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• Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution of higher education.
• Candidates should have a minimum 2.5 GPA on all coursework or 2.75 GPA in the last 60 semester hours of completed coursework.
• Candidates must provide a copy of their transcripts.

As a teacher’s assistant, you will earn your required training hours and be partnered with dedicated faculty leaders who will guide you through your training and assistantship. During these initial months, you will be expected to: 

• Candidates accepted into the program must commit to a minimum of four years working with the district.
• Candidates must clear the district criminal background check.
• Attend ESC Region 13 and ACU professional development training sessions before the start of the school year and throughout the year.
• Co-teach and assist support staff with lesson planning, leading group instruction, student activities, etc.
• Monitor and improve instruction with formative and summative assessments, grading, and developing rubrics.
• Embrace constructive feedback from leads and support staff during informal and formal observations.
• Oversee lunch duty, recess, after-school care, classroom monitoring, and other student events.

During your time in the program, you will be expected to foster an effective classroom environment and meet individual students’ and educators’ social, emotional, and behavioral needs to set ambitious yet achievable measurements. These include:

• Developing a nuanced understanding of each student’s strengths, weaknesses, and learning styles to identify potential barriers to academic success.
• Ensuring expectations are communicated clearly and effectively; may involve using colloquial language, storytelling, real-life examples, or other creative strategies to make learning more engaging. 
• Identifing and addressing individual student’s social, emotional, and behavioral learning needs and barriers.
• Holding students accountable for reaching their goals, using words that evoke emotion rather than technical terminology.
• Creating an encouraging atmosphere where all students feel safe and motivated to reach their highest potential.
• Monitoring student behavior during transitions and less structured time (such as recess and lunch)

ESC Region 13 holds teachers to a high standard for developing and executing thoughtful curricula for students’ maximum success. During your time in the program, you will: 

• Partner with a dedicated lead to consider all aspects of the learning experience – from lessons and activities to assessments – when creating a cohesive plan that meets expectations while allowing individualized instruction.
• Review existing standards and objectives; this will provide direction for constructing lesson plans with clear, achievable goals.
• Gain mastery of subject material more quickly, using existing materials to construct meaningful connections between concepts. 
• Implement methods for evaluating student progress to assess which parts of the curriculum need further refinement.

As an ESC Region 13 instructor, you will be asked to focus on providing the highest level of collaboration between your students by leading and encouraging your class to work together. Candidates will be expected to: 

• Lead small-group instruction under the direction of an experienced educator..
• Work with teams comprised of dedicated staff members with diverse abilities to exchange ideas and opinions that strive toward overall student success.
• Supervise practice sessions that allow learners to build confidence in their communication skills while perfecting articulation and pronunciation.
• Encourage students to step out of their comfort zones and think critically, resulting in more dynamic verbal expression.
• Participate in instructional planning, data review, and improvement during the year.

Our mission is to put greater focus and resources toward the success of all teachers. With the help of our dedicated faculty and staff, candidates will be nurtured during their time in the program to advance their goal of becoming certified teachers within Texas. Throughout the program, candidates learn how to: 

• Embrace feedback to cultivate professional skills, striving towards a unified direction with dedicated leads and support staff.
• Engage in frequent meetings with an assigned mentor to ensure that the output of instruction is linguistically accurate and well-crafted.
• Develop fluency and confidence in articulating ideas using vivid language, coupled with proven teaching techniques.
• Refine techniques to demonstrate proficiency and learn more about the intricacies of teaching.
• Participate in all ESC Region 13, ACU, and District professional development training sessions throughout your training.