High-Quality Faculty and Students

Outstanding preparation for educators begins with highly qualified students who are taught and mentored by a professional education faculty committed to excellence.

Selection and Monitoring of Candidates

After initial admission into a professional education program, program faculty carefully monitor a candidate’s progress. All candidates are screened and must meet established program criteria for admission into upper-level courses and student teaching. Rigorous academic and field-based performance standards are established for all professional education programs and are reviewed, approved and monitored by the University Council on Teacher Education. Candidates’ content and pedagogical knowledge as well as teaching skills and dispositions are assessed throughout their programs. Suitable candidates are encouraged to take honors courses and honors degree options.

Faculty Commitment to Excellence
UD’s professional education faculty are known for their intellectual leadership in their fields and are committed to the integration of teaching, scholarship and service. They are " teacher scholars" who engage in the generation of new knowledge, integrate their scholarly expertise into their teaching, and share their expertise with candidates and with their professional education colleagues within and outside of the academic community. They serve as teaching models and mentors and provide students with opportunities to collaborate through classroom instruction and through research projects. UD faculty also partner with teachers and administrators in P-12 schools to work on projects, solve problems, provide professional development opportunities, and engage in research aimed at improving student learning. Many professional education faculty have been recognized nationally and internationally for their scholarship, and many have been recipients of UD Excellence in Teaching and Excellence in Student Advising awards.