Office of Professional Experiences
The Office of Professional Experiences coordinates clinical experiences for P-12 teaching candidates in the School of Education initial certification programs. This office collaborates with secondary concentrations in the College of Humanities & Social Sciences and the College of Science.
The Office of Professional Experiences’ mission is:
- To ensure high quality clinical experiences that prepare candidates to assume positions as educators for all Louisiana communities;
- To develop, promote, and sustain partnerships to improve candidate preparation; and
- To collect, analyze, and disseminate data for the purposes of continuous program improvement.
The Office of Professional Experiences works with schools and districts to design clinical experiences of sufficient depth, breadth, diversity, coherence and duration to ensure that candidates demonstrate their developing effectiveness and positive impact on all students’ learning and development. Clinical experiences, including technology-enhanced learning opportunities, are structured to have multiple, performance-based assessments at key points within the program to demonstrate candidates’ development of the knowledge skills and professional dispositions associated with a positive impact on the learning and development of all P-12 students.
Some EDCI courses require clinical experiences. This involves candidates completing observation, participation, and teaching hours. Observation hours are completed near the beginning of the semester. Candidates are asked to focus and reflect on particular topics established by the university instructor. Mid-semester, candidates should have the opportunities to begin working one-on-one and in small groups with P-12 students. Near the end of the semester the candidate will deliver the lesson they have created to the entire class. This provides candidates opportunities to work with P-12 students.
InTASC Model Core Teaching Standards
Louisiana Teacher Preparation Competencies
Mentor teachers are valued partners with the School of Education. They assist teacher candidates to develop, practice, and refine the skills and dispositions of becoming an excellent educator. Mentor teachers should be in dialogue with LSU instructors about how to enhance the learning experiences of P-12 students and focus the learning experiences of LSU teacher candidates. Mentor teachers collaborate with university supervisors to determine the candidate’s fitness for duty.
Louisiana Teacher Preparation Competencies
Residency is the culminating experience of preparation, an extended opportunity to combine content knowledge with your knowledge of curriculum, instruction, and school-aged learners. This is demonstrated by the performance of competencies reflected in evaluative instruments.
Residents are placed in public schools in districts surrounding LSU and in the LSU Laboratory School. Placement decisions are made individually and based on information found in candidate profiles. The goal is to ensure that residents experience a variety of grade levels, school types, and students throughout their program of study.
Our residents are well prepared for residency and entry into the teaching profession. Residents are well supported by School of Education staff, a university supervisor, and a mentor teacher.
Certification Frequently Asked Questions
Louisiana Teacher Preparation Competencies
University supervisors are extensions of the School of Education. They serve as ambassadors to schools and districts for the School of Education. They assist teacher candidates to develop, practice, and refine the skills and habits of becoming an excellent educator. University supervisors dialogue with mentor teachers about how to enhance the learning experiences of P-12 students and focus the learning experiences of LSU teacher candidates. They observe and report on the candidate’s achievement of competencies. University supervisors collaborate with mentor teachers to determine the candidate’s fitness for duty.
Louisiana Teacher Preparation Competencies
Contact Us
Certification Coordinator
Office of Professional Experiences
221K Peabody Hall
225-578-5865
chseinfo@lsu.edu