1. Reflect on and write about their own experiences as language arts students and the relevance of their own experiences to teaching;
2. Read and discuss professional narratives of outstanding secondary English teachers;
3. Be able to describe possibilities and challenges of teaching English in secondary schools;
4. Be able to describe some of the major issues, theories, methods, and practices in the field of English education;
5. Be able to describe several differing components of secondary English instruction and talk about their relevance and interrelations with other components, including: reading of literary and informational text; writing in multiple genres including academic, personal, creative, and public; classic, multicultural, young adult, national and international literature study; language study; cultural and historic studies; knowledge of grammar, usage, and correctness; film/visual/multimedia analysis; writing with new technologies including writing on-line and digital story telling; library and Internet research and writing of research and I-search papers; public speaking, argumentation and debate; journalism and media analysis; business English; literary theory; etc.;
6. Meet with a variety of practicing secondary English teachers and discuss challenges and opportunities in the field;
7. Visit, observe, discuss, and write about secondary English classrooms grades 6-12 and secondary English teachers, and intern teachers in urban, suburban, and rural settings;
8. Learn about the diversity, differing cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and special needs of secondary students in public schools;
9. Become knowledgeable about professional opportunities to develop skills and knowledge relevant to language arts teaching before intern teaching and full time employment, including substitute teaching, tutoring, writing center work, para-professional opportunities in schools, school-community partnership activities (including Kalamazoo Community in Schools), summer school teaching and support, summer work in migrant education, advising/coaching speech teams, literary publications, and student newspapers, editing and professional writing;
10. Become aware of and involved in professional English teacher publications and organizations, including local, state, and national conferences of the National Council of the Teachers of English, the National Writing Project, the International Reading Association, and the WMU Student Affiliate Chapter of the National Council of the Teachers of English;
11. Be better prepared for success on required state certification tests including the Professional Readiness Exam (PRE) and the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification (MTTC);
12. Begin an on-line professional portfolio that will be further developed during on-going English education course work
13. Develop skill with educational technology and Internet tools and resources specifically relevant to secondary English teaching:;
14. Make informed decisions about preparing for and pursuing a career as a secondary English teacher.
