Chestnut Hill College Announces School Partnerships

The Division of Teacher Education and Leadership at Chestnut Hill College is proud to announce partnerships with three local schools in the community to provide field experiences for students before student teaching.

Enfield Elementary School in Springfield Township, Fort Washington Elementary School in Upper Dublin Township, and J.S. Jenks School in Chestnut Hill have opened their doors to accept Chestnut Hill teacher candidates and have assigned teacher mentors to support their growth.

Over the past few years, the Division of Teacher Education and Leadership have participated in professional partnerships with other local schools. Chestnut Hill has placed practicum and student teachers at Emlen Elementary and also conducted workshops in technology and science for the faculty. Education students have read to classes at Emlen, and Jessica Kahn, Ph.D., professor of education, has conducted book drives and opened a library at the school. Chestnut Hill students have hosted social studies nights at St. Genevieve in Flourtown, and also helped to organize book drives for Jenks and other local schools. The department has also been active in charitable activities through the College’s chapter of Council for Exceptional Children, participating in the Autism Speaks Walk for the past six years. The department has also been very involved in the Reading is Love Project as part of Philadelphia READS, and providing support to Philadelphia Teaching Fellows.

The College is currently engaged in a self-study ensuring that high quality programs continue to be offered from the Division of Teacher Education and Leadership with strong partnerships with schools in the local community. As part of the redesign of field experience prior to student teaching, four to six education students will be placed at each school for three hours, twice a week for the duration of the semester. A supervisor from Chestnut Hill is assigned to the school as an instructional coach and liaison from the college to monitor, observe, trouble-shoot, assist, and help out as needed. Before school opened this fall, field experience teacher candidates traveled for an orientation and tour of the partnering schools so they would be fully prepared for the beginning of the school year.

The College’s requirements for participation in field experience are rigorous. Teacher candidates are trained to assist in the classroom with students one on-on-one, in small groups, and teach whole-group lessons. With direction from the mentoring teachers, these college students can hold writing conferences, tutor struggling students, provide enrichment activities, supervise cooperative learning groups, monitor center work, and support classroom instruction and student learning as needed.

 “The joint collaboration of local schools and the college community is essential for the benefit of all and will support Chestnut Hill’s Division of Teacher Education and Leadership’s mission to “Prepare competent, caring, and culturally responsive educators and leaders for 21st Century Learners,” says Kathy Gibson, field experience coordinator at Chestnut Hill College. “These partnerships will improve the quality of teacher preparation at Chestnut Hill College and will develop strong relationships between the college’s Division of Teacher Education and Leadership, local schools, and the community.”