Standard 10. The unit must collaborate with each school partner to ensure that:

(2) each cooperating teacher paired with a candidate during field experiences:

(a) has at least two years of teaching experience;
(b) holds a Tier 2 license or professional license aligned to the assignment;

(c) meets all other requirements in state statute;

The UED Director of Field Experiences also collaborates with school partners to ensure that school personnel who host teacher candidates for pre-student teaching clinical field experiences have at least two years of teaching experience and at least a Tier 2 license in the licensure field being sought by the teacher candidate. Key qualifications of a cooperating teacher hosting clinical field experiences are stated in the email communication from the Director of Field Experience to school principals (or designated school leader for placements), and they attest the teacher has the needed experience and license. The Director of Field Experiences validates that the cooperating teacher holds a MN license in the candidate’s licensure area by checking the teacher’s license status using the PELSB License Lookup tool. If the prospective cooperating teacher does not have the license that the prospective student teacher is seeking, then the placement is not approved. In addition, the Field Experience Director checks with principals to ensure that potential host teachers model effective instructional practices including use of PreK-12 academic standards and culturally responsive teaching.