The Teacher Education Program at Ramapo College of New Jersey is offered through the School of Social Science and Human Services which is fully certified by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.   The Ramapo program is approved by the New Jersey State Department of Education under the standards established by the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification. Teacher preparation candidates are prepared to become student oriented teachers who design high quality learning activities to meet a broad spectrum of learning styles and learning needs.

The Teacher Education Program at Ramapo College is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) through Spring 2027.  Ramapo College is located ideally for access to field experience opportunities. Many outstanding urban, suburban, and rural school districts are within a reasonable distance from the college and are most generous in their efforts to support high standards in teacher preparation.

The Teacher Education Program consists of distinct course-affiliated clinical experience and clinical practice hours in a variety of school settings.  The final year of the Teacher Education Program is a modified cohort model which requires co-requisite methods courses in the fall and a Clinical Practice Capstone (student teaching) in the spring, along with over 700 hours of clinical practice.

The Ramapo College of New Jersey Educator Preparation Program (Teacher Education) is committed to the preparation of educators who are highly competent in their academic disciplines and highly effective in their instructional and/or administrative skills. Our program, aligned with the New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers, prepares candidates at the undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and graduate levels to be educators who model reflective, innovative teaching behaviors while demonstrating dedication to and enthusiasm for life-long learning. The Educator Preparation Program at Ramapo College seeks to ensure that candidates are prepared to communicate effectively, establish productive relationships, and respond to the needs of individual learners. The program emphasizes the development of well-rounded and well-prepared educators who understand the profound impact of education in a democratic society, who strive to engage with all learners in a fair, compassionate, and productive manner, and who respect the dignity and diversity of all people.

Summaries of the Teacher Education and Certification Program and its performance are available to the public and can be found on the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) webpage.

New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers: Introduction and Summary of Current Proficiencies as of May 2014

Effective May 5, 2014, the New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers have been updated to incorporate current research on teaching practice, new understandings of learners and the learning process, and to align to the 2011 Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC) Model Core Teaching Standards. These standards:

• Describe the performances, knowledge, and dispositions that teachers need to be effective in supporting college and career readiness for all students;
• Outline the principles of teaching practice that cut across all subject areas and grade levels and are necessary to improve student achievement; and
• Serve as the common foundation for pre-service teacher education, certification, induction and mentoring, educator evaluation, and professional development.

Fundamental Understandings

The following fundamental understandings anchor the content of the standards:

• Teaching and learning are dynamic processes. Instruction is rooted in integrated and reciprocal classroom practice, and educator effectiveness is closely tied to student learning.
• Expertise in teaching develops over time. While the previous standards were geared more to beginning teachers, these standards are rooted in professional practice across the continuum of teacher development.
• 21st century skills are fundamental. Teachers need to foster students’ curiosity, creativity, innovation, problem solving, global literacy, communication, and interpersonal skills. Students need to understand technology and ethics and be able to synthesize information across disciplines.
• The focus must move from teachers’ teaching to learners’ learning. Teachers must acquire and apply the knowledge and skills to customize and personalize learning for learners with a range of individual differences.
• Assessment literacy is an essential skill. Teachers need to have greater knowledge and skill around how to develop a range of assessments and how to use assessment data to improve instruction and support learner success.
• A collaborative professional culture improves teaching effectiveness. We can no longer treat teaching as an isolated activity. When teachers collectively engage in participatory decision making, designing lessons, using data, and examining student work, they are able to deliver more rigorous and relevant instruction.
• Teachers should embrace leadership roles. Teachers should advocate for their own and their students’ needs, actively investigate new ideas to improve teaching and learning, participate in the collaborative culture, and advance the profession.

Integrated Themes

New to these updated standards is the inclusion of key themes across multiple standards. In some cases, the theme is not explicitly stated but can be inferred from the description of the knowledge, disposition, or performance within the standard. The integrated themes are as follows:

• Collaboration
• Communication
• Creativity/innovation
• Critical thinking/problem solving
• Cultural competence
• English language learners
• Families and communities
• Individual differences
• Interdisciplinary/multiple perspectives
• Professional Learning
• Student-directed learning
• Teacher responsibility
• Technology
• Use of data to support learning

Adaptation of the 2011 InTASC Model Core Teaching Standards to the NJ State Context

Although the updated NJ Professional Standards for Teachers closely track with the 2011 InTASC Model Core Teaching Standards, they are not identical. Some changes in language and organization were necessary to align the standards with New Jersey law, the prior state teaching standards, and statewide priorities. The complete text of the 2014 NJ Professional Standards for Teachers with highlights showing the divergence from the 2011 InTASC Model Core Teaching Standards will be found within the Watermark/Task Stream Platform starting Fall 2019.

Organization

The standards are now organized under four domains:

Domain One: The Learner and Learning

Standard 1: Learner Development: The teacher understands how learners grow and develop, recognizing that patterns of learning and development vary individually within and across the cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and physical areas, and designs and implements developmentally appropriate and challenging learning experiences.

Standard 2: Learning Differences: The teacher uses understanding of individual differences and diverse cultures and communities to ensure inclusive learning environments that enable each learner to meet high standards.

Standard 3: Learning Environments: The teacher works with others to create environments that support individual and collaborative learning, and that encourage positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.

Domain Two: Content

Standard 4: Content Knowledge: The teacher understands the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) he or she teaches, particularly as they relate to the Common Core Standards and the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards and creates learning experiences that make these aspects of the discipline accessible and meaningful for learners to assure mastery of the content.

Standard 5: Application of Content: The teacher understands how to connect concepts and use differing perspectives to engage learners in critical thinking, creativity, and collaborative problem solving related to authentic local and global issues.

Domain Three: Instructional Practice

Standard 6: Assessment: The teacher understands and uses multiple methods of assessment to engage learners in their own growth, to monitor learner progress, and to guide the teacher’s and learner’s decision making.

Standard 7: Planning for Instruction: The teacher plans instruction that supports every student in meeting rigorous learning goals by drawing upon knowledge of content areas, curriculum, cross-disciplinary skills, and pedagogy, as well as knowledge of learners and the community context.

Standard 8: Instructional Strategies: The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage learners to develop deep understanding of content areas and their connections, and to build skills to apply knowledge in meaningful ways.

Domain Four: Professional Responsibility

Standard 9: Professional Learning: The teacher engages in ongoing individual and collaborative professional learning designed to impact practice in ways that lead to improved learning for each student, using evidence of student achievement, action research and best practice to expand a repertoire of skills, strategies, materials, assessments and ideas to increase student learning.

Standard 10: Leadership and Collaboration: The teacher engages in ongoing individual and collaborative professional learning designed to impact practice in ways that lead to improved learning for each student, using evidence of student achievement, action research and best practice to expand a repertoire of skills, strategies, materials, assessments and ideas to increase student learning.

Standard 11: Ethical Practice: The teacher engages in ongoing individual and collaborative professional learning designed to impact practice in ways that lead to improved learning for each student, using evidence of student achievement, action research and best practice to expand a repertoire of skills, strategies, materials, assessments and ideas to increase student learning.

Goal Area 1 – Content Knowledge. The teacher understands the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) he or she teaches, particularly as they relate to the New Jersey Student Learning Standards and creates learning experiences that make these aspects of the discipline accessible and meaningful for learners to assure mastery of the content.

Outcome 1: Ramapo College of NJ program completers understand the content(s) they plan to teach.

Goal Area 2 – Pedagogical Knowledge. The teacher plans and implements instruction that supports every student in meeting rigorous learning goals by drawing upon knowledge of content areas, curriculum, cross-disciplinary skills, and pedagogy, as well as knowledge of learners and the community context.

Outcome 1: Ramapo College of NJ program completers understand pedagogy and can convert content knowledge into compelling lessons that meet the needs of diverse learners.

Students will:

• Demonstrate understanding of developmentally appropriate teaching and learning.
• Collaborate across and within constituencies to ensure teaching and learning outcomes are ongoing, appropriate, and measurable (using various sources).
• Establish inclusive classroom environments that allow for welcoming, effective learning opportunities.
• Use a variety of assessment tools and processes (including reflection) in appropriate ways and for appropriate purposes to ensure student growth., caring, and equitable practices in the context of contemporary education.

Program Admissions Requirements

• Successful completion of appropriate state-mandated PRAXIS Exams*
• Successful attainment of minimum state-mandated GPA 3.0 *
• Successful results from a background check
• Admissions interview with TE staff

Program Completion Requirements

• Successful completion of coursework required in the program
• Successful maintenance of minimum state-mandated 3.0 GPA*
• Successful completion of clinical experience and clinical practice requirements
• Successful attainment of passing scores on edTPA during Clinical Practice Capstone
• Successful completion of appropriate state-mandated Praxis Subject Assessment*
• Successful completion of content-specific coursework required for certification

Undergraduate candidates must also demonstrate

• Successful completion of graduation requirements

Post-Baccalaureate candidates must also demonstrate

• Successful completion of BA/BS with minimum state-mandated GPA at degree conferral

* Visit Teacher Education for current requirements.

Students seeking the elementary education certification may select a major in any discipline.  For example, majors in art, history, literature, mathematics, music, psychology, and science are all appropriate for pursuing this certification.  Students choosing this program DO NOT major in elementary education.

In addition to major, School Core and general education requirements for graduation, courses listed below must be completed.  Students should work closely with advisors in both the major and Teacher Education to optimize course scheduling and program completion.

Teacher Education courses and/or course options required for endorsements in the following disciplines:

1. Transfer students who have 48 or more credits accepted at the time of transfer are waived from the courses marked with a (W) below.  Waivers do not apply to  Major Requirements.
2. Double counting between General Education, School Core, and Major may be possible.  Check with your advisor to determine possibilities.
3. Writing Intensive Requirement (six courses):  three writing intensive courses in the general education curriculum are required: First Year Seminar, Critical Reading and Writing II, and Studies in Arts & Humanities.  The other three courses are taken in the major.
4. Not all courses are offered each semester.  Please check the current schedule of classes for semester course offerings and consult with your advisor frequently and prior to registration.
5. The Career Pathways Program requirements must be completed prior to graduation.  Visit the Cahill Career Center for additional information.

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION MAJOR

ELEMENTARY CONTENT AREA SPECIALIZATION ENDORSEMENT

Middle School Content Area

Mission of Teacher Education and Certification Program

RCNJ Teacher Education/Certification Program students quickly learn that our faculty and staff are tirelessly committed to providing a personalized life-changing collegiate experience – one that will further our mission “to prepare educators who are highly competent in their academic disciplines and highly effective in their instructional and/or administrative skills. Our program, aligned with the New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers, prepares candidates at the undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and graduate levels to be educators who model reflective, innovative teaching behaviors while demonstrating dedication to and enthusiasm for life-long learning. The RCNJ TE/Certification Program at Ramapo College seeks to ensure that candidates are prepared to communicate effectively, establish productive relationships, and respond to the needs of individual learners. The program emphasizes the development of well-rounded and well-prepared educators who understand the profound impact of education in a democratic society, who strive to engage with all learners in a fair, compassionate, and productive manner, and who respect the dignity and diversity of all people (January 2018).

Program Enrollment/Application

Prospective students are strongly encouraged to consult with Joanne Caselli, Teacher Education Certification Officer and Post-Bac Advisor, prior to enrollment in or application to this program.

Q: What are the requirements for the Middle School Teacher Certification?
Upon acceptance, each enrollee is given an individualized Program Plan. Your program plan is based on a review of your current transcripts to identify previous classes taken that may be applied to meet the requirements of the content area in which you wish to become certified. To complete the program, students must hold an initial teacher certification, successfully complete Adolescent Psychology (PSYC347) and any additional courses outlined in your Program Plan specific to your content area.

MIDDLE SCHOOL ENDORSEMENT:  To earn the RCNJ Middle School Certificate, students are required to hold an initial teacher certification, as well as complete  Additional elective courses if seeking endorsement

• PSYC 347 - ADOLESCENT PSYCHOLOGY
• Four courses (16 credits) aligned to the specific content area of endorsement
• Successful completion of the respective Middle School Endorsement Praxis assessment
• Completion of the above requirements is noted on the student’s official Ramapo College transcripts. Guidance is provided for students to successfully apply to the state of New Jersey for the Middle School endorsement once their coursework is complete.

• 4+1 BS in Elementary Education and MA in Special Education

• 4+1 Content Area and MA in Special Education