College of Education

General Requirements for Undergraduate Degrees

See Academic Regulations - Undergraduate for specific TAMIU regulations.

Graduation Requirements for the College of Education

In order to graduate from the College of Education, all teacher candidates must complete the program with:

  • complete all coursework in the degree plan with a grade of "C" or better;
  • be in good standing in the College of Education; 
  • have all program/specialization/major "D's" and “F”s  retaken;
  • have all incomplete grades converted to a “C” or better; and
  • have all holds removed.

Students  within 9 SCH of graduation who are  unable to pass the TExES  exams required for entry into clinical teaching,  may apply to graduate without meeting the expectations for recommendation for a standard teaching certificate

Important notice: As the State Board for Educator Certification makes changes in the certification framework, degree plans may be subject to change. Any changes made by the state in interpreting the rulings on educator certification programs in Texas may supersede the requirements of the existing degree plan, certification or deficiency plan, with or without notice in this catalog.

Grading Policies

The College of Education has adopted the following grading scale:

A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
D 60-69
F Below 60
FN Failure for Non-Attendance
S/CR/P Satisfactory/Credit/Pass
U/NC Unsatisfactory/Non-credit
IP In Progress
W Dropped or Withdrew
WS Withdrew (counts towards 6-Drop Policy)
I Incomplete

Educator Preparation Program (EPP)

The College of Education Educator Preparation Programs is accredited by the State Board for Educator Certification. Accreditation status is based on accountability standards as established by the Texas Education Agency.

The most recent Title II accountability data is available at the following website: https://title2.ed.gov/Public/Home.aspx. Additional information is available upon request from the Teacher Certification Office.

Teacher candidates may choose to work toward certification at the following levels:

  1. Early Childhood through Grade 6 (EC-6)
  2. Grades 7-12, Secondary Certification
  3. All-level Certification

Certification programs are field-based and include performance-based assessments tasks, which coincide with coursework.

Each certification program is highly integrated with field-based experiences, requiring teacher candidates, cooperating teachers, public school administrators, and University faculty to work collaboratively at designated campuses. Teacher candidates enrolled in the program are assigned to cooperating teachers at specified elementary or secondary public schools during student teaching.  Field based experiences represent a continuum of early field experiences through full time teaching. Early field experiences are introductory experiences for a classroom teacher certification candidate involving, at the minimum, reflective observation of Early Childhood-Grade 12 students, teachers, and faculty/staff members engaging in educational activities in a school setting. Clinical teaching is the capstone experience. This experience is a supervised educator assignment through an educator preparation program at a public school accredited by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) or other school approved by the TEA for this purpose that may lead to completion of a standard certificate. The assignment involves an extended placement in an EC-12 environment for a minimum of 14 weeks (no fewer than 70 full days), with a full day being 100% of the school day.

Background Checks

As part of the EPP, candidates are required to pass background checks to be eligible for field-based experiences (observation hours), clinical teaching (student teaching), and applying for their standard teaching certificate.

Pursuant to the Texas Education Code TEC, §22.0835, candidates must undergo a criminal history background check prior to student teaching; and pursuant to the TEC, §22.083, candidates must undergo a criminal history background check prior to employment as an educator. A candidate may be ineligible for issuance of a certificate on completion of the EPP if an individual has been convicted of an offense.

A person who is enrolled or planning to enroll in an educator preparation program or planning to take a certification examination may request a preliminary criminal history evaluation letter regarding the person's potential ineligibility for certification due to a conviction or deferred adjudication for a felony or misdemeanor offense.

Requirements for Social Security Numbers

Effective August 1, 2015, MorphoTrust, the Texas Department of Public Safety fingerprinting vendor, can no longer utilize P-numbers for completion of the fingerprinting process. As a result, candidates attempting to be fingerprinted using a non-valid 9-digit number will not be allowed to complete the fingerprinting process, which required for the background check necessary for teacher certification in Texas. Information for international students is available at the Social Security Administration.

Admission 

Acceptance to the University does not ensure acceptance into the College of Education. Students are eligible to apply for admission to the College of Education when the following requirements have been met; however, meeting these requirements does not guarantee acceptance, only consideration. 

To be considered for admission to the Educator Preparation Program, the applicant must fulfill the following requirements:

  1. Application: Submit an application form available online.  Any COE admissions/program requirements in place at the time of readmission must be met.  Candidates who have not been enrolled for one academic year must reapply.  Any applicant previously denied admission must reapply.
     
  2. Online Screening Survey:  All applicants must complete an online screening survey to evaluate the applicant's knowledge, experience, skills, and aptitudes.  Applicants may be denied admission to the college from the evaluation of the screening instrument. 
     
  3. Courses: Complete the following: 
    A)  All freshman and sophomore level courses including the University Core Curriculum coursework with a grade "C" or better.
    B)  Successfully complete (with a "C" or better) a minimum of 12 SCH in the subject content are of Elementary certification or successfully complete (with a "C" or better) 15 SCH for 7-12 certification areas in math or science.
    C)  Complete two University Seminar courses UNIV 1101 and UNIV 1402. (Candidates who transfer Core complete or complete the institutional component option are exempt from this requirement.
     
  4. Foreign Language Requirement: Meet the University’s Foreign Language graduation requirement prior to admission. This may be demonstrated by fulfilling one of the options below:
    - Completion of three years of high school study of a single foreign language with a minimum grade of 80 (3.0) at the end of the third year, or
    - Completion of two years of high school study of a single foreign language and completion of a 2000 level university course in the same language with a “C” or better, or
    - Earning a minimum grade of "C" in 6 SCH in a foreign language, or
    - Completion of an approved international experience (study abroad) of at least one semester/summer session in length in a country where English is not the primary language, or
    - CLEP or AP exam scores that award 6 SCH in a foreign language, or
    - Completion of two courses in a language with a "C" or better from the University's International Language Institute, or
    - Completion of two American Sign Language courses with a "C" or better.

    NOTE:  The Foreign Language Requirement does not fulfill the Spanish language coursework for Bilingual emphasis programs.
  5. Grade Point Average (GPA):  An institutional, transfer, and overall GPA of 2.75 is required. 
  6. Assessments: Students must complete the following:
    A)  Basic Skills: Have completed the Texas Success Initiative Assessment (TSI) as TSI College Ready, unless exempt with minimum scores on SAT, ACT, TAAS, TAKS, or STAAR EOC, or other exemption honored by the University.  Transfer students that have already earned an Associate's Degree or higher are also TSI assessment exempt.
    B)  English Language Proficiency:  The TOEFL IBT is required of all students having academic studies from a country where English is not the native language.  These minimum TOEFL IBT scores are required:
            -  Speaking: 24
            -  Listening: 22
            -  Reading: 22
            -  Writing: 21
  7. Acceptance into the College of Education:  An applicant accepted into the College of Education must formally acknowledge the acceptance with the college.  The COE will notify the applicant of the formal date of admission to the college in writing.  Upon admission, applicants become teacher candidates and may enroll in upper-level COE coursework.

Additional Requirements After Admission

  1. Criminal Background Check: Candidates will complete a criminal background check as well as a fingerprint clearance, as determined by the school district for required fieldwork, and will be required to have a criminal history background check prior to employment as an educator.
     
  2. 3000-5000 Level Courses: To register for any 3000-5000 level College of Education course, candidates must be fully admitted to the COE. A 2.75 Institutional (TAMIU) GPA and a GPA of 2.75 in the specialization/major must be maintained to remain in good standing.  EDCI 2224, EDSE 3305, EDSE 3315 and KINE3207 can be taken prior to admission to the College of Education.  EDRD 3309  & SPED 3320 can be taken with permission from the instructor. EDCI 1102, EDCI 2224, EDCI 3200 must be completed prior to admission to the College of Education.  Courses at the 5000-level may only be taken by seniors in their last semester of undergraduate coursework under the following conditions:
  • Must be within 15 semester credit hours of graduation.
  • Must have a 3.0 cumulative grade point average in upper division coursework.
  • Must not enroll for more than 15 SCHs and must not enroll for more than 6 SCHs of graduate work.
  • Graduate course cannot count towards the bachelor's degree.
  • Graduate courses will be reserved for credit toward the graduate degree when fully accepted into a graduate program.
  • Must have approval from the Department/Division Chair and the Dean of the College in which the work is offered. 
     







    3. TExES Certification Exams:  The College of Education has the right not to recommend teacher candidate in the EPP for TExES state certification exam(s).

Continuation of Undergraduate Enrollment for Students Admitted to the COE

Standard of Progress

Teacher candidates must earn a “C” or better in all education courses. Any teacher candidate earning less than a “C” in a prerequisite course must repeat the failed course before enrolling in subsequent courses.

A teacher candidate may enroll in the same undergraduate course a maximum of three (3) times in order to obtain a “C” or better. After the third unsuccessful attempt to earn a “C” or better in a course, the teacher candidate must change program/major. When teacher candidates change their program/major, all current program/major admission requirements must be met.

To be eligible to enroll in EDCI 4693 Student Teaching, teacher candidates must fulfill the following:

  • have a TAMIU GPA of 2.75 and a TAMIU GPA of 2.75 in the specialization/major;
  • complete all degree plan courses with a grade of "C" or better;
  • pass the content/specialization/major TExES Certification Exams; and
  • submit an application for Student Teaching in the office of the Director.

Teacher candidates who are unable to meet admission requirements for EDCI 4693 Student Teaching may complete the Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and Teaching by substituting 9 SCH of approved coursework.

All teacher candidates must maintain a TAMIU GPA of 2.75 or higher to remain in good standing and to graduate. Any teacher candidate who receives less than a 2.75 GPA is subject to academic probation.

Overloads
Overloads will only be approved for TAMIU GPAs of 3.0 or higher and approval of the Department Chair and Dean.

Academic Probation
Once fully admitted to the College of Education, a 2.75 GPA must be maintained each semester to remain in good standing.  A teacher candidate is on academic probation if the GPA falls below.  Notification of academic probation is through the Dean's office. Teacher candidates must enroll in and repeat those courses in which the teacher candidate earned a less than satisfactory grade, before subsequent or new courses are taken.

Academic Suspension
A teacher candidate who is on probation and continues to receive less than a TAMIU GPA of 2.75 in a subsequent semester will be suspended by the College of Education. A teacher candidate who has been suspended for academic reasons may not petition the College of Education for readmission until one long semester has elapsed. Summer sessions are considered short terms and thus must not be supplanted for a long term. A teacher candidate suspended for any reason will be subject to those criteria and guidelines specified in the University Catalog and required by the major, College of Education, and/or Texas Education Agency in effect at the time of readmission. Enrollment waivers for teacher candidates on suspension will not be granted. When a teacher candidate returns from suspension, the teacher candidate must enroll in and repeat those courses in which the teacher candidate earned a less than satisfactory grade, before subsequent or new courses are taken.

Teacher Certification

For state approved programs leading to certification, as the state implements new requirements for certification, they will become compulsory at the time required with or without notice in this catalog. Candidates in these programs/majors have sole responsibility to comply with requirements for certification and to keep current with changes in certification requirements.  Candidates enrolled in certification programs will need to obtain a fingerprint clearance and may be subject to a criminal background check.

Before teacher candidates may be recommended for taking the state certification exams, they must take and demonstrate readiness on a practice exam in the area of certification sought.

Eligibility to Take TExES Exams

Approval to take TExES Exams is based on the procedure and criteria listed below. These procedures and criteria apply to all candidates pursuing degrees with teacher certification, regardless of their catalog year.

Good Standing.
The College of Education has specific requirements that are different and higher than those required by the University. An undergraduate student in good standing with the College of Education must have a TAMIU GPA of 2.75 or higher and a TAMIU GPA of 2.75 or higher in the specialization/major.

Test Preparation Session and Practice Tests.
Candidates seeking approval to take the State Certification Exam must demonstrate readiness on the appropriate representative exam by achieving the required passing score. Candidates who meet the required passing score on the representative exam will be eligible to take the TExES exam. 

Exam Sequence
Teacher Candidates seeking initial teacher certification must take TExES exams in the prescribed sequence noted below:

  • The TExES content exam in the specialization/major area will be taken the semester following formal admission to the Educator Preparation Program
  • The Science of Teaching Reading (STR) will be taken during the second semester following formal admission to the Educator Preparation Program
  • The Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities (PPR) representative exam for the PPR will be taken either during the third semester following formal admission to the Educator Preparation Program (recommended) or during the Student Teaching semester.
  • Students may register for the representative exam after completing the tasks outlined by the Certification Officer.
  • Candidates who are successful on the representative exam will be eligible to take the TExES PPR exam.

Consolidation Plans.
Students who are unsuccessful on a representative exam or TExES exam will be required to address domains/competencies on the TExES exam in which the student was unsuccessful. Students must complete one or more of the following (based on their level of performance):

  1. TExES Prep Individualized Intervention Plan
  2. Correct Answer Review (CAR) & Self-Analysis Report (SAR)
  3. Personalized Test Assessment 
  4. History of Scores 

Obtaining Teacher Certification

Teacher Certification is obtained after the candidate has completed the certification program he/she has been enrolled in and has passed the appropriate TExES exams. To obtain Texas Teacher Certification, candidates must

  1. complete the College of Education Certification Recommendation Form (Bachelors) 
  2. complete an on-line application with the Texas Education Agency 

The Certification Officer will review the candidate's application to ensure that all program requirements have been successfully completed. The application will be forwarded by the Certification Officer to the State Board of Educator Certification. ALL HOLDS MUST BE CLEARED BEFORE THE CERTIFICATION CAN BE FORWARDED TO THE STATE BOARD. The Teacher Certificate will be issued by the State Board of Educator Certification.

All certificates issued by the State are Five (5) -Year Renewable certificates. The individual holding the certificate must submit documentation to the State every five (5) years showing that he/she has completed the required clock hours of professional development activities relating to his/her area of certification.

Undergraduate Degrees

Minor