During the student teaching experience, each student teacher is also assigned a mentor
from the college, and these individuals are known as Student Teaching Supervisors. Over the
course of the 26-week student teaching experience, the Student Teaching Supervisor focuses on
establishing goals, developing skill sets, and providing support and coaching through weekly
check-ins and bi-weekly observations of the student teacher. The 26-week period is divided into five different phases: (1) acclamation phase, typically the first 4-6 weeks in which the student
teacher has the opportunity to observe and become familiar with the norms of the classroom; (2)
shared responsibility phase, which occurs between weeks 7-9, characterized by the lead
cooperating teacher relinquishing some of the instructional planning and instruction to the
student teacher; (3) primary responsibility phase, which takes place from weeks 10-20 when the
student teacher assumes full preparation and instructional responsibility; (4) phase out, which
takes place from weeks 20-22 when the student teacher slowly turns the planning and
instructional responsibilities back the lead cooperating teacher; and (5) the observation and
reflection phase, which takes place during the final days of student teaching. It is at this point
that the student teacher again returns to observation, and he or she may have opportunities to
observe in other classrooms within the building or district. Prior to student teaching, students are
required to pass their MTTC state standardized credential and endorsement tests. This is required
so that upon successful completion of their student teaching, students will be immediately
employable. See Appendix C for a detailed list of the student teaching outcomes.