Licensure Track

The Education Studies faculty will ultimately make the final decision regarding a student’s readiness for student teaching. Once you are accepted into the program, we will enroll you in the courses and notify the administration.

Students participating in the ninth-semester teacher education program fall of 2023 will be charged $9,275 for the semester; financial aid is available for students in this ninth-semester program based on financial need. (This fee changes each year, please review the Student Financial Services Handbook.)

Please review the Student Teaching Handbook.

A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.
—Henry Brooks Adams

Admission

Admission to the semester is by application only. As part of the application process, the student’s advisor or another faculty member, usually selected from the student’s major department, will need to complete the Academic Reference Form indicating the student’s intellectual strengths and his or her mastery of the subject matter.

Applicants will be notified of their acceptance into the professional semester by the Education Studies Program Committee approximately two weeks after the application deadline.

In order to be assured of a positive recommendation for teacher licensure, students must complete EDST 0410 with a grade of at least a B and EDST 0405-0407 or EDST 0415-0417 with a PASS.

Prerequisites

In a few cases, students may elect to do their professional semester during the fall of their senior year. Such students will need to show progress toward meeting the prerequisites listed below and will not be recommended for teacher licensure until they have successfully completed all graduation requirements.

  • Successful completion of a first-year seminar and the College-wide distribution requirement;
  • Students not applying for their ninth semester should submit a degree audit report showing their progress towards completing both majors;
  • Successful completion of all prepracticum course requirements for the minor in secondary or elementary teacher education with recommendation for licensure;
  • Satisfactory performance of at least 60 hours of field placement work in local schools;
  • Assessment by the teacher education faculty of a student’s communication skills in prerequisite courses;
  • Assessment by a liberal arts faculty member, usually from the student’s major;
  • An overall B or better average in courses taken before the professional semester;
  • An overall B or better average in the field of major studies before the professional semester;
  • A sincere interest in undertaking student teaching and becoming a teacher, as reflected in the student’s self-recommendation essay;
  • Review by the Education Studies Program Committee of the applicant’s transcript, performance in education studies and related courses, self-recommendation essay, and academic reference form completed by a liberal arts faculty;
  • Successful completion and revision of required portfolio entries assigned in the prerequisite courses. 
    • Part 1: Complete, including all rationale statements, links to all evidence and links to three narratives.
    • Part 2: Literature for possible future use identified for each PC.
    • Part 3: Standard 9 complete (rationale statement, links to evidence, one narrative). PC 10.1 rationale and evidence. 10.2 literature.
    • Evidence: Should be linked from your evidence chart. Make sure we have access.
    • Narratives: The narratives you turn in must be completely finished and passing on the VLP rubrics (this means any needed revisions need to be completed before you turn in your application). Make sure we have access.
  • Possession of such personal qualities as initiative, dependability, self-confidence, empathy, cooperativeness, and flexibility in adapting to new situations, as evaluated by the Education Studies Program faculty, by other faculty at the College, and, when appropriate, by classroom teachers involved in the student’s field placements.

Grade of B or Better

An overall B or better average in college courses taken before the professional semester is required of all students applying for the professional semester. Also, a B or better average in the field of major studies before the professional semester is also required.

The Education Studies Program Committee can make an exception to these regulations if there are mitigating circumstances or some indication of student’s progress in meeting these grade point averages.

Professional Semester Placements

Usually student teachers will be placed in Vermont schools within a short driving distance of Middlebury College. This generally limits placements to the ACSD (Addison Central School District), MAUSD (Mount Abraham Unified School District), and ANWSD (Addison Northwest School District) schools.

Students will be expected to provide or arrange their own transportation. Student teachers placed in schools outside of Mary Hogan Elementary School, Middlebury Union Middle School, and Middlebury Union High School will be reimbursed for their travel expenses per the current College mileage rate. Students are expected to carpool with other Middlebury College students. Reimbursement will be made only for carpooling expenses for one driver to such schools.

Student teaching is a full-time responsibility requiring (by state mandate) a minimum of 13 complete and consecutive weeks for the practicum. Student teaching takes place in accordance with the local public school calendar, not the College calendar. This means that we begin mid-August when the teachers start. Because of the extremely demanding time commitment for student teaching, paid employment during the professional semester is highly discouraged. Taking additional (i.e., fifth) courses during the professional semester is not allowed. 

Ninth Semester

Students may elect to complete the professional semester in either their senior year or in a ninth semester with the degree awarded following completion of the professional semester. You are welcome to participate in your senior year class’s graduation ceremony and walk across the graduation stage with your senior classmates. However, you will not formally complete and receive your degree until after you have finished the professional ninth semester.   

Again, all EDST double majors have been granted approval by the dean of students and the dean of faculty to walk with their class. The registrar’s office is aware of this arrangement. Tuition for the Ninth-Semester Program is the same as the fee charged to special students for one course (see special students in the SFS Handbook). Students may apply to the Office of Financial Aid for need-based financial aid.

Licensure Exams

While successful completion of the professional semester and licensure portfolio fulfills the education double major and leads to a recommendation to the Vermont Department of Education for teacher licensure, the student will still need to obtain passing scores on the Praxis I and II Exams to secure their teaching license. Students with a total score of 1100 or better on the SAT or GRE (minimum of 500 on both verbal and math) or with scores of 22 or better on both the verbal and math parts of the ACT do not have to take Praxis I Exam, but will need to supply proof of these scores when applying for Vermont licensure.

The proportion of teaching candidates passing state-required assessments (performance and Praxis Exams) is 100 percent, which places Middlebury College teacher education in the first quartile ranking of teacher education programs in Vermont.

Vermont Licensure

See the Vermont Licensure Portfolio for requirements and explanations.

The initial Vermont Professional License (Level I: Beginning Educator’s License) is for a three-year period.

After successful completion of three years of teaching, and on the recommendation of the local standards board, a Level I teacher is eligible for the Level II Professional Educators’ License. The Level II teaching license is renewable every seven years.

Upon graduation, students who have successfully completed the program described above are licensed to teach in the state of Vermont, whose license is also recognized fellow members of the NASDTEC. Some states may require additional teacher competency examinations before licensure will be granted. Holders of the initial Vermont license who are teaching in another state must qualify for a regular professional license according to the requirements of that state. Please see the Vermont Agency of Education website for the most up-to-date and accurate information.

Fees

Please check the Vermont Agency of Education website and www.ets.org for the most updated information.

  • Fingerprinting: $25
  • Level I Vermont Licensure Fee: $160
  • Praxis Exams: About $80 to $140 each; please review their site carefully for fees and surcharges.

The Education Studies Program will reimburse the cost of fingerprinting, but we do not cover the other exam and licensure fees; those are the responsibility of the student.

    Non-Middlebury Students

    While we value the education, life skills, and experiences that all students bring to the teaching profession, education studies at Middlebury College is an undergraduate program designed exclusively to support Middlebury students in their pursuit of an education minor and/or initial licensure, and we are unable to open our offerings to students from other programs or backgrounds. University of Vermont and the Vermont State Colleges offer postgraduate, CAS, and master’s programs in education for those interested.

    Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Student Teaching at Middlebury College

    A

    This is where actual teaching with and learning about students is happening to prepare for student teaching. Methods classes are a crucial part of your preparation for student teaching. Your performance and attendance in these courses impacts your readiness, and informs our decision regarding admission to the Professional Semester.

    A

    As required by the Vermont Agency of Education, a student teacher needs to be present for 13 consecutive weeks in a school. Though you will not be teaching full time that entire time, you are expected to be in schools and working with your class community. 

    A

    You need to inform your cooperating teacher, your college supervisor, and your seminar professor as soon as possible. If you were scheduled to lead lessons on that day, you need to provide sub plans that move students’ learning forward. All missed days must be made up during Middlebury College’s final exam period. We may need to remove a student teacher from their placement if their attendance becomes unreliable for the mentor teacher and the students.

    A

    Attendance is a key component of successfully completing student teaching, but not the only component. Student teachers are observed and evaluated regularly by their mentor teacher and the college supervisor. Students meet regularly with this team to get feedback, set goals for improvement, plan, and get support. We expect to see growth, not perfection, in a student’s performance across many areas.

    A

    This is a full time commitment to becoming a teacher. The K-12 students and colleagues in schools look at you as a professional in the school. Our student teachers must be able to work in community with others. Accepting feedback, communicating in a timely manner, collaborating with the mentor teacher to build a successful learning community, collaborating with other school personnel, and avoiding gossip and disparaging comments about faculty, students, and staff, are just some of the professional responsibilities of a teacher. We expect our student teachers to be able to do this. We have removed student teachers from their placement when they have been unable to adhere to community standards.

    A

    This is not an option. Enrolling in the Professional Semester means your intent is to earn both the double major and licensure recommendation. Our commitment to local school partners and families is that you have access to work in a classroom based on pursuing a teaching certificate as part of your pre-professional preparation. If you do not want to earn a license, you cannot student teach.

    A

    No. There are three possible outcomes of the Professional Semester. The decision will be determined collaboratively by your mentor teacher, college supervisor, seminar professor, and the EDST program director: 1) graduate with a double major in EDST and earn a recommendation for licensure, 2) graduate with a double major in EDST but not be recommended for licensure, 3) graduate with a minor in EDST and your other declared major. 

     

    Again, your enrollment in the Professional Semester means that your intended goal is graduating with the double major and earning a licensure recommendation. The other two outcomes (2 and 3 above) are not “up front” options for students, but rather remedial pathways that are sometimes necessary.

    A

    Being admitted to the Professional Semester does not guarantee graduation with an EDST major, since so many of the major requirements must be fulfilled during that semester in order to earn the final 4 credits for the EDST major. Meeting the attendance requirements of the Professional Semester does not guarantee a recommendation for licensure, since there are many other factors beyond attendance that go into that decision.

    A

    A student could potentially not be recommended for licensure but still finish the EDST major if they fulfill the requirements outlined and agreed upon by the mentor teacher, college supervisor, seminar professor, and the EDST program director. We do not have a set number of “possible days missed” in this scenario. Obviously the further a student gets from the required 13 weeks, the less likely it is that they can be considered as having completed student teaching.

    A

    Students who do not meet enough of the requirements for the Professional Semester must drop the EDST major and instead declare an EDST minor. They graduate with their other major and an EDST minor.

    A

    No, the Professional Semester is only offered in the fall. If you are a 7th semester student, you could postpone student teaching until your 9th semester. We want you to be in schools beginning in August so you see how a new year starts, attend the professional development trainings, and work to build a new class community from the very first day with students. Additionally, there is no EDST staffing available for spring student teaching. For these reasons, there is no student teaching option during spring semester.

    Program in Education Studies

    Twilight Hall
    Middlebury College
    Middlebury, VT 05753

    Trish Dougherty, Coordinator

    Twilight Hall 202

    (802) 443-5013

    pdougher@middlebury.edu

    Tracy Weston, Director

    Twilight Hall 109

    (802) 443-5846

    tweston@middlebury.edu