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Our program is designed to meet Pennsylvania certification requirements. If you are from another state, our program may be used to meet your state's requirements. Check with your certification officer and review the interstate agreement (available Online from the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification).
If you have questions regarding the interpretation of this policy, please contact either the Mansfield University Department Chair or the certification office for teacher certification in your state. Also see our guide to Reciprocity.
The Mansfield University Teacher Education Unit (TEU) program is comprised of professional level education courses. Students accepted into the TEU professional level courses are designated Teacher Education Certification Candidates (TECC). The following are the requirements for admissions as TECC for individuals who do not currently hold a valid Pennsylvania teaching certificate:
Minimum GPA: Pennsylvania ACT 354 requires a 3.0 GPA for admission to graduate TEU Education programs.
Assessment: TECC admission requires passing scores on PRAXIS I Certification Tests. Contact Career Development, 305 South Hall (570-662-4133) for information and registration.
General Coursework: TECC admission requires 6 credits of college level math, 3 credits of college level English composition and 3 credits of college level English Literature.
To apply for Pennsylvania certification at the conclusion of your program, you will be required to successfully pass the PRAXIS II examination. For additional information on the PRAXIS please refer to the Educational Testing Service. ETS lists the requirements for both Pennsylvania and all other States, as well as for Department of Defense Dependents Schools.
Once admitted and enrolled into this program you must complete all academic coursework within five years.
Pennsylvania students who are provisionally or permanently certified teachers may add K-12 Library Science to their certificate upon completing this program as long as they meet Pennsylvania Department of Education certification requirements, to include the PRAXIS II specialty examinations.
This program cannot be used to obtain initial teaching certification.
Students may transfer a maximum of six graduate credits into this program.
All SL&IT courses are required for graduation, to include LSC 5500, the Introductory Seminar, and LSC 5565, School Library Practicum. As the sole exception, the Advanced Electronic Cataloging course, LSC 5522, may be taken in place of LSC 5521, Introduction to Cataloging & Classification in the School Library.
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Courses may be taken in any sequence with the following notable exception. Students seeking placement in the culminating School Library Practicum (LSC 5565) must have permission of the Department Chair and completed 21 credits in the SL&IT program, to include LSC 5501, Instructional Collaboration, and LSC 5530, School Library Advocacy.
MU graduate students must earn a minimum 3.0 cumulative quality point average and complete all course work with a C- grade or better. The 3.0 QPA must be maintained each semester.
Students who fail any one course (with a grade of "F") are automatically dismissed from the university. To seek reinstatement students must submit a Graduate Petition to the Associate Provost (through their SL&IT adviser).
SL&IT courses are graduate level with all of the demands of graduate level work. We strongly recommend that you keep this in mind when selecting the number of courses you want to take each semester. Enrolling in more than one course per semester while engaged in full-time employment may be very challenging. As a general rule, students can expect to work at least 7-10 hours each week, per course.
General Policies
Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
Students are expected to do their own academic work and submit original work. Where resources and sources of information are used, credit must be given to the original source, following the citation format of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.
Dishonesty in academic work, including cheating, academic misconduct, fabrication, or plagiarism is unacceptable. Deliberate plagiarism as well as unintentional plagiarism is a serious issue. Additionally, unauthorized multiple submission of academic work is subject to the same penalties as plagiarism.
Any form of cheating, which includes plagiarism or collusion, may result in an F for the course and/or the filing of academic dishonesty charges with the Provost's office. Students are advised not to lend or share previous course work with other students, as this could lead to work being used by others for academic advantage. It should be noted that in this situation, the original owner of the course work will be liable for academic action regardless of his/her knowledge or lack of the other student's intent.
Additional information concerning academic dishonesty can be found in the Graduate Bulletin, which outlines the procedures faculty will use to initiate disciplinary action in cases of academic dishonesty and the SL&IT Student Online Handbook, which outlines student options for defending against dishonesty charges.
The following is a link to a ten-minute interactive tutorial from Acadia University designed to teach students the basics of avoiding plagiarism by learning why, when, and how to cite information sources:
To comply with requirements of the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), MU has adopted a mandatory policy regarding student experiences in public schools (i.e. field experiences). This policy affects any student who visits a school or school library as an assignment for any course (not just Practicum).
Prior to participating in any field experiences for an SL&IT course, students who are already certified teachers will need to send evidence that they have met the clearances required for the state in which they reside or in which they perform a field experience. Students can submit evidence in two ways:
Students can submit a letter signed by a building principal stating that they have met the clearances requirements of their state, or
Students can submit copies of their clearances.
Students who are not certified teachers must meet all requirements for PA clearances: Act 34, Act 151, TB test, and an FBI background check (finger printing). See PDE's Background Checks page for more information. Students should then mail the form letter or copies of the clearance to the SL&IT office, in care of:
Jill Scott, 202 Retan, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA 16933
For further details see our Clearances FAQ.
As of Spring 2010, all SL&IT students are required to submit an Affiliation Agreement prior to participating in a field experience or Practicum. This legal document (available for download) outlines the duties, terms, conditions and responsibilities of the university and school district(s) in which you perform class activities.
Similar to clearances, the agreement takes effect immediately once signed by authorized officials of MU and the school district in which you plan to perform a field experience. Please send the signed form to Jill Scott, 202 Retan, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA 16933. For further information see our Announcement from February 2010. If you still have questions contact Cindy Keller (717-816-6995) or Jill Scott (570-662-4790).
As a condition of the Affiliation Agreement, students are responsible for obtaining professional liability insurance at their own expense. The limits of the policy shall be a minimum of $1,000,000 per claim and an aggregate of $3,000,000 per occurrence. This policy impacts SL&IT students as of February 3, 2010 and is effective immediately.
Mansfield University understands the need for SL&IT students to be legally protected in the event of unfortunate occurrences while working in a school library. Personal liability insurance is for your benefit. Consequently, all students must provide proof of liability coverage in order to participate in any field experiences.
If you are currently employed in a school district, it is very likely that the district already has a liability insurance policy that covers you. However, you will need to check whether it meets the claim amounts stated above. If you do not have liability insurance or adequate coverage through a school district policy you should investigate other insurance providers, such as professional associations, unions, etc. Additional insurance can be added to an existing home owner's insurance policy at a reasonable rate.
To satisfy the requirement please submit proof of liability coverage to the SL&IT office. You may e-mail your confirmation to Jill Scott (jlscott@mansfield.edu) with the following statement:
I have liability insurance to complete any and all field work assignments and the 100 hour Practicum. in a school district.
Policy Regarding Late Assignments
Although online courses may indicate self-paced study, SL&IT courses include assignments that require students to progress through course modules according to a posted schedule. Students are consequently responsible for contacting instructors in advance to request special arrangements.
Unless the instructor grants an extension, late assignments are subject to a 10% grade reduction. After one week the instructor will no longer accept late assignments and the student will receive a zero grade unless extenuating circumstances warrant special accommodations (e.g. health or family issues beyond the student's control).
To avoid late submissions, students should review assignment instructions early. If instructor clarification is needed the student should allow adequate time to request and receive a response. Waiting until late in the weekend to request assistance may not allow for enough time to complete assignments on time.
Policy Regarding Assignment Resubmission
Though faculty are sympathetic to the needs of working adults, students are responsible for contacting instructors in advance to request special arrangements. Students who receive a C or lower on an assignment due to an extenuating or reasonable circumstance may request a resubmission within one week of receiving instructor feedback. If granted, the instructor may either average the two submissions or deduct 10% from the final adjusted grade.
Policy Regarding Course Absences
Instructors recognize that genuine health emergencies or loss of a family member can happen suddenly to anyone. SL&IT instructors will work with you to deal with such emergencies and you should expect appropriate consideration and support.
Vacations and other planned events, such as conferences constitute non-emergency situations that instructors are not obliged to accommodate. Although this too could occur in any semester, the summer term raises the most issues. The weeks of school vacation during the summer often represent a time for travel, family vacations, and relaxation but do not require the same treatment as an emergency.
If you plan to be away for a vacation during the summer (or any term, for that matter), please plan for Internet access to monitor emails, participate in forum discussions, and submit assignments, unless excused. Please do not expect instructors to make special arrangements to accommodate voluntary absences, including but not limited to the following:
Do not expect special assignments to replace a forum; our department policy is to require the same participation for all. Forum discussions will not be opened early to accommodate vacations nor be held open longer.
If you plan to work ahead and turn in assignments ahead of their due date please understand that your instructor will be working on the current mod with students and may not be prepared to answer questions regarding advance work nor announce specific topics or assignments in advance. If you work ahead of the class instructors may not have fully presented course content yet. In such instances you assume the risk of inadequate preparation.
Instructors grade work according to the course schedule. If you turn in assignments significantly early you may not receive feedback any earlier than the rest of the class. There may be adverse risk when working on future assignments before receiving feedback or suggestions for an earlier activity or assessment.
Do not expect a grade of Incomplete in order to make up for voluntary absences. Instructors always have the option to deny a request for an Incomplete and will do so if the reason for it is to make up for a non-emergency absence.
Your best policy in the event that a wedding, trip, or any other sort of event might interfere with class is to register for the continuing enrollment option, ED 5600 (except during summer, when registration is not required to maintain active status) or to make your attendance as transparent as possible. If the instructor experiences no interruption in your participation, attention to announcements and emails, or assignments, then you are handling the situation responsibly. The SL&IT online program encourages you to work from anyplace, but the emphasis is still on the work, and your instructors will not make course exceptions on demand except for a genuine emergency. Please be prepared to provide documentation of such an emergency if needed.