Students can earn secondary school teacher certification from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in certain areas while pursuing an academic major. No major is offered in Secondary Teacher Education. Students pursue the professional education component of STEP as they fulfill the requirements of an academic major. This dual preparation in method and content, maintaining and fostering the philosophy and objectives of a liberal arts education, is designed to prepare humanistic teachers for quality teaching in the Commonwealth's secondary schools.
DeSales University is authorized by the Pennsylvania Department of Education to prepare teachers in the following areas:
All certification areas are for grades 7-12, except Spanish which is K-12. A program is offered for those preparing to teach Theology, but no Pennsylvania Department of Education certification is available. Forms containing the specific requirements for each certification area are available in Dooling Hall 120.
Students preparing for high school teaching careers must be members of STEP. Students who wish to enter STEP need to plan their programs beginning in their freshman year to ensure that they take all required coursework in a timely manner. The Director of Secondary Teacher Education, Rev. Robert Mulligan, OSFS, is available for advising and planning of academic programs.
Certification Course Requirements:
ED 301, ED 311, PS 109, HI 201**, HI 202**, HUM 3 (must be an art course in fall or spring), ED 330, ED 410 - 415 (one course according to major), ED 450 - 456 (student teaching).
** Required of all social studies majors except politics
All certification candidates are required to take the following courses (ordinarily in this sequence):
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Freshman Year
Spring: ED 301
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Sophomore Year
Fall: PS 109
Spring: HI 201-202
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Junior Year
Fall: ED 311
Spring: ED 330, Humanities 3
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Senior Year
Fall: ED 410-415
Spring: ED 450-456 (student teaching)
Field Experience and Student Teaching in STEP
Successful completion of the field experience component of STEP is necessary for admittance to student teaching. It consists of the following courses: ED 301, ED 311, ED 410-415 (one course according to area of certification), and ED 450-456.
Once candidates have completed all courses within the professional sequence, they are ready to student teach. Student teaching is offered in four separate courses during the final semester of senior year within a public or nonpublic school. No other course work is permitted during student teaching and candidates may not enroll in ED 450, ED 452, ED 454, or ED 456 unless they have fulfilled all the requirements mentioned above and have made formal application to and been accepted into the Professional Educator Program. STEP candidates may be placed in a secondary public and nonpublic schools in grades 7 - 12 within their certification content area. |
Communication
