School of Education

Current Teacher Education Student Information

As a current TE student, we want to make your degree program an enjoyable and fulfilling experience as you begin your career as a teacher!  General information is below, with more detailed information provided by clicking on each subject headline.  You may also consult the Teacher Education Student Handbook or contact Student Services with any specific needs or questions.

Advising Guidelines:  Undergraduate, Post-Bachelor, Graduate

All degree and certification programs have a Program of Study, or detailed outline of every course needed to meet degree and certification requirements, and the order in which to enroll in each of them.  It is important to follow your specific Program of Study in order to stay on track to graduation.  All Programs of Study are found on the respective degree program webpage.

Testing Requirements and Dates

The Praxis II is a requirement for certification and must be completed either as a TE program admission requirement (Middle School, Secondary, K-12) or prior to student teaching (Early Childhood, Elementary).  Current TE students seeking initial teacher certification must submit scores from the PRAXIS II for their teaching field, i.e. Elementary Education, Mathematics, etc.  To ensure students are prepared to teach in their major field, they must pass the PRAXIS II Specialty Test with satisfactory scores before UMKC can recommend them for teacher certification.

Field Experience, Including Student Teaching

To become a certified teacher, students must successfully complete various field experiences, including student teaching.  Student teaching, a semester-long experience, occurs at the end of the program after all coursework has been completed.  The SOE places teacher candidates in a school within of one of our nine partner school districts and, for this to happen, qualified students are to notify SOE Student Services one full semester before placement is to begin.

Certification Information

Once a student completes the approved courses for each certification area sought, student teaching requirements, and the national tests for teacher certification, the School recommends her/him to become certified to teach.  Graduating students must submit an application for certification and the applications are processed once all grades/degrees are included on the UMKC transcript.