Many students come to UCLA hoping for hands-on academic
experiences unique to this school. Some students don’t know
where to look, but for the ones who do, enroll in Education
193F.
As a part of the Diversified Liberal Arts Program ““ a
specialization designed for students interested in becoming
teachers ““ the class provides field experience for
undergraduates at Corrine A. Seeds University Elementary School,
located on campus north of the Anderson School of Management.
UES is a laboratory school for the Graduate School of Education
and Information Science. It dates back to before UCLA was
established, and has a long history of experimenting with
progressive education tactics and reaching out to the
community.
This quarter’s class, which involves nine hours of
classroom work per week and six seminar classes over the course of
the term, focuses equally on both education research and the
practical aspects of teaching.
“The purpose of the program is “¦ to give undergrads
directed classroom experience and the opportunity to do education
readings pertinent to what they’re seeing in the
classroom,” said Ruthellen Moss, a demonstration teacher at
UES and a co-instructor of 193F.
Originally the class was focused more on education theory, but
instructors have shifted more towards practical application.
Moss leads three seminars on practical classroom work in which
students discuss their readings and experiences. Moss said she
assigns readings about classroom management and how to create a
supportive classroom environment. She emphasizes the importance of
“co-mingling” research and real experience.
“A classroom is a complex organism,” Moss said.
“You can’t just come in and teach.”
Students enrolled in the class work with different teachers and
varying age groups throughout the quarter. As UES interns, students
receive experience in several areas: they work one-on-one with
struggling students, they lead small groups, and they help with
filing, Moss said.
The class also involves writing reflective papers on topics such
as the school’s philosophy of not giving out grades to its
students.
Susan Jurow, assistant director of CONNECT, UCLA’s
elementary education research center, leads three seminars on
research and education theory. Readings for this part of the class
focus on topics such as the fundamentals of progressive
education.
Jurow points out the class also provides the opportunity for
students to interact more closely with UCLA faculty members. She
said she has written recommendations for former students who are
now studying education in graduate school.
“It’s testament that (the program) works,”
Jurow said.
Students enrolled in Education 193F agree that the internship
program succeeds in showing them what it really means to be a
teacher.
Jaclyn Ronquillo, a fourth-year psychology student, said the
readings and actual classroom experience complement each other
well.
Ronquillo explained that when she reads articles for the class,
she is able to connect the articles’ ideas to what she has
seen in the classroom.
Other students said it’s important to get classroom
experience before deciding to pursue careers in education.
“There’s a big difference between liking kids and
actually teaching,” said Kelly You, a third-year
communication studies student who is also taking classes under the
liberal arts specialization program.
You said she thinks anyone considering being a teacher should
take the class before making a final decision.
Since many students who take the class are not interested in
teaching, Moss concedes that not everyone coming out of this
program is going to become a teacher.
She said she hopes that the non-teachers will, by the end of the
course, “appreciate and understand what it means to be a
teacher,” and go out into the world as voters who are more
well-informed on education issues.
“The idea is to make it really real for them,” Moss
said.
For more information on the internship program at UES, visit
http://www.ues.gseis.ucla.edu/training/internships.html.