It is important for prospective teachers to gain experience with the grades, populations, and subject(s) they wish to teach.
That first-hand experience serves to:
- Assure yourself that a career in teaching will be personally fulfilling.
- Help you determine what type of teaching career you like, and therefore which Pre-Ed track you want to pick.
- Demonstrate to PSU’s College of Education admissions that you understand what a teaching career entails.
- Demonstrate your potential to professional teachers, who can then vouch for you in letters of recommendation.
- Connect you with current teachers and school administrators, who can help you land your dream job after completing a teaching program.
Types of Experience Opportunities
There are many different types of opportunities out there to gain experience. The most valuable experience is in traditional classroom settings, working alongside professional teachers in the grades, populations, and subjects that you want to eventually teach.
However, every bit of experience working with children counts. Some examples of relevant experience include:
- Volunteering to assist in a classroom or elsewhere in a school
- Childcare or nannying experience
- Coaching in children's sports
- Working or volunteering in children's after-school or summer programming
- Being a camp counselor
- Helping with children's programming in your religious community
How to Access Experience Opportunities
- Volunteer in your own local neighborhood school: Identify a school of interest that is conveniently located for you. Call, email, or simply walk up to the front office, introduce yourself, and tell them "I'm interested in becoming a teacher, and need to gain some classroom experience to get into a teaching program. Can I volunteer to help out in one of your ___ grade classes?" It may also help to tell them "I don't need to be paid for this, I'm not seeking college credit, I really just need the experience." That will help get your foot in the door, and even if it is just a couple hours a week that experience will really add up. As you demonstrate your potential in the field, you will be referred to help with other teachers (gaining variety in your experience, and potentially more letters of recommendation), and potentially the opportunity for a paid position as a teaching assistant (the best experience is paid experience).
- Seek Employment as an Educational Assistant: Check the website of your local school district for employment opportunities. Search for positions with "paraeducator" or "teaching assistant" or "instructional assistant" or "educational assistant" or "AVID tutor" in the title. These positions will generally require some prior experience in the field, including volunteer experience as described above, and certain positions and schools may require you to have reached a certain point in completing your college education, but if secured this is a highly valuable source of experience and professional networking. Another part-time option is to seek employment within the SUN Services system, or at a SUN Community School.
- Take a Course with a Practicum: PSU offers a few courses that include an experiential learning component, often called a practicum requirement. If the academic credit serves to fulfill graduation requirements that you need to meet anyway (see your major advisor), this can be a great way to gain relevant experience as an actual part of completing a bachelor's degree. Some of these courses include:
- ED 150 Teaching as a Career (2 credits, with 20 hour practicum)
- ED 420 Introduction to Education and Society (4 credits, with 30 hour practicum)
- Various Capstones
- Volunteer with Community Agencies:
- PSU's Student Community Engagement Center helps students find engagement opportunities in the community, and they have lots of partnerships with schools close to campus.
- Hands On Greater Portland connects volunteers with opportunities to work with youth, and has focused programs to help support communities in East County – East Portland, Gresham, Fairview, Troutdale, and other parts of East Multnomah County.
- Volunteer Match is a clearinghouse for local agencies seeking volunteers for a variety of positions and connecting volunteers with community needs.
How Much Experience is Needed?
Some teacher preparation programs require a certain number of hours of experience, and pre-ed students often ask how much is necessary to get into a particular teaching program. The answer is simply, as much as possible. The more experience you gain, the better. PSU’s teaching programs do not have an explicit minimum amount of experience required for admission, but if you lack experience to reflect on in your personal statement as part of your application, or if you don't have a strong statement of support from a licensed teacher for at least one of your three letters of recommendation, that is probably a sign that you should gain more experience before entering a teaching program.