The Professional Education Unit (PEU) includes multiple content areas and faculty/student backgrounds. Northwest Missouri State University appreciates and recognizes differences and similarities among people by ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, gender, exceptionalities, language, religion, sexual orientation, and residence in multiple geographical areas.
The Northwest PEU strives to instill our students with attributes of effective culturally responsive educational practices to support their connection to effective practice. We have developed the following proficiencies for our teacher candidates.
To create a culturally responsive, competent educator, candidates will connect with their own background and how these identities influence their interactions with diverse learners by:
Degree seeking students seeking initial educator certification will complete clinical experiences in rural, urban, and suburban educational settings. These clinical experiences meet and exceed the Missouri state-required level I, II, and III clinical practice expectations for state licensure. The PEU considers these as highly meaningful, impactful experiences through which the candidate will interact with distinct populations of learners, evaluate assumptions about teaching/administrating/counseling in urban, rural, and suburban settings, and thoughtfully reflect on how the experience may alter candidates' pre-practice assumptions to reflectively impact professional practice. The goal is to enable the student to observe/interact within and reflect on effective educational practice in all three potential geographic settings: rural, as in Maryville, urban, and suburban. For 20 years, Northwest's educator preparation leaders have funded clinical practices for all undergraduate clinical practice and observation, to ensure multiple perspectives.
