards for admitting, retaining, and graduating competent educators.  In order to enhance faculty’s knowledge, skills, and dispositions, TEC offers professional development to teacher education faculty.  These professional development workshops and resources are matched to educational inititives in our region and expand faculty’s scholarly work.  Members on TEC include representation from each certification program at graduate and undergraduate levels, the Director of the Office of Partnerships, Professional Experiences and Outreach, the Assessment and Accreditation Coordinator, the Associate Dean in the College of Education and Human Services and the Dean in the College.  Also, ex officio members include the Associate Provost and the Dean of Professional, Continuing and Distance Education. 

Progression through a Teacher Certification Program

Teacher education students are permitted to enroll directly in a teacher education major upon matriculation into Shippensburg University, but formal admission into a certification program is contingent on meeting all requirements outlined by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and as outlined in the Gates and Status Levels Matrix.  This Matrix outlines students’ prersistence through all requirements, including GPA, testing, clearances, learning outcomes, and field experiences.  Students transition through gates and enter status levels.  These levels are based on requirements and are linked to credit progression.  The Status Levels are: 

• Ship Status (0-29 credits)
• Foundational Status (30-59 credits)
• Candidacy Status (60-89 credits), NOTE: a formal application is required to reach this status level.   
• Clinical Status (90+ credits)
• Alumni and Certification Status (120+ credits)

The College of Education and Human Services employs an Assessment and Accreditation Coordinator who monitors all students’ progression through their program.  Students are notified each year of their status in their program, including any unmet expectations and a timeline for completing requirements.  Each year, students’ passing rates on required certification exams are reported to the federal government in the Title II Report and to accreditation agencies and departments.  This information is also available at XXX. 

Pennsylvania Standards for Teacher Certification require that teacher certification candidates must achieve a QPA of at least a 3.0 at the accumulation of 60 credit hours of college level work and must pass all mandated state required assessments knowns as Basic Skills (ie.., PAPA, Praxis, SAT, ACT) prior to achieving candidacy status within a teacher education program; PDE does allow a QPA of at least a 2.8 if a student meets specific assessment benchmark scores prior to student teaching (PECT and/or Praxis).  All candidates are expected to maintain a QPA of at least a 2.8 trending toward a 3.0 and earn a grade of C or higher in each course listed in the course program of study.  To ensure that students are prepared to meet testing expectations, Basic Skills Workshops are offered free of charge to students.      

Candidacy Status Formal Application and Admission

All teacher education students must formally apply for admission into the Candidacy Status at the 60 credit mark.  The Formal Admission Application is sent via email or printed from the Department’s webpage to each student.  The student must document successful completion of: 

• Stage One and Two Field Experiences;
• Basic Skills assessments;
• 48-60 credits, including six credits in mathematics and six credits in English;
• up-to-date clearances on file with the Office of Partnerships, Professional Experiences and Outreach;
• a signature from an academic advisor

The Accreditation and Assessment Coordinator reviews with the Dean and Associate Dean all Candidacy Applications and notifies each student and academic advisor of the student’s change in Status.  Once a candidate is approved for admission into a certification program, the student may enter 300 and 400 level courses at the Candidacy Status level as outlined by the course program of study.  Each student failing to meet a Gate is required to create an Individualized Action Plan (IAP) that outlines all unmet requirements and creates a timeline for documentation.  The IAP is sent to the Associate Dean for final approval and monitored by the College. 

Field Experiences and Student Teaching

The Office of Partnerships, Professional Experiences, and Outreach housed in the College of Edcuation and Human Services is responsible for coordinating all field experiences for students enrolled in a teacher education program.  The Director maintains open and robust communication with area school districts and intermediate units, and explores students’ field experience opportunities beyond our region.      

Field experiences are characterized by communication, collaboration, and accountability in an environment in which candidates implement practices associated with professional learning.   Teacher education candidates advance through four stages of field experiences, each becoming more extensive. Field experiences provide actual settings in which to develop and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions necessary to help all students learn.   These experiences benefit the candidates’ preparation by providing opportunities to apply principles and theories from program to actual practice in the classroom, and provide practice with diverse populations, ages, and school settings (22 Pa. Code § 354.25(d)). 

 “All” implies the possibility of diverse learning needs. Such needs may surface with (a) students having exceptionalities; (b) students from varying geographical areas, ethnicities, races, religions or socioeconomic status; or (c) students with gender, sexual orientation, and linguistic differences. Shippensburg University Standards for Those Preparing to Teach, Lead, or Counsel in Public Schools includes the following expected outcomes:

• Knowledge: Teacher candidates demonstrate an understanding of the differences in how students learn and know how to accommodate diverse learning needs.
• Skills: Teacher candidates accommodate diverse learning needs through informed decision-making that supports academic success for all students.
• Professional Dispositions: Teacher candidates show respect for the diverse needs and talents of all learners and demonstrate a commitment to helping them develop self-efficacy and achieve academic success.

Field experiences, too, are diverse. Interaction with students in a variety of settings helps teacher education candidates confront issues of diversity that affect teaching and student learning. Strengthening teacher effectiveness in all contexts and with all students is the intended outcome. 

The field-associated courses in the College of Education and Human Services at Shippensburg University provide teacher education candidates the opportunity to meet PDE requirements, and program requirements established for field experiences in teacher education.  These standards and outcomes reflect the College of Education’s Conceptual Framework.  In field-associated courses, candidates apply the knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions gained in program coursework while they are in an actual school setting.

There are four stages of field experience, including student teaching.  The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) requires all teacher education candidates to meet intensive, field-based competencies in all four stages of field experiences (see stages below).  Each stage is progressively more intensive with a gradual increase of responsibility.  The four stages of field experiences at Shippensburg University include a variety of school-based opportunities that begin early in the program of study (Stage 1), are ongoing throughout the program (Stages 2 & 3), and culminate with a semester-long clinical practice of student teaching (Stage 4). 

Stage 1: Observation

Candidates are observers in a variety of education and education-related settings (e.g., community organizations, tutoring programs). Programs are expected to design this phase so that candidates observe before formal admission to the teacher education program. Apart from community and after-school programs, there must also be a range of school and classroom experiences (e.g., urban, suburban, rural, high- and low-performing schools) so that candidates have a broad experience and learn as much as possible about K-12 learners and K-12 education philosophy.

Stage 2: Exploration

This stage may be called the “assistant” phase of field experience, where the candidate works under a certified teacher’s direction with a small group of students. Activities could include tutoring, helping with assignments, and so forth. Ideally, this stage would also occur before admission to the teacher preparation program.

Stage 3: Pre-Student teaching

In pre-student teaching, candidates work with small groups of students in school or after-school settings under the supervision of a certified teacher. For this phase of field experience, K-12 level candidates will be formally admitted to the education program and have taken at least one methods course, but will not be in full control of a class.

Stage 4: Student Teaching

There is a minimum of 16 weeks of full-time student teaching required. The student teacher must be supervised by faculty with knowledge and experience in the area of certification and a cooperating teacher with appropriate professional educator certification (3 years satisfactory certified teaching experience on the appropriate certificate and 1 year certified experience in the specific placement) who is trained by the preparation program faculty (22 Pa. Code §354.25(f)).

(https://www.education.pa.gov/Documents/Teachers-Administrators/Certification%20Preparation%20Programs/Framework%20Guidelines%20and%20Rubrics/K-12%20Program%20Framework%20Guidelines.pdf)

The process for applying for Certification is most accurately described by the Pennsylvania Department of Education on their website as any updates or changes are made by the their offices. 

The information below comes directly from a June 13, 2019 New Resources Available for Educators released by the Pennsylvania Department of Education Office of Postsecondary and Higher Education (Dr. Kerry W. Helm). 

“For educators looking to teach in Pennsylvania, the Certification website on the Pennsylvania Department of Education website now maintains an interactive webpage called Career Opportunities for educators to search by county and locate contact information for individual educational entities. The purpose of this resource is to aid future educators in their search for vacancies in Pennsylvania schools. You will find the link to the webpage in the Resources box on the Certification main page.

A new resource for recent graduates in education, Navigating the Teacher Information Management System (TIMS) for New Education Graduates, is now available on the Certification webpage of the PDE website. This short informative video guides graduates through applying in TIMS for certification. You will find a link to the video on the Information and Updates page.”

Return to: University Curricula