About The College of Education

The College of Education at Wilmington University prepares more educators for Delaware schools than any other institution of higher education.* The University also attracts substantial numbers of students who are preparing to pursue careers as professional educators in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

 
Programs in the College of Education range from an Associate’s degree in Early Care and Education to doctoral degrees with concentrations in higher education leadership, organizational leadership, and school district leadership.  In addition to teacher preparation degrees in early childhood education, elementary and middle school teaching, special education, and secondary teaching, the College offers degrees and courses of study in a variety of specialized educational areas such as school counseling, school leadership, educational technology, career and technical education, instruction, gifted and talented education, reading, and teaching English to speakers of other languages.  At any given time there are about 1,000 Wilmington University students doing supervised fieldwork in schools throughout Delaware and the region.

The College also serves as Delaware’s only Teach for America center and provides programming and field supervision for a new cohort of Teach for America corps members each year.

* About 40% of all Delaware educators have completed degrees and/or certification coursework at Wilmington University. 

Vision

We believe that effective professional educators must also be learners—learners who want to share challenging ideas and successful practices with their colleagues. Educators prepared at Wilmington University believe in the importance of reflecting on and improving the quality of their work.  They are committed to collaborating with parents, colleagues, and community stakeholders.  They want to create teaching/learning environments that support personal development, stimulate intellectual growth and high levels of achievement, and encourage creativity. We try to maintain a climate of high expectations, hard work, caring, and respect for the worth of every individual.  We view ourselves as “Professional Partners, Creating Environments for Learning.”

Mission

The College of Education at Wilmington University prepares professional educators to work successfully with children from birth through adolescence. Our programs prepare candidates to work with students with a wide variety of learning needs and diverse cultural, socioeconomic and linguistic backgrounds. An important goal of our programs is the translation of theory into practice. All programs are standards-driven. All programs emphasize the importance of data-based decision making, practical experiences in classrooms and schools, content knowledge, knowing and understanding learner needs, and the application of research-based best practices.

Conceptual Framework

The College of Education Conceptual Framework reflects the vision and mission of the University and articulates the College’s philosophy and goals. The Conceptual Framework is the fundamental theoretical architecture upon which all degree programs are based. The framework includes eight specific Program Attributes essential for the preparation of effective educators.  These attributes appear on every course syllabus.

The complete Conceptual Framework can be found here.

Accreditation

Wilmington University is a private, non-profit institution that is fully accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.  The College of Education is unconditionally accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). In addition, all teacher preparation and school leadership degree programs are nationally recognized.  All degree programs offered by the College of Education are also approved by the Delaware Department of Education. Consequently, the  College of Education reserves the right to modify degree requirements to comply with any licensure/certification or regulatory changes mandated by the Delaware Professional Standards Board, the Delaware State Department of Education, or the Delaware State Legislature. 

Background Checks

All candidates for student teaching and counseling practica/internships are required to submit to a Criminal Background Check, which includes the FBI Background Check and the  State of Delaware criminal background check and a Delaware Child Protection Registry (DCPR) Clearance ( remove review). This process must be completed PRIOR to submitting applications for placements.  No applications for clinical placements in counseling or student teaching can be considered until all CBC and DCPR reports have been received. Detailed instructions on how to complete this process can be found here.

 

Course Description

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