Student Teaching as Teacher of Record

Undergraduate or post bac student teacher candidates who are within twelve to fifteen hours of completing a teacher education program may be hired by a school district to begin teaching during their student teaching semester. The hired position must be in the content area and grade level of which the teacher candidate is pursing initial certification. The student teacher candidate would then complete Student Teaching as the "Teacher of Record" in the classroom.

NOTE: It is strongly advised that the student discusses the “Teacher of Record” option with their advisor and program coordinator before applying to school districts. Not all requests are approved.

When a school district requests that a student teacher candidate be allowed to student teach and also be the classroom teacher of record, the student will start the Teacher of Record approval form here:

TEACHER OF RECORD APPROVAL FORM

This documentation is then sent to the school principal and MSU personnel for approval. Not all requests are approved. However, if approved the following guidelines must be followed during student teaching:

  1. The school district must provide a cooperating/mentor teacher for the entire MSU semester. The cooperating/mentor teacher must be certified in the content area and grade range of the candidate’s intended certification in the state of Missouri.
  2. Student teachers will experience full immersion into a classroom setting utilizing research-based instructional strategies to engage students in quality instruction and adjust instruction based on feedback from the cooperating/mentor teacher and the university supervisor.
  3. The cooperating/mentor teacher must have undergone formal training in the use of the Missouri Educator Evaluation System (MEES) assessment prior to evaluating a student teacher using the instrument. Training will be provided by MSU. The cooperating/mentor teacher will complete a formative and summative assessment of the student teacher's performance.
  4. The cooperating/mentor teacher and university supervisor will meet regularly with the candidate and maintain consistent communication with each other. The student teacher must receive written formative feedback throughout the semester. The specific schedule should be informed by the student teacher's needs.
  5. The student teacher is required to complete all requirements of student teaching including supervisor observations, time logs, meeting attendance, etc. No requirements are waived, but instead are simply completed while serving as teacher of record.

After all parties agree to all conditions listed above, the student can apply for a provisional certificate through DESE's website.