The Internships and Student Affairs Office (ISA), mcgill.ca/isa, is responsible for arranging the placement and evaluation of all student teachers in supervised Field Experiences.
About Field Experiences
About Field Experiences
Field experiences:
- are required courses (with the subject code EDFE) for all students in B.Ed. programs from first through fourth year;
- are the sole responsibility of the Faculty of Education and are organized by the Internships and Student Affairs Office. Under no circumstances should students seek, solicit, or make their own placement arrangements;
- must be taken in the required sequence;
- require that newly admitted and returning students follow registration procedures (see Faculty of Education > Undergraduate > Faculty Regulations for Undergraduate Programs > Registration) or risk not being placed in a host school in a given term;
- are completed in schools within English school boards or private schools in the province of Quebec in the majority of cases, with the exception of the B.Ed. TESL program, in which students are placed in Francophone school boards or private schools in the province of Quebec;
- can be specialized in some circumstances; refer to the ISA website for information regarding such opportunities (distance, special needs, resource room, adult education, etc.);
- require that students travel to their host school. Students should therefore budget time and money for this purpose;
- may begin before the first day of lectures or end after the last day of lectures;
- may continue during regularly scheduled University breaks; and
- may continue through May into the Summer term (refer to the ISA website or Minerva for exact dates).
Registration for the Student Teaching/Field Experience
Registration for the Student Teaching/Field Experience
Newly Admitted Students
Newly Admitted Students
Newly admitted students:
- must register for the appropriate Field Experience course by the date set forth by the Internships & Student Affairs Office; this date will be communicated to students at their @mail.mcgill.ca email address;
- who are registered for a Field Experience course will receive instructions for accessing the online Student Teaching Placement Form at their @mail.mcgill.ca email address. Forms must be submitted by the date indicated.
Returning Students
Returning Students
Returning students:
- must register for the appropriate Field Experience course by the date set forth by the Internships & Student Affairs Office; this date will be communicated to students at their @mail.mcgill.ca email address;
- who are registered for a Field Experience course will receive instructions for accessing the online Student Teaching Placement Form at their @mail.mcgill.ca email address. Forms must be submitted by the date indicated;
- must be in Satisfactory Standing and have satisfied all prerequisite and corequisite course requirements (refer to mcgill.ca/isa/teaching). B.Ed. Secondary program students must have successfully completed 24 credits in their official subject area prior to Field Experience 3. All B.Ed. students must successfully pass the English Exam for Teacher Certification (EETC; EDEC 215) prior to Field Experience 3. Minerva does not necessarily prevent students from registering for courses that they should not take. It is the student's responsibility to be aware of prerequisites, corequisites, restrictions, and Faculty regulations that apply to the courses in which they register. Students should consult an academic advisor for assistance. Students missing any of these requirements will be removed from their field placement (see Early Dismissal from Field Experience.).
- in B.Ed. K/Elementary, Secondary, and TESL programs who wish to transfer within these programs will not be required to repeat Field Experience 1.
Student Responsibilities
Student Responsibilities
Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the policies and rules governing all aspects of Field Experience, including pedagogical and professional behaviour, available at mcgill.ca/isa/teaching/ehandbook/policy.
Students are advised not to engage in any type of employment during Field Experience nor register for any non-corequisite course(s) that might conflict with times when students should be in the field, and therefore will interfere with the successful outcome of a Field Experience.
Guidelines (Syllabus)
Guidelines (Syllabus)
Detailed guidelines and evaluation forms for every Field Experience are posted on the ISA website, arranged by program and year. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the objectives, evaluation criteria, and forms for each level of Field Experience.
Attendance and Absences
Attendance and Absences
Punctual attendance is required at the assigned school for the entire Field Experience. Alternate dates cannot be arranged at the request of the student. Unexcused absences from intensive courses and professional seminars may result in exclusion from the course, course failure, and/or removal from any associated Field Experience.
Days absent due to illness or 苹果淫院 exams must be made up at the end of the Field Experience. Absences due to illness extending beyond two days require a valid medical note (see mcgill.ca/wellness-hub/get-support/physical-health-support/medical-notes) to be submitted to the ISA, and, depending on the circumstances, the outcome of the Field Experience will be evaluated on an individual basis. Student teachers must contact the following people as soon as possible on the morning of the day of their absence:
- Cooperating Teacher
- ISA Placement Coordinators (Email: placements.education [at] mcgill.ca)
- Field Supervisor
Student teachers are permitted to be absent for religious holy days, as outlined in 苹果淫院's Policy for the Accommodation of Religious Holy Days; see mcgill.ca/importantdates/holy-days-0. Students must notify the ISA, Cooperating Teacher, and Field Supervisor before the Field Experience begins if possible, or at least two weeks before the planned absence. The missed days must be made up, usually at the end of the Field Experience.
Absences related to 苹果淫院 Intercollegiate Sport events are evaluated by the ISA Director on a case-by-case basis. Student teachers must submit a signed copy of the to the ISA at least two weeks in advance of the scheduled event/absence. This form can be obtained from 苹果淫院 Athletics & Recreation.
Requests to be absent from the placement for any other reasons are exceptionally permitted by the ISA Director on a case-by-case basis. Any request for absence must be sent to your Placement Coordinator a minimum of 2 weeks before the proposed absence. Students should consult an academic advisor if they need to rearrange their course schedule.
Judicial Record Verification
Judicial Record Verification
See Faculty of Education > Undergraduate > Faculty Regulations for Undergraduate Programs > Judicial Record Verification for Students in the Bachelor of Education Programs for information on the requirement to obtain this security clearance. Additional information can be found on the ISA website.
Work Permit for International Students
Work Permit for International Students
In order to be in compliance with government regulations, international students (students who are not Permanent Residents or citizens of Canada) should apply for an internship/co-op work permit issued by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to complete their mandatory Field Experiences. This is not the same as an off-campus paid work permit, and it is not automatically included in the study permit. The internship/co-op work permit is free of charge, but takes time to obtain and requires a medical exam by a designated CIC physician; medical exam fees vary. For assistance with the application process, students should contact International Student Services: mcgill.ca/internationalstudents.
Grading and Credit
Grading and Credit
Field Experiences are graded 鈥淧ass/Fail鈥 (P, F) and final grades are based on field evaluation forms from both the Field Supervisor and Cooperating Teacher.
Where a student is experiencing serious difficulties in a Field Experience but has demonstrated some potential to successfully reach the required standard, the student may be granted a grade of D. In this case, the ISA Director has the authority to grant permission for the student to repeat the Field Experience during the next term in which it is regularly offered. This permission will be granted once only in a student's program.
Given the emphasis of the corequisite course(s) on supporting the fieldwork component and vice versa, students who receive a grade of D in a Field Experience may be required to withdraw from the corequisite course(s) depending on the date of early dismissal and percentage of corequisite course(s) completed. A decision in this regard will be reached by the ISA Director in consultation with the Undergraduate Program Director. In the event that a student must withdraw from the corequisite course(s), the student will register for and repeat the course(s) along with the Field Experience when it is next regularly offered.
Students must receive a grade of P in order to proceed in the B.Ed. program. Failure (F, J, KF, WF) in any Field Experience places a student in Unsatisfactory Standing (regardless of the term), requiring withdrawal from the B.Ed. program.
A student may appeal any outcome of a Field Experience by making a formal application to the Faculty of Education Student Affairs Committee. Please refer to mcgill.ca/isa/teaching/ehandbook/policy/grade-appeal for more details.
Early Dismissal from Field Experience
Early Dismissal from Field Experience
At any time, students may be removed from their Field Experience at the request of the host School Administrator and/or Cooperating Teacher, or at the request of the ISA Director. Students who are removed from a Field Experience will be informed of the reason for the dismissal and will have the opportunity to meet with the ISA Director after receiving the outcome letter.
Circumstances that could lead to early dismissal include, but are not limited to:
- Prerequisite courses not successfully completed;
- Exceeding the number of permissible unexcused absences for corequisite courses (consult the syllabus for each course);
- Failure to pass a judicial record check, if required by the school/board where the student is placed;
- Unprofessional behaviour; behaviour that contravenes the 苹果淫院 Principles of Practice, Behaviour and Ethical Conduct for Teacher Candidates;
- Failure to demonstrate Professional Competencies as expected and/or make the improvements outlined on a Competency Improvement Plan (CIP) by the date indicated.
The final outcome for early dismissal from a Field Experience will be decided by the ISA Director.
Possible outcomes are:
- Reassignment during the same term, subject to availability of placements and at the discretion of the ISA Director;
- W 鈥 Withdrawal;
- D 鈥 Student will be permitted to register for the Field Experience again when next offered;
- F, J, KF, WF 鈥 Failure in any Field Experience places the student into Unsatisfactory Standing, requiring withdrawal from the B.Ed. program.
If a student cannot continue the Field Experience due to illness, see Withdrawal from Field Experience.
If a student wishes to end their Field Experience prematurely, the ISA Director will evaluate the circumstances and determine an outcome. Possible outcomes are the same as those listed above.
Withdrawal from Field Experience
Withdrawal from Field Experience
- Withdrawal (with refund) for any reason must be done at least two weeks before the start of the Field Experience. The student is responsible for notifying the ISA in writing by this deadline and deregistering for the Field Experience course in Minerva.
- Students having to withdraw for any reason, including illness, from a Field Experience that begins in less than two weeks or that is already underway must immediately inform the ISA. Based on the circumstances of the withdrawal request, the ISA Director will determine the final outcome of the Field Experience and eligibility for refund.
Transfer Credit
Transfer Credit
Field Experience courses from other institutions are not eligible for transfer credit to 苹果淫院. Students must complete all Field Experiences at 苹果淫院, as required by their program.
For general information about transfer credits at 苹果淫院, see mcgill.ca/transfercredit, as well as Faculty-specific information at mcgill.ca/isa/student/new.