Department of Education

education.gallaudet.edu
Graduate School and Professional Studies

Dr. Helen Thumann, Chair
Fowler Hall, Room 304

The Department of Education offers three separate undergraduate specializations in teacher preparation: early childhood, elementary education, and secondary education. Each of these programs provides students with the prerequisites for certification in general education for the public schools of Washington, D.C., and a number of states. Certification in general education is now required by many programs prior to specialization at the graduate level in fields such as education of deaf students, educational media, and other areas of special education. Students pursuing any secondary education focus must be accepted as a major in a content area such as biology, English, history, or mathematics. Each of these programs includes coursework in psychology, human development, teaching methods, curriculum, and a supervised field practicum experience (student teaching) in nearby school settings.

All students who wish to major in education, or in a content area and secondary education, must apply for admission to teacher education by completing and returning an application form to the Department of Education in Fowler Hall, Room 304. The fall application deadline is usually the second Friday in October and the spring application deadline is the fourth Friday in February. Applications are accepted twice a year for admission. Only a limited number of students can be accepted.

To apply, contact the Undergraduate Program Director, Florence Vold.

Applicants should meet the following criteria:

Completed Undergraduate Teacher Education Program Application.
Submission of a minimum of three disposition recommendations by current and former professors.
Praxis 1 scores (ACT or SAT scores can be used in place of Praxis scores. To determine acceptable scores, please contact the Undergraduate Program Director)
A 2.75 or higher cumulative grade point average.
Submission of a portfolio including a resume, educational philosophy and lesson plan.
An interview with the Undergraduate Teacher Education Admissions Committee.

Students who are thinking about making an application are encouraged to take one or more of the following courses that are part of the program requirements, and are available without formal admission to the education program major: EDF 323, EDU 250, EDU 311, LIN 101, and PSY 201.

Undergraduate teacher preparation programs have received state approval from the Board of Examiners of the District of Columbia Public Schools and are part of Gallaudet's Professional Education Unit which is accredited by the National Council on the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). In order to obtain a teaching license from the District of Columbia, education majors must be recommended for licensure by Gallaudet University. To be recommended for licensure students must satisfactorily complete all required course work and a number of performance assessments (see below for listing of performance assessments). The District of Columbia has a interstate compact agreement with most states in the U.S. so that an individual holding a valid D.C. license may be able to obtain a license in these other states relatively easily. Contact the individual states since specific coursework, testing, or grade point averages may be required that are different than requirements for D.C. licensing. A Gallaudet University Program Completer may submit any out-of-state forms requesting verification of program completion to the Office of Academic Quality (see http://www.gallaudet.edu/Office_of_Academic_Quality/State_Licensure.html).

Students who graduate from an Undergraduate Education program who are interested in licensure in Deaf Education may be eligible for the Masters of Arts in Deaf Education. This program requires one year and one summer of courses, and an on-the-job internship.

Declaring a Major

Requirements for Admission to a Major in Education

Students in early childhood education and elementary education must major in education. Students pursuing any secondary education focus must be accepted as a major in a content area such as science (biology or chemistry), English, history, or mathematics. Each of these programs includes coursework in psychology, human development, teaching methods, curriculum, and a supervised field practicum experience (student teaching) in nearby school settings.

Students wishing to obtain a B.A. or B.S. degree in the teacher education program must meet the following Undergraduate Education requirements :

Requirements for Admission to Teacher Education*

Admission to teacher education is conditional upon acceptance by an Admissions Committee of the Undergraduate Teacher Education Program.

Application for admission to teacher education is to be made upon satisfactory completion of or while enrolled in the EDU 250 - Introduction to Education course. (Students are encouraged to apply no later than the second semester of their sophomore year in order to complete the program in two years.). Students wishing to major in secondary education must first be accepted in their content area major such as science, English, history, or mathematics).

Criteria considered for admission to the teacher education program include:

Completed Undergraduate Teacher Education Program application.
Praxis 1 scores. (ACT or SAT scores can be used in place of Praxis scores. To determine acceptable scores, please contact the Undergraduate Program Director)
Submission of a minimum of three disposition evaluations by current and former professors.
A 2.75 or higher cumulative grade point average.
Submission of portfolio including a resume, educational philosophy and lesson plan.
A personal interview with member(s) of the Undergraduate Teacher Education Admissions Committee.

Requirements for Admission to Student Teaching

Admission to student teaching is conditional upon approval by the Student Teaching Committee of the Department of Education.*

Application for admission to student teaching is to be made after satisfactory completion of 90 semester hours.

Criteria considered for admission to student teaching would include:

A 2.75 cumulative grade point average with grades of B or higher in education courses and a C+ or better in all pre-professional and pre-major courses.
For those students in secondary education, a grade point average of 2.75 or higher in the (teaching field) content area.
Satisfactory completion of all but 6 hours of preprofessional courses and professional education courses.
Completion of all remaining required courses before or during the student teaching semester.
Submission of application and portfolio which includes passing scores on the Praxis 1 exams (or equivalent) and taking the Praxis 2 exams required for the major and satisfactory evaluations of performance assessments.
Satisfactory Background check
Review and approval of the Department of Education Student Teaching Committee.

*Exceptions to the above may be made on the merits of each individual case.

Recommendation for Teaching Licensure

In order to obtain a teaching license from the District of Columbia you must be recommended for licensure by the Gallaudet University Department of Education. It is possible for an Education major to complete a degree in Education and not be recommended for a teaching license. In order to be recommended for teaching license education majors must meet all graduation requirements and satisfactorily complete the required performance assessments for their program. These performance assessments include:

Praxis 2 exams (exams vary by content area)
Content area assessment (one or more)
Lesson Planning Assessment
Student Teaching Evaluation
Disposition Assessment
Student Teaching Teacher Work Sample

To determine what performance assessments you need to satisfy your program requirements and to be recommended for licensure contact the Undergraduate Program Director. Candidates who are not recommended for licensure will have a statement on their transcript that state that they did not complete the accredited program and were not recommended for licensure.

Praxis Requirements for all Education Majors

For admission:

Students must take a Pre-Professional Skills test to demonstrate competency in Reading, Writing and Mathematics prior to admission to the undergraduate program. Acceptable assessments include the Praxis 1, ACT, SAT or GRE assessments. Students with scores will be considered for an interview with the Undergraduate Education Admission Committee. (To get information about the acceptable assessments and scores go to www.ets.org/praxis/dc/requirements or contact Florence Vold, the Undergraduate Program Director for the department.)
Students who satisfy the minimum requirements on a pre-professional skills test and meet the other admission requirements will be interviewed for admission. (Exceptions will be made in the case of strong candidates.)
Students admitted to the program who meet the minimum requirements but do not pass the pre-professional skills tests will be required to attend study groups or provide evidence of participation in a Praxis workshop.

After admission:

Students admitted to the program will be asked to take practice exams in their content area.
Students who do not pass their content area practice exam may be required to take additional coursework, attend study groups or otherwise demonstrate content area proficiency prior to admission to practicum.

For entrance to Practicum (EDU 493):

Students must pass all pre-professional skills exams prior to beginning practicum.
Students must demonstrate content area proficiency prior to admission to practicum

For entrance to Student Teaching:

Students must pass all pre-professional skills exams and have taken all Praxis 2 exams prior to student teaching.

For Program completion and recommendation for Licensure:

Students must pass all required licensure exams (Pre-professional skills tests & Praxis 2) prior to program completion and recommendation for licensure. For list of required exams refer to www.ets.org/praxis/dc/requirements

Undergraduate Majors offered:

No minors are offered.