English Teacher Education Program

The English Education Program is offered to undergraduate and graduate students who wish to be certified to teach English in the middle school, junior high and senior high school. Undergraduates must major in English, and applicants to the MAT program must have an undergraduate major in English or an equivalent course of study. Communications, journalism and theater majors are not acceptable for admission to the graduate program. A five-year accelerated BA-MA degree in English with an option for English teacher certification is also available to qualified students. Teacher Preparation is designed to prepare secondary English teachers to be skilled, innovative and challenging. The in-depth preparation in teaching writing and literature includes an emphasis on process-centered writing approaches; theory-centered literature methods; collaborative classroom activities; and knowledgeable multi-cultural teaching approaches. Methods classes are designed to acquaint teacher candidates with best practices in the teaching of English, with a special focus on rhetorical, performance, and technological approaches. Candidates complete field experience in middle and high schools, reflecting on the experiences in journals and directed writings. Candidates are required to create an exemplary portfolio that documents their experiences in the university English Education classes and secondary public school observations.

Students seeking admission to the English Education Program should contact the undergraduate or graduate advisor and the Director of English Education for information concerning prerequisites, application procedures, and course selection. Those interested in the accelerated BA-MA program should contact the Director of English Teacher Education or the Director of Graduate Studies in English. 

The English Education Program at Stony Brook University is designed to prepare excellent English teachers for grades 7-12. Through two methods courses, field experience in schools, and a full-semester student teaching internship with a concurrent seminar, our teacher candidates become well-versed in best practices for instructing secondary students in writing, reading, speaking, and listening for a variety of purposes and audiences and in a variety of contexts. Our program’s pedagogical goals are aligned with the standards of the National Council of Teachers of English and the New York State English Language Arts Learning Standards and Assessments.

 Faculty in the English Education Program are nationally-recognized writers and presenters in the teaching of writing and literature and have been full-time secondary teachers for a number of years. Many of our instructors are retired secondary English teachers from local Long Island school districts and have more than 25 years’ experience each to draw from as they help new teachers enter what is one of the most rewarding and challenging occupations. Through the SUNY Urban Teacher Education Center, students in English Education also have the opportunity, if they wish, to student teach in a safe and supportive environment in New York City. Students in English Education are further supported by a nationally-renown English Department

For more information contact:

Joshua Cabat
Director of Teacher Education 
joshua.cabat@stonybrook.edu
Humanities 2088