About the DepartmentDepartment of Education

The Gustavus Education Department positions teacher candidates to be adaptive, culturally responsive, service-oriented change agents through its exceptional team of professors, small class sizes, multiple field experiences locally and abroad, plus all that a liberal arts education can offer educators-to-be.

The program is committed to the preparation of 21st-century teachers who understand the complexities of learning and teaching subjects and methods that encompass inclusion, equity, and justice. It vigorously prepares candidates to implement “principled practice” - reflective, student-centered, democratic, inclusive, equitable, and authentic teaching and learning.

Facilitated by the strong liberal arts and professional preparation of the candidates, the Education major at Gustavus is strongly enhanced by a liberal arts foundation that encourages breadth of knowledge and interdisciplinary and international perspectives, and engages inquiry and intellectual curiosity. All our students focus on principled practice and Minnesota PELSB standards, which equip teacher candidates to engage students in meaningful teaching and learning experiences and to articulate the “why” behind learning.

A conceptual framework undergirds the Gustavus Teacher Education Program. Initial structuring of the framework was based on the five attributes of a teacher education program knowledge base presented by Galluzzo and Pankratz (1991). Our conceptual framework is not static; in fact, it represents the dynamics of an ever-changing professional landscape. The current 2011 redesign continues to be framed by our core philosophical tenets, the research literature, program outcomes, and complete evaluation procedures and processes that guide feedback to the candidate and the program.

GETTING STARTED IN THE EDUCATION MAJOR ACCREDITATION STUDENT TEACHING FACILITIES Faculty and Staff COURSE CATALOG