Secondary Cooperating Teachers

Frequently Asked Questions

Aloha Cooperating Teachers! Welcome to the Secondary Cooperating Teacher Wiki.  Mentoring a student teacher is an important decision.  We hope that the following "Frequently Asked Questions" will assist you. 

1) What is the protocol for easing a student into teaching? How long do students usually observe so that he/she can get a feel for the students and dynamics? Your student teacher would be initiating contact with you towards the end of the semester prior to student teaching to coordinate conversation and/or an initial meeting. During this initial contact, the student teacher will orient himself/herself with you, your students, your campus, and your curriculum. Important Note: Should you and your student teacher decide that he or she should start coming to observe, further orient himself/herself, and start establishing a presence classroom this semester BEFORE the winter break, please be advised that the student teacher can not be "on duty" as a student teacher yet. He or she can only visit your classroom as a "volunteer" for liability reasons -- not as a student teacher until the official start of the UH Spring semester, which is January 12, 2009. Your principal must sign a volunteer approval form allowing the student teacher to work with you as a volunteer (form link below). Your student teacher is responsible for getting this form signed by the appropriate parties and returning the form to our Secondary Teacher Education Program office (Everly Hall, Rm 226).

2) How many courses must a student teacher teach? How many classes? Depending on the content area, your student teacher will be taking full control of two to three of your classes under your supervision. As such, please discuss things such as texts, curricula, assessments with your student teacher and inform him/her about any pertinent information such as student profiles, important events in the spring, policies, special considerations, etc. It is imperative that this conversation start before the winter break occurs so that your student teacher can begin planning and prepping over the break.

3) What kind of records/documentation regarding the student teacher/progress,etc. is required of the mentor teacher? There are several evaluative structures in place during student teaching. The University Coordinator (UC) will be working with you both and come by to observe your student teacher teaching in the classroom a minimum of five times over the course of the semester. In terms of the documents required for evaluating your student teacher, we have two evaluation forms that are to be completed at midterm (March) and one at the end of the semester (May). The first form asks that you evaluate the student teacher's knowledge, skills, and progression, while the other asks that you evaluate the student teacher's dispositions. These forms are available below.

4) How often does the mentor teacher need to attend meetings regarding the student teacher?  The mentor teacher's input would be required at the midterm and final evaluation meetings.

5) Is there an opportunity to earn PD credits for mentor teachers?   Yes, Cooperating Teachers may register for and earn professional development credits with the secondary program. The exit requirement is the completion of a fill-able portfolio that journals the cooperating teachers support of and interactions with the student teachers. The cooperating teacher simply documents, or lists the ways the student teacher was supported weekly and submits this documentation along with the UC notes and a student teacher's lesson plan.

6) What approximate dates will the student teacher be in the classroom for? The student teacher would follow the UH semester (with additional beginning/ending volunteer time) arranged by you and the student. It has been my experience that most student teachers prefer to stay the entire semester to learn closing/end of the year procedures. Thank you for your consideration in giving your time and expertise to the teacher candidates in our teacher education program. Your service and leadership as a mentor teacher is critical to the effective preparation of our next generation of teachers. If you have any general questions regarding policies, the program itself, or any other related matters, please feel free to contact Aaron Levine at 808-956-0726 or alevine@hawaii.edu.