Attendance

Length of Internship. This commitment is a semester long period of full-time work experience.  The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) requires the student teacher to be in the classroom full time for a minimum of 300 clock hours, with at least half of that time (150 hours) spent providing direct instruction. Since the semester is divided into two placements, a minimum of 75 hours in direct teaching must be logged for each placement. Instructions for how to document hours is explained in the Log of Hours. Throughout the internship, the student teacher is expected to maintain the same schedule as their mentor teacher. This includes, but is not limited to (a) after school rehearsals, (b) area honors ensembles, (c) all performances, (d) faculty meetings, (e) booster club meetings, (f) conferences, (g) school testing, and (h) school fundraising activities. Essentially, if the mentor teacher is involved, the student teacher is also expected to be involved. 

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Calendar. Aside from the start/end dates of the internship placements, the student teacher will follow the calendar from the school district where the internship occurs as it pertains to holidays, teacher work days, and in-service events. In addition, the student teacher is required to attend Mason related activities such as the orientation session, internship seminars, and the e-Portfolio presentation.

 

Absences. Reliable attendance is crucial for success. During the student teacher orientation session, the university supervisor will share emergency contact information with the student teacher. In the event of an unexpected absence from student teaching, the student must notify the mentor teacher and their university supervisor prior to the absence. The student teacher is expected to make-up each absence without prompting from the university supervisor or mentor teacher.  In the event of an unexpected absence from a school-related activity, the student teacher must notify their university supervisor prior to the absence. Failure to notify the mentor teacher and university supervisor in advance, in addition to an accumulation of absences, can result in a conference for the record and removal from student teaching.

 

Tardiness. Students must also notify the mentor and the university supervisor prior to being late to student teaching. In the event of an unexpected tardy from a school-related activity, the student teacher must notify their university supervisor prior to being late. Failure to notify the mentor teacher and the university supervisor in advance, in addition to repeated tardiness, can result in a conference for the record and removal from student teaching.

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