Field Placement Office

Faculty/Staff Information

Field Placement

Certification requirements established by the New York State Education Department dictate that each teacher candidate complete 100 hours of fieldwork in classrooms prior to student teaching. At SUNY Cortland, students meet this requirement through fieldwork assignments associated with specific courses.

Course instructors coordinate the collection of Student Data Sheets that the Field Placement Office uses to secure placements in appropriate classrooms. Placements are made in a variety of ways, including the Field Placement Fair and calls to individual school districts. Under no circumstances is a student to approach a principal of school administrator without prior approval from the Field Placement Office. The majority of placements are made by the end of the fifth week of public schools opening in the fall or the start of the college semester in the spring.

Course curricula indicate the assignments students are expected to complete in association with their fieldwork placements. General expectations for teacher candidates and host teachers are included in the Pre-Student Teaching Handbook.

Students are required to obtain teacher signatures to document their field experiences using the 100 Hour Log Sheet. Course instructors collect the log sheets from students and document the completion of the required hours and the associated criteria using the 100 Hour Tally Sheet provided to them by the Field Placement Office. Completed log sheets are kept in individual student’s folders. The instructor completed tally sheets are submitted to the Field Placement Office. It is highly recommended that students retain copies of completed log sheets for their own records.

To help students make the most of their fieldwork experiences, we have compiled a list of the Top Ten Helpful Hints for a Successful Field Placement.

Student Teaching

Student teaching arrangements are coordinated through the Field Placement Office in conjunction with the various departments. Each department has a Program Coordinator that oversees the dynamics of student teaching in that department.