Student/Supervised Clinical Field Experience Requirements

Teaching Field Experience

In addition to the student/supervised teaching in the final semester of each program, New York State regulations require 100 hours of field experience prior to the clinical experience. At Manhattanville, most required education courses assign a specified number of hours of field experience. These field experience hours provide students with opportunities throughout their programs to observe and participate in school-related activities appropriate to the content of the courses with which they are associated.  If a course has assigned field experience hours, these must be completed in order to pass the class.

Student Teaching

Student teaching is the culminating experience of the entire program. It consists of full-time involvement for an entire semester in appropriate classrooms, along with a weekly integrating seminar. It is during student teaching that the teacher candidate is expected to synthesize and put into practice the knowledge, understandings and skills developed during all of the previous courses and fieldwork. In order to meet NYSED requirements for certification, student teachers may be required to divide their semester to include two levels of experience as well as experiences in both urban and suburban settings. All clinical field placements will be at the discretion of the Director of Field Placement, Certification, and Community Outreach.

Supervised Teaching

Experienced teacher candidates who are currently employed in appropriate situations or appropriate teaching assistant positions may substitute supervised teaching for the student teaching experience with the approval of the Director of Field Placement.

Students wishing to opt for this plan must speak directly with the Director of Field Placement, who will ascertain whether or not the teaching environment is appropriate. It is important to know in advance whether the course competencies can be demonstrated in the setting. It is imperative that the student discuss his/her plans for a supervised teaching experience with the principal, and that the student receive some latitude in planning for the class during the semester. Supervised teachers attend the weekly integrating seminar along with the student teachers, and the seminar serves the same function in both cases.