Iowa Mentored Community College Teaching Practicum

The mentored practicum provides graduate students or qualified professionals direct experience in a community college, allowing the future faculty to observe classroom practices and STEM content. This practicum allows the candidate to focus on the way a community college functions, the roles/responsibilities of course instructors, the expectations of the teaching profession, methodologies, and current issues in the content area. This experience, provides insight into the teaching process, connects content to evidence-based teaching, learning communities and learning through diversity.

Common Mentee Outcome: At the end of the teaching practicum, mentees will be able to apply instructional strategies that include evidence-based teaching, learning communities, and learning-through-diversity components. Specifically the learning outcomes are equivalent to the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL) Associate Level, which are summarized as

Process: Teaching-as-Research (TAR)

Evidence-based Teaching

Student-to-student connections inside and outside the classroom, e.g., through learning communities

Learning-through-Diversity (LTD)

Spring 2022 Participating Institutions: Iowa State University, University of Iowa, University of Northern Iowa, Des Moines Area Community College, Kirkwood Community College, Eastern Iowa Community College, and Iowa Valley Community College.

STEM Content Areas: Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics/Astronomy, Life Sciences/Biology, Agriculture, Environmental Science

Practicum Length: 20 hours per semester