Once a student is admitted to the Teacher Education Program, students are required to complete additional field and clinical experiences. Fairmont State University adheres to the requirements of WV State Policy 5100.
This policy mandates that each teacher candidate: Is required to have clinical practice at both the elementary and middle or secondary levels. Field-based experiences and/or clinical practice must be completed at a minimum of three different programmatic levels in the Pre K-Adult degrees.
The third programmatic level will be determined by the institution of higher education. This sequence is required for all teacher education candidates. At the present time, placements are made at the Professional Development Schools (PDS), which encompass public schools in a six-county area. These schools are sites of “best practice“, and are schools who work collaboratively with Fairmont State University to ensure quality teacher education and professional development for practicing teachers. All such experiences are cooperatively arranged by university and public-school personnel. All assessments are aligned with the new West Virginia Professional Teaching Standards (WVPTS).