Three Practicum experiences support teacher candidates in gradually assuming full responsibility as student teachers.  

Practicum 1, taken during senior year, students work in small groups to teach a unit of study to a group of preK-12 learners. Students apply to graduate school in January of their senior year.

In Practicum 2, taken in the fall semester of the graduate year (5th year), teacher candidates work in pairs at a school site to teach their own roster of students for 40 days. At this time candidates apply for placement as a student teacher for the following spring. A conference held with department faculty at the conclusion of Teaching Internship II is used to review the student’s progress. Students demonstrating a level of readiness for student teaching are recommended for placement.  Students who do not meet the minimum academic requirements and/or who do not demonstrate the knowledge, dispositions, behaviors, and performance consistent with program expectations will be ineligible for continuation.

The last semester of the program consists of full-time student teaching, Practicum 3. Each student completes the remaining 60 of the remaining 100 days of student teaching. MICA provides supervision and progress in teaching is guided and evaluated by the mentor teachers in the schools and by the college supervisor. Should withdrawal from student teaching be necessary, the program’s policy includes a contract for outlining an intervention plan and criteria for resumption or dismissal.