All courses requiring students to complete field-based clinical components are University courses and follow the University calendar. Student teaching begins and ends on the first and last day of the semester as published in the University Schedule. Students may not report to a school to begin student teaching or activities associated with it before the official first day of the semester, without written approval of the principal and the Clinical Experiences and Student Teaching Director.
During the student teaching semester, the student teacher follows the calendar of the school/district, not Northeastern Illinois University, with respect to holidays and vacations. Those planning to student teach in the spring semester must not plan travel or vacations in advance of receiving a confirmed student teaching assignment. If advance plans are made and conflict with school/district Spring Vacation times, travel plans will need to be altered. Teacher candidates who plan vacations in advance of knowing the school district calendar risk being unable to complete their plans as scheduled if the vacation period conflicts with the school/district calendar.
Student teachers are required to function as regular staff members of the school/agency in terms of arrival and departure times. This includes attending school functions such as team meetings, faculty meetings, in-service sessions, and parent/teacher conferences. University courses, employment and extracurricular activities (i.e., coaching) are unacceptable reasons for the student teacher to leave school early or to not attend school functions. Teacher candidates are not to ask their cooperating teachers if they may arrive late or leave early.
Student teachers are to assume the same responsibility for regular attendance that the cooperating teacher does. This is defined as the full teaching day, including in-services and field trips, for which a cooperating teacher is responsible.
