• my.BoiseState
  • my.BoiseState
•    Calendars
  • Calendars Home
  • Fall 2012
  • Fall Final Exam
  • Intersession 2013
  • Spring 2013
  • Spring Final Exam
  • Summer 2013
  • Fall 2013
  • Intersession 2014
  • Spring 2014
•   Catalogs
  • Undergraduate
  • Graduate
• Graduation
  • Application
  • Catalog Policy
  • Commencement
  • Diploma Replacement
  • Honors
  • Graduate Student Policy
•    Grades
  • Academic Standing
  • Grading Policy
  • Transcripts
• Transfers
  • Classification
  • Prior Learning
  • Equivalency
  • Transfer FAQs
• Registration
  • AAR FAQs
  • Academic Standing
  • Adding/Dropping Classes
  • Appointments
  • Class Schedule
  • Core Certification
  • Core Requirements
  • Disciplinary Lens (DL) Courses
  • Diversity Requirements
  • Final Exams
  • Major Check Sheets
  • Registration Guide
  • Verification
  • Waitlisting
•    Scheduling
  • Scheduling
  • Scheduling FAQs
  • Classrooms
•      Forms
  • Student Forms
  • Faculty/Staff Forms

Secondary Education Program

College of Education | Department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies

Education Building, Room 228
Phone: (208) 426-1672

Secondary Education Program

Secondary Teacher Certification Program
Departments and Programs in Secondary and K-12 Education
Admission to Secondary Teacher Education
Admission to the Professional Year
Secondary Education Certification Requirements

In secondary teacher education courses, candidates will examine theories of learning and human development. Course work and practicum experiences will acquaint candidates with the rich diversity they will find in their classrooms and provide opportunities to practice methods of teaching appropriate for the content area(s) being studied. Course work in secondary teacher education emphasizes the development of values aimed at a healthy society within a global community. Candidates who complete an approved program of study are exemplary teachers who accept the challenge of teaching all students and acknowledge the importance of educating a citizenry who will contribute to society as caring, responsible, and thoughtful citizens. Candidates can make effective instructional decisions and demonstrate that they meet the Standards for Initial Certification.

Secondary Teacher Certification Program

Undergraduate students seeking secondary certification must complete a bachelor’s degree in the university department offering the content courses in their chosen subject area. Completion of an approved program of study in a major endorsement area, a second endorsement area of 20 credit hours, and required professional education course work leads to a recommendation to the Idaho Department of Education for Idaho certification. Endorsements are discussed at the end of this section. Students who do not have an endorsement in a second area must have at least 45 credit hours in the major endorsement area.

Professional course work for the secondary education option is taken through the Department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies.

Secondary teacher education programs are offered and degrees conferred by the college in which the subject area program is located. Programs are listed below by the college and department in which they are offered.

Departments and Programs in Secondary and K-12 Education

College of Arts and Sciences

Art (Art, K-6 or K-12, Secondary Education)
Biological Sciences (Biology, Secondary Education)
Chemistry and Biochemistry (Chemistry, Secondary Education)
English (English Teaching)
Geosciences (Earth Science Education)
Mathematics (Mathematics, Secondary Education)
Modern Languages and Literatures (French, German or Spanish, Secondary Education)
Music (Music Education)
Physics (Physics, Secondary Education)
Theatre Arts (Theatre Arts, Secondary Education)

College of Business and Economics

Economics (Economics, Social Studies, Secondary Education)

College of Education

Kinesiology (K-12 Physical Education)

College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs

Communication (Communication, Secondary Education)
History (History, Secondary Education; History, Social Studies, Secondary Education)
Political Science (Political Science, Social Science, Secondary Education)
Psychology (Psychology, Social Studies, Secondary Education)
Sociology (Social Science, Secondary Education; Social Studies, Secondary Education)

Admission to Secondary Teacher Education

Admission to secondary teacher education is required before a student can enroll in Block I. All admission requirements must be completed before admission is granted. Application is available online (http://education.boisestate.edu/teachered/) and delivered to the Office of Teacher Education, Education Building, Room 722.

The admission requirements are:

1. Application Package:

• A completed application form (http://education.boisestate.edu/teachered/).
• A transcript indicating the completion of prerequisite course work.
• A $50 assessment fee is due upon application to the Office of Teacher Education.

2. Deadline:

• First Friday in February for fall semester admission
• Third Friday in September for spring semester admission

3. Academic Requirements:

• A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.75.
• A minimum grade point average of 3.00 in all education classes.
• A minimum grade of C in ED-CIFS 201 Foundations of Education or its equivalent.
• Successful completion of the PRAXIS I for writing (172). For information please access the PRAXIS* website at www.ets.org/praxis/ or pick up a registration packet in the Education Building, Room 722.
• A minimum grade of C in EDTECH 202 Teaching and Learning in a Digital Age.
• A passing score on the PRAXIS I for mathematics is required for those seeking an endorsement in special education.

*No other exams will be accepted in lieu of the PRAXIS.

Limitations to Admission

Because a large number of students seek admission to secondary teacher education, not all applicants can be admitted. Each academic year, a target number of applicants is established and applicants are accepted until the number is reached. Priority is given to those with the highest academic grade point average and to those specialty areas that have been identified as shortage areas in Idaho. Shortage areas may change over time.

Continued Enrollment

To continue taking course work in teacher education, every secondary education student must be reviewed and approved by the Office of Teacher Education. Approval is based on:

• Student’s academic record
• Faculty judgment about student’s knowledge, skills, and disposition necessary for success as a teacher, determined through coursework, observation, and interviews. Further information on these traits can be found in the Handbook for Field Experience (http://education.boisestate.edu/teachered/fieldexp.htm), in the Code of Ethics of the Idaho Teaching Profession, and Idaho Initial Certification Standards.

Any student denied continued enrollment in the program is entitled to due process.

Admission to the Professional Year

The following requirements apply to all students seeking certification as K-12 or secondary teachers. Student teaching is scheduled through the Office of Teacher Education, Education Building, Room 722.

1. Application Package:

• A completed application form (http://education.boisestate.edu/teachered)
• A hard copy of the application delivered to the Office of Teacher Education in the Education Building, Room 722.
• A transcript indicating academic requirements have been met

2. Deadlines:

• First Friday in February for students desiring to enter the professional year fall semester
• Third Friday in September for students desiring to enter the professional year spring semester.

3. Academic Requirements:

• Minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.5
• Minimum grade point average of 2.75 in the major field, minor field (if applicable), and in all required education courses
• Senior standing and successful completion of Block I (see below)
• Completion of sufficient credit hours in subject areas assigned for student teaching (varies by program).
• Passing scores on PRAXIS II in your initial certification fields are needed to start Block III (see below). The State of Idaho requires a passing score for any endorsement in which you certify.
• Fingerprinting may be required to student teach in some districts

Special Information for the Professional Year

1. Students who transfer to Boise State University must meet requirements for admission to teacher education and complete at least 6 semester hours at the university before being placed in the professional year.
2. During the professional year, students are expected to engage in responsible teaching, participate in co-curricular activities, maintain close contact with faculty and students in the public schools, and participate in seminars and conferences with their university liaisons.
3. Any student may be dismissed from a program leading to certification if found guilty of any offense which would be grounds for revocation or denial of an Idaho teaching certificate. Questions regarding this policy should be addressed to the Director of Teacher Education in the Education Building, Room 722.
4. The professional year can be taken only once.
5. Students pay a $100 fee upon registration for student teaching.
6. Students can expect to be placed in a school within a 50 mile radius of Boise State University.
7. Students accepted to professional year who opt to postpone student teaching must reapply.

Special Information for Transfer Students or Students with a Prior Degree

1. Transfer students must meet requirements for admission to secondary teacher education and student teaching and complete at least 6 semester hours in secondary teacher education at Boise State prior to student teaching.
2. Students with a prior degree who seek secondary certification must:

• Have an earned degree from an accredited institution of higher learning.
• Be enrolled in a Boise State degree program, either a second bachelor’s degree at the undergraduate level if the cumulative GPA was at least a 2.75, or master’s if the GPA was 3.0 or better. Also, the GPA in the major content area must be a 3.0 for master’s and 2.75 for second bachelor’s. The College of Education has no certification-only program. You must enroll in a degree program.
• If you want a single subject certification, you must complete 45 semester credit hours in the credit hours in the content area in which you want to teach, as evaluated by the department of interest (i.e., the Boise State academic department responsible for your major).

Secondary Teacher Education Courses

The following are the professional courses required for secondary teacher certification unless noted differently by specific content area majors.

Secondary Education Certification Requirements

Students from Boise State are recommended to the State Department of Education for an Idaho Teaching Credential after meeting the following requirements:

1. Completed application for Idaho Teaching Credential (available in the Education Building, Room 722). This will include:

• completed fingerprint card
• criminal history check

2. Official transcripts from ALL colleges and/or universities attended.
3. Completed Institutional Recommendation from Office of Teacher Education.
4. Official PRAXIS II assessment score sheet.

Standard Secondary Teaching Certificate and Endorsement Areas

A Standard Secondary Certificate requires a bachelor’s degree, coursework in professional education foundations and methods, including student teaching, and either (a) preparation in at least two fields of secondary teaching: first teaching field of at least 30 semester credit hours and a second teaching field of at least 20 semester credit hours; or (b) preparation of not less than 45 semester credit hours in a single subject area. All endorsement areas require a minimum of 20 semester credit hours. Additionally, candidates must have a qualifying score of an approved content area assessment (PRAXIS II) in any areas for which the teaching endorsement(s) will be applied.

Secondary Teaching degree programs and endorsement areas can be found under listings for the following departments:

Anthropology (Sociology/Anthropology)
Art
Biological Sciences
Chemistry
Communication
Economics
English
Geosciences (Earth Science, Geography, Natural Science)
History
Kinesiology (Health)
Literacy
Mathematics
Modern Languages and Literatures (French, German, or Spanish)
Physics (Physical Science)
Political Science (American Government/Political Science)
Psychology
Sociology
Theatre Arts (Drama)