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Teacher Education

Teacher Education

The Rutgers University Graduate School of Education is dedicated to the study and improvement of education. The creation of knowledge about teaching and learning is central to our mission. We seek to ensure that all children and adults have access to high quality educational programs. As such, our work addresses the cognitive, social, organizational, cultural, linguistic, developmental, and policy dimensions of education. Our instructional programs are designed to produce graduates who become effective educational practitioners, transformative educational leaders, and accomplished educational researchers. Our partnerships and service contributions focus on New Jersey but extend to both national and global communities. We have been preparing teachers for New Jersey since 1923. We developed the first advanced degree for school leaders in New Jersey in 1930.

Pk-12 schools are in need of qualified teachers now more than ever. There are thousands of unfilled teaching positions with more openings projected. You can help address this burgeoning teacher shortage, and fortify your employment prospects, by earning a master’s degree and teaching certificate at Rutgers Graduate School of Education.

Juniors can apply now to earn an Ed.M. with teacher certification with just one additional year of study; Seniors need just two years to be highly competitive in this wide-open job market.

Rutgers GSE is the top-ranked school of education in the state and its faculty and remote courses are rated among the best in the university system. Due to its strong school partnerships and carefully selected cooperating teachers, the GSE was the first NJ teacher preparation program able to offer candidates timely clinical experiences in spite of the pandemic.

Don’t miss this opportunity to secure your future and join the ranks of one of the most noble and needed professions in our nation. Contact academic.services@gse.rutgers.edu for information and how you can apply today.

Accreditation

The Graduate School of Education (GSE) at Rutgers University serves as the lead partner for all programs at Rutgers – New Brunswick that lead to an educational license through the New Jersey Department of Education. Our programs for educators are accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). The School Counseling Program is accredited through Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). Click here for more info about CAEP and CACREP accreditation at Rutgers.

Information about our programs can be found on the links below.

Program Information Program Accolades Our Teachers Local/Global Programs Clinical Practice Resources

Values and Commitments for Educator Preparation

Through operational excellence and a strong, positive culture characterized by: A Diverse, Collaborative Community: of stakeholders comprising a diverse, inclusive, collaborative, and innovative community dedicated to achieving excellence and equity; trust and respect; effectiveness and responsiveness, and innovative practices to meet the needs of the field: the Rutgers University Educator Preparation Programs (RUEPP) aim to help candidates:

Learn best practices for pedagogical content knowledge of subject areas
Acquire a grounding in the historical and philosophical contexts of the discipline that they will be certified to teach;
Develop curriculum; apply instructional strategies and class management techniques;
Construct and implement assessments;
Gain the knowledge and skills of integrating technology and data literacy into instructional planning;
Individualize and differentiate instruction based on the needs of students;
Include ALL students and their diverse needs/experiences in learning across the K-12 experience;
Be reflective practitioners; and
Develop meaningful, asset-based relationships with the families and communities that they serve.

Specifically, The Graduate School of Education’s (GSE) Teacher Education Program is designed to develop teachers to be engaged in and committed to excellence, equity, and social justice in their teaching practice. New Jersey is a uniquely diverse and urban state as defined by the following: large numbers of students from historically marginalized linguistic, economic, and cultural backgrounds; high-poverty districts or schools; and population density combined with educational inequality. The GSE Teacher Education Programs aim to develop a diverse generation of teachers prepared according to the New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers with the skills and dispositions to both teach and advocate for all students, as well as to learn from students and their communities. Teachers prepared at the GSE will learn to critically analyze the social politics of urban, rural, and suburban schools and use that analysis to advocate for each other, their students, and the families that they serve as they engage in the most effective instructional practices built upon deep knowledge of their students. GSE Teacher Candidates benefit from working with some of the best education faculty in the world and gain real-world experience by partnering with carefully selected mentor teachers in districts/schools serving economically, racially, ethnically, and linguistically diverse communities in New Jersey. In order to cultivate the unique set of skills for success in our nation’s increasingly diverse schools, GSE Teacher Candidates do their clinical work in school- and community-based placements in urban partner districts that are part of the GSE-Community School Partnership Network (GSE-CSPN).

An urban and social justice teacher education program prepares candidates to:

develop meaningful understandings of diverse students and their experiences and communities, and the social, economic, historical, and political dimensions of urban settings and schools;
effectively teach diverse students, including those from historically marginalized linguistic, cultural, and economic backgrounds;
identify and disrupt instances and patterns of discrimination and marginalization, and develop their students’ critical and active citizenship capacities;
balance constructivist, student-centered approaches with explicit instruction and scaffolding;
deeply understand their disciplines, research-based current/best practices in their disciplines, and student learning in their disciplines; and
be caring, competent, rigorous, and reflective practitioners.

Take the Next Step

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