Cooperating Teachers, thank you so much for hosting a Teacher Candidate during this first placement! You are investing in the future of education and we deeply appreciate your partnership!
First Placement Schedule: 11-16 hours per week
The first placement begins in August during the teachers' in-service week before school starts and ends with the OSU Fall term, 12/11/26. Elementary teacher candidates will work with their Cooperating Teacher and University Supervisor to create a consistent weekly schedule that meets the needs of the classroom and is adapted to fit the academic schedule of the teacher candidate. Ideally, this schedule allows for two full days in the classroom so that the teacher candidate observes a full day of lessons.
Part-Time Student Teaching Experience
Your Teacher Candidate will begin their part-time student teaching experience before school starts. During student teaching your Teacher Candidate should begin with some observation and then quickly be introduced to teaching or co-teaching small lessons. This gradual release model of professional development works well to scaffold teacher candidates’ growth.
Observations and Evaluation
Summer Term 2026
August
- Before school: Help during in-service week and classroom set-up
Fall Term 2026
September
- By end of September: Meet and Greet - University Supervisor will visit the classroom with Cooperating Teacher and Teacher Candidate
October
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By end of October: Informal Joint Observation with lesson plan and rubric, completed by the University Supervisor and the Cooperating Teacher individually for the same lesson. The informal observation serves as a time for the University Supervisor and Cooperating Teacher to calibrate their scoring.
November
- Anytime in November: Individual Cooperating Teacher Formal Observation
- Anytime in November: Individual University Supervisor Formal Observation
December
- By OSU winter break: Team meeting to finish placement #1 with Cooperating Teacher, University Supervisor, and Teacher Candidate.
Policy For Teacher Candidate (TC) Absences
Any school day that a TC misses because of an emergency or illness must be reported to you before 7:00 a.m. on the day they will be missing. However, we encourage our students to try to notify you well before 7:00 a.m., if possible. The manner of how the Teacher Candidate reports the absence to the Cooperating Teacher should be agreed on before the student teaching placement begins. Teacher candidates are allowed 5 excused absences during their first placement.
Inclement Weather Policy
If a school is closed due to inclement weather, TCs do not report to school. If a site is on a two-hour delay, TCs will connect with their Cooperating Teacher to clarify what time to report to school (often two hours later than normal, but not always). These hours are not counted as part of the excused absences.
If TCs live in an area where the schools are closed due to weather, but teach in a district where schools are open,TCs will not report to their assigned school. The closure in the TCs residing school district determines that it is not safe to drive. In this case, TCs will connect with their Cooperating Teacher and University Supervisor, and record a snow day/ school closure on their log of hours. If the residing school district is on a two-hour delay,TCs will connect with their Cooperating Teacher on the anticipated arrival time.
First Placement Goals
During the first placement, Teacher Candidates will work with their Cooperating Teacher by observing them or other teachers, assist/co-teach along with the Cooperating Teacher while teaching small groups of students or the whole class, and attending meetings.
Teacher Candidates will:
- Work with Cooperating Teacher to establish introductions with parents/guardians of students in classroom. Observe parent conferences, if possible.
- Keep a Log of Hours for each month (submitted monthly to OSU instructor & Cooperating Teacher approves at the end of the placement).
- Work with Cooperating Teacher to prepare classroom environment for students, establish assessment and management plans.
- Attend orientation activities, on-site seminars, and school staff meetings.
- Talk to Cooperating Teacher about special needs students in the classroom. Review student files and attend IEP meetings if possible.
- Talk to Cooperating Teacher about how they plan curriculum for the year.
- Establish collaborative relationships with Cooperating Teacher and other colleagues at school site.
- Maintain a standard of professional ethics demonstrated through words and actions, and maintain professional relationships with faculty and staff.
- Engage immediately in regular classroom activities.
- Apply knowledge of lesson plan design to the teaching of lessons in small and large group situations.
- Ask Cooperating Teacher to observe informally while you teach and provide feedback on their teaching. Discuss the format/model for the Formal Observation Process with University Supervisor and Cooperating Teacher well in advance of first Formal Observation.
- Collect a student roster and video release forms.