Supervising Clinical Practice Teacher Candidates

Supervising Clinical Practice Teacher Candidates

Supervising Teacher Candidates

Clinical Practice I
Four (4) observations – minimum – must be completed every two weeks of the Clinical Practice semester.  The Clinical Practice I Interim and Final Reports must be completed according to the schedule for the type of placement for the candidate.

Clinical Practice II
Eight (8) observations – minimum – must be completed every other week of the Clinical Practice II semester.  The Clinical Practice II Interim and Final Reports must be completed according to the schedule for the type of placement for the candidate.

Clinical Supervisors should:

  • Visit the school or center to hold a triad meeting.
  • Review and provide feedback on lessons to be observed.  All lesson plans should be completed using the WP lesson plan format.
  • Observe clinical experience at least four (4) lessons for Clinical Practice I and eight (8) lessons for Clinical Practice II.
  • Conduct post-observation conferences with the teacher candidate (and clinical educator if possible).
  • Communicate regularly with the clinical educator (and principal, department head, or supervisor as needed).
  • Mentor clinical experience teacher candidates, and read  and provide feedback on weekly journals.
  • Sit in on a methods class.
  • Make additional visits as necessary.
  • Act as a liaison between the teacher candidate, cooperating teacher and College of Education.
  • Complete observation reports and final reports in Chalk and Wire.
  • Attend Supervisor Meetings at the beginning and end of each semester.
  • Participate in PACE norming exercise each year. 

Evaluation and Reporting

  • Encourage the teacher candidate to discuss any problems directly with the clinical educator.  Give the student your home phone number and/or office number so that he or she may contact you when necessary.  The emphasis should be placed on your potential helpfulness rather than your duty to give a grade.
  • Document strengths, weaknesses and concerns in writing, being very specific.
  • If a teacher candidate is likely to fail the experience, has been absent more than once, or needs additional counseling, report this to the Office of Field Experiences immediately.
  • Submit your final report to the Office of Field Experiences using Chalk and Wire by the last day of the clinical experience. 
  • A complete, honest, and full report will assist the teacher candidate and the university in decisions about the future.
  •  Submit your observations as conducted, Interim and Final Reports via Chalk & Wire.  Review the total report with your teacher candidate.  Check with the Office of Field Experiences for the due dates. 
  •  If a student is having serious problems that might lead to failure, notify the Office of Field Experiences at once so that appropriate action may be taken.  A Special Case Report should be completed. 
  •  Remember that your focus as a clinical supervisor is to help your teacher candidate rather than merely report problems or the absence of them.  To this end, conferences are in order after each visit where guidance is given, and both strong and weak points should be emphasized.
  •  A common observation done with the clinical educator will be conducted at least once during the semester to ensure both the clinical educator and clinical supervisor are “seeing” the same things.
  •  Your final report is intended to be a comprehensive and fair document that is placed in the student's file.  It is imperative that the clinical educator's point of view be taken into consideration in the preparation of your final report. Your interim and final evaluations should be comparable to the clinical educator’s evaluations. You will record a grade of Pass or Fail on the final report. 
  •  All assessments – interim and final reports - will be submitted using Chalk and Wire, the online assessment tools program adopted by the College of Education.  

 

The first visit should take place as soon as possible during the clinical practice period.  This visit should be of an introductory nature and should include a discussion with the student and the clinical educator (student teaching triad).  Emphasize your supportive role.  Stop at the principal's office to introduce yourself and explain the purpose of your visit before going to your student teacher/resident's classroom.  Ask the principal to visit your student teacher after a brief adjustment period.

Ensure that your teacher candidate is making every attempt to communicate well with his/her clinical educator and other school personnel.  Where conflicts appear to be arising, help your teacher candidate to discover ways of solving any problems.  Stay in close contact with the clinical educator.

If your teacher candidate/resident seems to be having severe problems or has been placed in untenable circumstances, notify the Office of Field Experiences (973-720-3132/3978) immediately in order to work with the Director in charge of Field Experiences to decide what the next step should be.

It is your responsibility to spend sufficient time during each visit to make adequate judgments about your teacher candidate/resident's performance in the classroom.  This observation should be followed by a conference with the teacher candidate/resident and the clinical educator if possible about the observation as well as events that have taken place since the last visit.  Your observation report should be provided to the teacher candidate through Chalk and Wire following each visit.  Please maintain a copy for your records as well.  Consult regularly with the clinical educator and, during at least one visit, the principal.     

 Roles of Supervisors

  • Clinical Practice