Education

The Teacher Education Program prepares competent, caring and qualified teachers for schools in Appalachia and in the national and global communities.

The mission of the Teacher Education Program is to prepare and inspire teachers who possess the knowledge, skills and dispositions to prepare all students for a college- and career-ready future.

The mission is aligned with high-quality indicators from the West Virginia Professional Teaching Standards, the Approval of Educator Preparation Programs, Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) Standards and Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC) Standards. These standards support the integration of course content, field experience, clinical experience, technology, diversity and dispositions that enable Davis & Elkins College to meet its mission. The WV Professional Teaching Standards include the following five broad areas:

Curriculum and Planning
The Learner and Learning Environment
Teaching
Professional Responsibilities for Self-Renewal
Professional Responsibilities for School and Community

Davis & Elkins College’s educator preparation program is fully accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). Through its accreditation process, CAEP assures the quality of educator preparation and supports continuous improvement in order to strengthen P-12 student learning. CAEP is the only recognized national accreditor for educator preparation. This accreditation recognizes that our education programs have met national professional standards for the preparation of teachers and other educators. Through the CAEP accreditation process our teacher candidates have demonstrated that they know the subject matter they plan to teach and how to teach effectively so that all students learn. Our current accreditation extends through Fall 2025.

Education Programs

Programs:

The following programs are offered at the undergraduate level and lead to initial licensure. For specific course requirements, refer to the Undergraduate Course Catalog.

Elementary Education K-6

The major in education leads to the awarding of the Bachelor of Arts degree. A student seeking initial certification/licensure in elementary education grades K-6 undertakes a major in elementary education.

A student is encouraged to seek additional specializations which may be obtained in a content area by meeting West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) licensure requirements. Additional add-on endorsements available:

Reading, K-6,
PreK-K Early Education
PreK-K Preschool Special Needs
English, 5-9
General Science, 5-9
Mathematics, 5-9
Social Studies, 5-9

Special Education – Multi-Categorical BD, MI, SLD, 5-Adult, K-6 Excluding Autism

The major in special education leads to the awarding of the Bachelor of Arts degree. A student seeking initial certification/licensure in special education, 5-AD, K-6 undertakes a major in special education.

Special Education – Multi-Categorical BD, MI, SLD, 5-Adult, K-6 Including Autism

The major in special education leads to the awarding of the Bachelor of Arts degree. A student seeking initial certification/licensure in special education, 5-AD, K-6 including Autism undertakes a major in special education.

Content Area Specializations

A student seeking a content specialization in any subject within a programmatic level (5-9, 5-Adult, 9-Adult or PreK-Adult) must have declared a major in a subject area other than education and a declared minor in education. For specific content course requirements, refer to the Undergraduate Course Catalog.

Art, PreK-Adult
Chemistry, 9-Adult currently program is in dormancy; please contact Dr. Tesar for more information
Biology, 9-Adult currently program is in dormancy; please contact Dr. Tesar for more information
English, 5-9 Endorsement only currently program is in dormancy; please contact Dr. Tesar for more information
English, 5-Adult
General Science, 5-9 Endorsement only currently program is in dormancy; please contact Dr. Tesar for more information
General Science, 5-Adult currently program is in dormancy; please contact Dr. Tesar for more information
Health Education, PreK-Adult
Mathematics, 5-9 Endorsement only
Mathematics, 5-Adult
Social Studies, 5-9 Endorsement only currently program is in dormancy; please contact Dr. Tesar for more
Social Studies, 5-Adult
Theatre, PreK-Adult
Physical Education, PreK-Adult

Minor - Early Childhood Education

A minor in Early Childhood Education provides students with the fundamental theories, concepts and practices in working effectively with young children. Through this course of study, students will receive a rich learning experience regarding key early childhood issues including literacy development, parent engagement and curriculum.

This program may be especially attractive for students majoring in Elementary Education but do not student teach or take Praxis exams to add the endorsement to their license or for psychology majors who wish to work with CPS, Child Care Licensing or other agencies related to children and families.

Minor in Instructional Technology

The course work will provide students with skills to produce quality educational content and training initiatives, develop effective educational materials, tools, and delivery methods using a wide variety of design software programs, online tools, and applications tools to create highly engaging and interactive programs for various learning environments (e.g., K-12, higher education, healthcare management, cooperate environments, and non-profit organizations). This program will incorporate the creation of educational video, audio and blog content for the purpose of developing an engaging learning experience for a wide variety of age groups and purposes. Additionally, students will develop knowledge and skills of designing, developing, delivering, and evaluating learning environments and programs in a variety of formats using creative approaches that are accessible for individuals with disabilities and are responsive to learners’ diversity and cultural differences. This minor does not lead to licensure or endorsement.

CAEP Annual Reporting

Our teacher education program is fully accredited through the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), we are required to submit an annual report and publicly present data on our programs. We encourage you to look through our data in each of the sections below.

For more information contact:
Dr. Jennifer Tesar
Department Chair, Teacher Education
tesarj@dewv.edu

Facilities

The Education Department is located on the third floor of Liberal Arts Hall.

Education majors have convenient access in one area to faculty offices, the main classroom equipped with tables and chairs, and a computer lab.

In addition, the bright and comfortable Education Lab and Lounge provides students with a place to study, work on group projects, share ideas and socialize between classes. It is equipped with large tables, sample textbooks for formulating lesson plans, and education manuals. Students also have access to a refrigerator and microwave.

Clubs

Alpha Zeta Omega Chapter

The International Honor Society in Education is Kappa Delta Pi (KDP). Founded more than 100 years ago, the society aims to foster excellence in education and promote fellowship among those dedicated to teaching. Eligible students must have completed 18 credit hours in college and 6 hours in education courses. One must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 and demonstrate leadership attributes.

Student Education Association

This pre-professional organization for future teachers strives to improve the quality of tomorrow’s educators. The group meets bi-monthly and includes activities such as discussions with guest speakers, fund-raising activities, and community service projects.

Anna’s Blog – Why I Choose D&E for My Education Degree

Aug 26, 2021

Education is a popular major choice for most students. Almost every college offers some type of Education program. Davis and Elkins College has, in my opinion, one of the best Education programs. I think that since D&E is such a small school, the faculty in the Education department can become familiar with what each of their students need for them to learn best. They build strong connections with us and they are able to relate better to us because of the small class sizes. They become aware of our strengths and weaknesses. If a student struggles with writing a lesson plan, they will help them improve. If someone struggles with classroom management, they will give them strategies of things that worked for them. I am so lucky to be a part of this department.

Our Education professors are very skilled in their field and they share with us the struggles and benefits of working in a public school. Many of the Education professors have taught locally and know how to teach us what to expect. I feel that each of the Education professors have such a passion and a spark for teaching. I love that they can openly share that with us. Their passion has inspired me so much. D&E has the best of the best professors. I am very excited to continue my journey through this department. Most of all, I am hopeful that I can become as wonderful of a teacher as my Education professors!

Anna Ruf, Junior Math Education Major

Anna Ruf, Math Education Major