College of Education and Human Services

At-a-Glance

Web-page: www.csuohio.edu/cehs

Degree granted: Bachelor of Science in Education

Endorsements: Teacher licensure

Minimum hours for degree: 120 semester hours

Minimum hours for license: 32 semester hours (applies only to those undergraduate students seeking adolescent/young adult licensure)

Financial assistance: Incentive grants; Teacher Scholarship program (details are available in the College Advising Office, Julka Hall 170.)

Awards: Golden Apple for Academic Excellence, Award for Exceptional Achievement, and Outstanding Performance for Student Teaching. The Department of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance confers Major of the Year, Academic Achievement, and the Jane Pease Service Awards.

Central advising office: Education Student Services Center, Julka Hall 170; 216-687-4625

Introduction

The College of Education and Human Services offers a variety of baccalaureate programs for students who desire to serve as teachers, health educators, sport managers, or exercise/fitness specialists. The college also offers graduate programs for the advancement and enrichment of persons active in education and other human service professions.

Bachelor of Science in Education Degree and Teaching Licensure

The faculty of the College of Education and Human Services confers the Bachelor of Science in Education degree with majors in Early Childhood Education, Middle Childhood Education, Physical Education and Sport, with Multi-Age Licensure in Health Education and Physical Education, Special Education, and Allied Sport Professions (Exercise/Fitness Specialist or Sport Management). In addition, undergraduate students and post-baccalaureates may earn State of Ohio Teaching Licenses in early childhood (grades Prek-3), middle childhood (grades 4-9), special education (grades K-12 in mild/moderate or moderate/intensive educational needs), adolescent/young adult (grades 7-12 in a variety of content areas), music (grades Prek-12), and foreign language (grades Prek-12 in French or Spanish).

The college’s conceptual model for teacher education is “The Teacher as a Responsive, Reflective Professional: A Partner in Learning.” Graduates of Cleveland State University’s teacher education programs are known for distinctive abilities that reflect the four knowledge bases that serve as a foundation for this model: professionalism, partnership, inquiry, and contextualism.

General Requirements

Admission Requirements - Teacher Licensure Programs

Students planning to major in Early Childhood Education, Middle Childhood Education, Special Education, Exercise/Fitness Specialist, or Physical Education are pursuing teacher licensure.  All licensure students must be admitted to the College of Education and Human Services.

After the completion of the requirements below, the student should apply for admission to the college at least one semester in advance of the start of course work in the major.  This involves the satisfactory completion of an intake appointment with an advisor in the Education Student Services Center (Julka Hall 170).

Undergraduate students seeking a teaching license in Adolescent/Young Adult, Music, French, or Spanish should seek admission to the College of Science or the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. These students, except for those in music, must declare a license in education.

College graduates seeking a teaching license as a post-baccalaureate student must gain admission to the university through the Undergraduate Admissions Office and then to the College of Education and Human Services through the Education Student Services Center, Julka Hall 170.

Students pursuing a major or license leading to teacher licensure (Early Childhood Education, Middle Childhood Education, Special Education, or Physical Education/Health) are required to meet the following standards and requirements to be fully accepted into a licensure program and prior to registering for professional course work in education beyond Rotation 1 (for majors) or Step 1 (for non-major licensure programs):

1. Test requirement
2. Entrance GPA
3. Proficiency in math and English at the college level
4. Background check

In addition to these requirements, post-baccalaureate candidates who complete all academic content courses prior to CSU professional course work (e.g. adolescent/young adult or middle grades licensure areas) must take and pass the relevant Ohio Assessments for Educators content knowledge assessment prior to admission.  Candidates who need to take content courses at Cleveland State are allowed to take content knowledge assessments prior to student teaching.

Undergraduate and post-baccalaureate candidates taking undergraduate licensure courses must satisfy the first three requirements as follows:

1. Test requirement: Candidates must receive acceptable scores within the past six years on one of the following content knowledge tests, demonstrating performance in approximately the top 50% of the national distribution.  Candidates may satisfy the math, reading, and writing requirements through any combination of the following tests or subtests:
   1. ACT: math 20, reading 20, English 20
   2. SAT: math 510, reading 500, writing 490
   3. Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators (CASE):  math 150, reading 156, writing 162
2. GPA: The candidate must have an institutional or transfer undergraduate GPA (from 30 or more semester hours of college-level courses) of 2.75 or better at the time of acceptance into a licensure program.  All course work taken at other institutions is counted in calculating this grade-point average until the student has completed 12 or more credit hours at Cleveland State University, after which only the Cleveland State grade-point average is considered.
3. Math/English: Grade of B- or better in a college level math and college level English class

The fourth admission requirement mandates that all prospective licensure candidates in programs requiring field work pay for an initial BCI/FBI check at the time of their initial visit to the Education Student Services Center (except for international students, who are required to have a BCI/FBI check prior to starting their first field experience). Throughout their licensure program, candidates are required to pay for and complete additional BCI/FBI fingerprinting checks to ensure that a valid report is always on file with the Office of Field Services as required for field placement.

Prospective candidates with criminal records indicating convicted offenses considered by the Ohio Department of Education to be “absolute bars” to licensure will be denied acceptance to the college and any registration permissions for subsequent semesters will be revoked. Prospective candidates with criminal records indicating convicted offenses eligible for rehabilitation will be referred to the Ohio Department of Education Office of Professional Conduct to determine whether they will be able to obtain a teaching license.

After completion of this background check and satisfaction of other college admission requirements, the prospective candidate would be granted program acceptance and become eligible to enroll in CEHS courses requiring admission to the program.

Professional Standards - Teacher Licensure

All students enrolled in teacher licensure programs in the College of Education and Human Services must maintain the following standards:

1. All students must achieve a cumulative Cleveland State University grade-point average of at least 2.75
2. All students must maintain a grade-point average of at least 3.0 for professional course work in education. No grades of D or F will be accepted. No grade lower than B will be accepted in the practicum experience. Professional course work may be repeated with the approval of the Education Student Services Center.
3. All students seeking licensure in Physical Education, Music, Foreign Language, Middle Childhood, or Adolescent/Young Adult areas must achieve a grade-point average of at least 2.50 in all content area course work required for licensure as identified on the program checklist.
4. Students are urged to participate extensively in school and community service as part of their professional preparation. Each student will have opportunities for field experience within the context of a number of professional courses required by the college. However, students are also encouraged to participate in voluntary group leadership activities in community agencies. Assistance in locating such opportunities is provided by the college.

Admission Requirements - Allied Sport Programs

Students pursuing a major in Allied Sport Professions (Sport Management, Exercise/Fitness Specialist) are required to meet the following admission standards and requirements:

1. The student must have an overall grade-point average of 2.50 or better at the time of enrollment in professional education courses. All course work taken at other institutions is counted in calculating this grade-point average until the student has completed 12 or more credit hours at Cleveland State University, after which only the Cleveland State grade-point average is considered.
2. The student must have completed 30 semester hours of college-level course work.
3. The student must demonstrate proficiency in writing by earning a grade of C or higher in a college-level English composition course.
4. The student must demonstrate proficiency in mathematics by earning a grade of C or higher in a college-level mathematics course.
5. The student must satisfactorily complete an intake appointment with an advisor in the Education Student Services Center (Julka Hall 170).

Professional Standards - Allied Sport Programs

All students enrolled in Allied Sport degree programs in the College of Education and Human Services must meet the following standards:

1. All students must achieve a cumulative Cleveland State University grade-point average of at least 2.50.
2. All students must maintain a grade-point average of at least 2.75 for professional course work in education. No grades of D or F will be accepted. Professional course work may be repeated with the approval of the Education Student Services Center.
3. Students are urged to participate extensively in school and community service as part of their professional preparation. Each student will have opportunities for field experience within the context of a number of professional courses required by the college. However, students also are encouraged to participate in voluntary group leadership activities in community agencies. Assistance in locating such opportunities is provided by the college.

Course Load

The normal course load is 15 hours. Students may carry a maximum of 19 hours per semester, but they are advised to do so only rarely, when there is clear academic justification. Students who wish to take an overload (20 hours) must obtain an overload form approved by advisor.

Internship - Teacher Licensure

In addition to those professional standards and the grade-point average requirements listed above, the following must be completed prior to approval to enroll in Internship:

1. A student must provide evidence of having taken all state-required licensure examinations prior to the start of the Internship. In addition a student in French or Spanish must demonstrate oral and written proficiency at the ACTFL “Intermediate/High” level.
2. A student must satisfy checkpoint portfolio requirements as described in the relevant portfolio handbook (found on the College website).
3. A student must submit a negative TB (tuberculosis) test report (Mantoux version).
4. A student in Early Childhood, Physical Education, Mild/Moderate, or Moderate/Intensive must submit verification of having completed a series of three Hepatitis B shots.
5. A student must complete a civilian background check (fingerprint check) and submit a copy of a valid and unexpired Clearance Report from the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation (BCI) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
6. An undergraduate student must be enrolled in the appropriate college and must have declared the appropriate major and/or license (students in Adolescent/Young Adult programs, Music, and Foreign-Language Education should be enrolled in the College of Science or the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences) and, except for Music, should declare a license in Education. Post-baccalaureate students should be enrolled in the College of Education and Human Services.
7. Application for the Internship must be submitted to the Office of Field Services by September 15 (for spring placement) or February 15 (for fall placement).
8. At least two semesters of academic work must be completed in the College of Education and Human Services before a student is eligible for the Internship.
9. A student must have completed a minimum of 100 credit hours prior to the Internship. All required professional education courses and at least 75% of all content area courses required for licensure must be completed prior to student teaching.

Additional information about all standards and requirements is available in the Education Student Services Center, Julka Hall 170 or the Office of Field Services, Julka Hall 187.

Note: Students in those programs requiring an internship experience must complete requirements 2 through 7 above before the start of the experience in addition to all specified prerequisite course work.

Note: A student may not repeat Internship I or II without approval of the Petitions Committee of the College. For information about this procedure, visit the Education Student Services Center, Julka Hall 170.

Portfolio

All teaching licensure students are expected to maintain a portfolio while completing their professional coursework and field experiences. All teaching licensure students are required to complete portfolio requirements using TaskStream.

Students are responsible for housing various required and optional artifacts that demonstrate their level of competency in each of the following seven standards:

1. The CSU teacher education candidate understands student learning and development and respects the diversity of the students he/she teaches.
2. The CSU teacher education candidate understands content, disciplinary concepts, and tools of inquiry related to the development of an educated person.
3. The CSU teacher education candidate uses varied assessments to inform instruction, promote academic and social development, and evaluate and ensure student learning.
4. The CSU teacher education candidate plans and implements developmentally appropriate instruction that engages students meaningfully and results in learning.
5. The CSU teacher education candidate creates learning environments that motivate all learners and promote high levels of learning and achievement.
6. The CSU teacher education candidate collaborates and communicates with students, parents, other educators, administrators, and the community to support student learning.
7. The CSU teacher education candidate is a reflective practitioner who assumes responsibility for professional growth, performance, and involvement as an individual and as a member of a learning community.

At various checkpoints, students must meet specific criteria to be eligible to continue to the next phase of their program. For complete information on portfolios, students are advised to access the Student Portfolio Handbook available at the following:

TaskStream: https://www.csuohio.edu/cehs/eportfolio/hot-topics-taskstream-resources  

State Licensure Assessments

To be eligible for a teaching license, all students are required to pass examinations in at least two areas: Assessment of Professional Knowledge and Content Assessments. Beginning September 1, 2013, the Ohio Department of Education now requires all candidates to take the Ohio Assessment for Educators examinations.  Any Praxis II examinations taken and passed prior to that date will be honored.  Students should refer to the undergraduate checklist to determine which examinations are required for their licensure area. Minimum scores are set by the Ohio Department of Education. Approval for teaching licensure cannot be given if the student fails to meet the cut-off score in any of these areas. If the cut-off score is not achieved, each test may be repeated until a passing grade is achieved.  Pertinent information is available in the Office of Testing Services, RW 215, in the Education Student Services Center, or on the Web at www.oh.nesinc.com.

NOTE:  Licensure examinations and qualifying scores are subject to change without prior notice by the Ohio State Board of Education.  Students are advised to always check the ODE web site (http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Teaching/Educator-Licensure/Prepare-for-Certificate-License/Educator-Licensure-Examinations) before registering for any examinations.  Also note that when applying to take exams, you must specifically identify Cleveland State as your attending institution and request that a copy of your score report be sent to CSU.

Beginning Fall 2014, all first licensure students are required to complete and submit their licensure-specific edTPA for national scoring during student teaching.  For more information about this performance assessment, visit www.edtpa.com.

Teaching Licensure Application

All requests for a new credential must be completed on-line through the Ohio Department of Educations (ODE) website.  Information regarding the on-line application process can be found at http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Teaching/Educator-Licensure.

Resident Educator Program

Students completing all requirements for initial teaching license receive a four-year State of Ohio Resident Educator License. These individuals will be granted a Professional Teaching License upon successful completion of a Resident Educator Program as a teacher. The Resident Educator Program includes a formal program of support, mentoring, and assessment designed to foster professional growth. More information on this process is available through the Ohio Department of Education.

Student Responsibility

Each student is responsible for meeting the curricular requirements and following the academic regulations of the college and university. No university official can relieve the student of that responsibility. Petitions for exceptions to regulations or requirements may be approved only by an appropriate faculty committee. Petition forms may be obtained from the Education Student Services Center, Julka Hall 170, 216-687-4625.

Title II Report Card

All institutions of higher education which prepare teachers must make a public report each year of important aspects of their programs, including the Ohio Assessment for Educators examination passage rates for the students who complete teacher preparation programs at their institutions. Current information about the passing rate as well as other relevant data about Cleveland State teacher candidates is available through the Ohio Board of Regents at the following web site:

http://regents.ohio.gov/educator-accountability/performance-report/2014/Cleveland%20State/CLEV_UNIT_2014.pdf