Attendance | Phone Numbers | Promptness | Dress | Who are you when you're in school? | What is your reason for going to school? | Syntax | Pronunciation | Costs | Grades | Retention of Assignments

Attendance at all our on-campus classes is a class requirement.

If you are ill or have some other legitimate reason to miss our on-campus class call: 656-3356 and leave a message with Darlene Nelligan.

If you are ill or have some other legitimate reason to miss a laboratory day in the schools you have two phone calls to make:

1. Darlene Nelligan at 656-3356. Ask her to alert your faculty supervisor.
2. Leave a message for your faculty supervisorand teacher at your school.

If getting to places on time is a small problem for you, it will become a BIG problem for us. If you need to buy a second alarm clock do so. This semester others are counting on you! Get to our UVM classes and your school site on time. You are in the process of becoming a professional which carries with it a variety of responsibilities--promptness is one of them.

Be sensitive to the idea that you are a guest at your school. Dress in a manner that shows respect for the children and faculty of the school. For UVM on-campus classes, as usual, anything goes. Proper attire for males in a school includes a shirt with a tie (no jacket required). Oh, it would make life easier for Joe, Russell, and Susan if you could find it in your heart to remove large, bright metallic objects attached to your epidermis (including your tongue) on those days that you will be in school. On campus anything goes and we really don't care.

In general, when you travel from the UVM campus to your classroom you go from being Bob Trent to Mr. Trent, Muffie Smythe to Miss or Ms. or Mrs. Smythe. There will be some exceptions but in most situations(depending on the desires of your cooperating teacher). We expect children to address you by your new name. One exception is that in some early childhood classrooms the teachers prefer children to refer to you as Miss or Ms. Elizabeth or Mr. Thomas.

Is My Principal Reason For Being In A School To Serve As A Friend to Friendless Children?

No. Repeat no. You are there to acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes that will help you become a great teacher. You are there to help students learn and develop. You are there to help your teacher and learn from the experience. Should you be friendly? Yes, of course. Should you have a positive upbeat attitude toward children, staff, teachers and administrators at your school? Yes, of course. You are there to be a teacher who is friendly, not a friend who teaches.

Am I Going To School To Find A Friend?

No. Repeat no. If you desperately need a friend consider a puppy, kitten, hermit crab, goldfish or iguana.

Language that is appropriate on a campus may not be appropriate in a school. If you expect your "children" to speak standard English and become successful in the larger society strive to do so yourself. Here are two examples of terms that will detract from your effort to become a good role model for children:

• Like," when used as follows: "Like I went to the store and like bought this like neat magazine".
• Here is another inappropriate statement: "You guys".

Try your best to model the use of standard English in your classroom and school. Here are two examples of pronunciations that have caused problems for our students: To the best of our knowledge the word "pitcher" is a vessel that may contain water. It is not the way most people pronounce "picture". To our knowledge the word "crain" does not exist. Most people pronounce the object you are describing as "crayon" (kray-on).

We have purposefully organized the Inquiry Block so you will have a minimal expenditure of funds for the four courses. There are two required books:

• Teaching Children Science, Fifth Edition, Allyn and Bacon, © 2000

• Social Studies in Elementary Education, Eleventh Edition, Merrill Prentice Hall, © 2001.

• Whizbangers and Wonderments; Allyn &Bacon © 2001.

Final grades for each course in the Block are prepared by the instructor who is primarily responsible for that course. However, the individual instructors, where appropriate, will seek advice from other instructors as they reach their conclusions. Site coordinators are exclusively responsible for preparing your school experience grade. Site coordinators typically seek informal reactions from your teacher(s) to your work and, at their discretion, incorporate this information as they prepare your grade.

Additionally, your professors and site coordinators will either formally or informally assess your professional behaviors in terms of the UVM, Department of Education "Disposition Sheet" included as Appendix 4 of this syllabus. Conclusions reached may enter the grade determination process.

Be aware that typically in the human services fields, including education, course grades emerge as the result of an interaction between objective measures (course projects etc.) and other more subjective factors. These subjective factors may include such matters as initiative, cooperation, up-beat attitude, enthusiasm, punctuality, preparation for class, attention to detail, talent for teaching appropriate behaviors to children and a general professional attitude.

Also, please note that individual projects completed for a given course may have different "weights" in terms of determining final grades.
 

• Superior (your teaching and learning goals are clear, meaningful and ready to put into practice AND your work demonstrates thoughtful meshing of theory and practice AND ??you express yourself clearly.)

• Professional(your ideas are ready to put into practice without explicit demonstration of theory and practice connections.)

• Acceptable (meets minimum requirements but does not demonstrate a complete grasp of concepts or relationship to the larger concept.)

• Unacceptable (Enough said!)

In keeping with program policy (August 28, 1996), completed and evaluated assignments not picked up at the end of a semester will be retained by the instructors for only one additional semester.