Teachers Teaching Teachers
How IU Southeast prepares future students for their own classroom
by Parker Henes
Schools will always need teachers. Kids will always need someone to teach them the way of life from a schooling aspect. Where do these aspiring teachers get experience and connections.
One of IU Southeast’s school sections is the School of Education, which is orchestrated by the Dean of Education Doyin Coker-Kolo. She has just finished up her first year as the dean.
“I have been in the administration for quite a while and I enjoy working with everyone to prepare future teachers that will go out and impact the learning and the development of K-12 students,” Coker-Kolo said.
Coker-Kolo said that the only reason she gets up and does it every morning is the fact that IU Southeast has outstanding faculty members.
“They are very committed in what they do,” she said.
Coker-Kolo said she enjoys everyone she works with.
Not only is the School of Education constructing teachers, but they are also making every student involved in the school a leader, and according to the IU Southeast vision statement, IU Southeast shapes the future of our region by transforming good students into great leaders, one graduate at a time.
“This is what education is about, transforming lives,” Coker-Kolo said. “If you enjoy what you are doing, it makes it a lot easier and the long hours don’t seem so bad.”
As for her job, Coker-Kolo said those long long hours are just to make sure the School of Education is on the right track. It being her first year, she said that she has plenty to still work on.
“I am still trying to understand how to find that balance between work and life,” Coker-Kolo said.
Moving forward, Coker-Kolo said that she should be more experienced and have more knowledge on how Indiana University works so she can use her time more efficiently.
The School of Education is located on the IU Southeast campus, 1500 Alumni Dr. to be exact. Coker-Kolo said that IU Southeast was founded in 1941, but the School of Education was started in 1969.
“We have been doing this a long time,” Coker-Kolo said.
IU Southeast has a total undergraduate enrollment of 5,989, and the campus size is 179 acres. Out of all those students walking the campus, Coker-Kolo said that just over a little over 800 students are involved in the School of Education.
Those students then get to decide which part of the school system they would like to tackle. According to Coker-Kolo, there are three different undergraduate programs and three different departments.
The programs are categorized by the different levels of the school system. The undergraduate programs include elementary, secondary and special education. These three are the heavy hitters for local schools.
One of the professors, Terri Beard, focuses more on the elementary program. She said she stands for preparing these student teachers the right way.
Out of the three programs, Beard said that the elementary program is always the largest.
“We are responsible for 80 percent of the teachers, counselors and principals in the Southern Indiana area,” Coker-Kolo said.
However, the School of Education has master's programs after the future teachers get done at the undergraduate level.
This is then broken down even farther. Coker-Kolo said not only do they help students become teachers, but the help students on the counseling side and the school leader's side, which is a principal or vice principal.
Shifa Podikunju-Hussain is involved in the School counseling program. She said one thing that sets the IU system apart from the rest of the universities. “The key is field experience,” Podikunju-Hussain said. “Field experience impacts student success.”
The moment that these teachers get accepted into the IU Southeast School of Education, they are immediately entered into the field, Podikunju-Hussain said. Beard said she keeps the student teachers qualified by sending them to different training programs.
“Once you are accepted into the school, you are expected to participate as a student teacher,” Beard said.
Coker-Kolo said that the teachers here at IUS are already prepared because they too have had some type of experience with students from all ages.
“They know the war our students are currently in and what they plan on doing after IU Southeast,” Coker-Kolo said.
The counseling program, along with the teaching and the leaders program, are all two year programs, with a guaranteed internship.
Coker-Kolo said the two main graduate programs are the secondary and elementary education programs. They cover all the different subjects in the local schools, from science to computer science.
“For example, we offer a master's degree in secondary education, specializing in science,” Coker-Kolo said. “We also have a master’s offered in computer science.”
Not only are they teaching student that are going into the profession, but Coker-Kolo said that they keep past graduates in their mind occasionally.
“Not only do we teach new teachers about the field they are getting into, but we also increase the knowledge and professionalism of teachers that have already been through the educational process,” Coker-Kolo said.
One aspect Coker-Kolo said she wanted to continue to emphasize is the program that teaches English as a second language.
According to Coker-Kolo, there is a special club that helps teach different languages to teachers This program is called the New Neighbor Center.
The two states that make up this place called Southern Indiana have different rules when it comes to teaching. Coker-Kolo said that in the city of Louisville, aspiring teachers have to have your master’s to teach, but in Indiana, it is not required once you first start. However, she did say that teachers eventually have to acquire their master’s degrees.
“You can get an official license to anyone with a Bachelor’s degree,” Coker-Kolo said. “But you do have to pass certains tests.”
In April, the School of Education hosts an awards ceremony where they recognize students that have outstanding accomplishments.
“It’s a big event,” Coker-Kolo said. “We bring their parents in and our stakeholders in to celebrate with them.”
The School of Education is also in the community. Here at IU Southeast, the School of Education have school clubs. The SEA, or School of Education Association, stay active in the community.
“They have projects in the community and compete in competitions in the region,” Coker-Kolo said.
One of the sororities takes on one of the programs head on.
“We have the Pi Delta sorority that prepares students to be school leadership roles in the ,” Coker-Kolo said.
A goal of Coker-Kolo is to create a alumni association solely for teachers in the local area. It is still in the works, but Coker-Kolo plans on making it a dominant area for alumni to help teachers.
“Right now we are just collecting names and contact information of past alumni just to get that association together and working,” Coker-Kolo said.
Iu Southeast’s School of Education has been going strong for nearly 50 years and Coker-Kolo said she doesn’t plan on slowing down.
“The School of Education is a jewel in the community,” Coker-Kolo said. “We should encourage people to come here and encourage them to get an education. When the student graduates, he or she still gets a IU teaching degree.”
One of IU Southeast’s school sections is the School of Education, which is orchestrated by the Dean of Education Doyin Coker-Kolo. She has just finished up her first year as the dean.
“I have been in the administration for quite a while and I enjoy working with everyone to prepare future teachers that will go out and impact the learning and the development of K-12 students,” Coker-Kolo said.
Coker-Kolo said that the only reason she gets up and does it every morning is the fact that IU Southeast has outstanding faculty members.
“They are very committed in what they do,” she said.
Coker-Kolo said she enjoys everyone she works with.
Not only is the School of Education constructing teachers, but they are also making every student involved in the school a leader, and according to the IU Southeast vision statement, IU Southeast shapes the future of our region by transforming good students into great leaders, one graduate at a time.
“This is what education is about, transforming lives,” Coker-Kolo said. “If you enjoy what you are doing, it makes it a lot easier and the long hours don’t seem so bad.”
As for her job, Coker-Kolo said those long long hours are just to make sure the School of Education is on the right track. It being her first year, she said that she has plenty to still work on.
“I am still trying to understand how to find that balance between work and life,” Coker-Kolo said.
Moving forward, Coker-Kolo said that she should be more experienced and have more knowledge on how Indiana University works so she can use her time more efficiently.
The School of Education is located on the IU Southeast campus, 1500 Alumni Dr. to be exact. Coker-Kolo said that IU Southeast was founded in 1941, but the School of Education was started in 1969.
“We have been doing this a long time,” Coker-Kolo said.
IU Southeast has a total undergraduate enrollment of 5,989, and the campus size is 179 acres. Out of all those students walking the campus, Coker-Kolo said that just over a little over 800 students are involved in the School of Education.
Those students then get to decide which part of the school system they would like to tackle. According to Coker-Kolo, there are three different undergraduate programs and three different departments.
The programs are categorized by the different levels of the school system. The undergraduate programs include elementary, secondary and special education. These three are the heavy hitters for local schools.
One of the professors, Terri Beard, focuses more on the elementary program. She said she stands for preparing these student teachers the right way.
Out of the three programs, Beard said that the elementary program is always the largest.
“We are responsible for 80 percent of the teachers, counselors and principals in the Southern Indiana area,” Coker-Kolo said.
However, the School of Education has master's programs after the future teachers get done at the undergraduate level.
This is then broken down even farther. Coker-Kolo said not only do they help students become teachers, but the help students on the counseling side and the school leader's side, which is a principal or vice principal.
Shifa Podikunju-Hussain is involved in the School counseling program. She said one thing that sets the IU system apart from the rest of the universities. “The key is field experience,” Podikunju-Hussain said. “Field experience impacts student success.”
The moment that these teachers get accepted into the IU Southeast School of Education, they are immediately entered into the field, Podikunju-Hussain said. Beard said she keeps the student teachers qualified by sending them to different training programs.
“Once you are accepted into the school, you are expected to participate as a student teacher,” Beard said.
Coker-Kolo said that the teachers here at IUS are already prepared because they too have had some type of experience with students from all ages.
“They know the war our students are currently in and what they plan on doing after IU Southeast,” Coker-Kolo said.
The counseling program, along with the teaching and the leaders program, are all two year programs, with a guaranteed internship.
Coker-Kolo said the two main graduate programs are the secondary and elementary education programs. They cover all the different subjects in the local schools, from science to computer science.
“For example, we offer a master's degree in secondary education, specializing in science,” Coker-Kolo said. “We also have a master’s offered in computer science.”
Not only are they teaching student that are going into the profession, but Coker-Kolo said that they keep past graduates in their mind occasionally.
“Not only do we teach new teachers about the field they are getting into, but we also increase the knowledge and professionalism of teachers that have already been through the educational process,” Coker-Kolo said.
One aspect Coker-Kolo said she wanted to continue to emphasize is the program that teaches English as a second language.
According to Coker-Kolo, there is a special club that helps teach different languages to teachers This program is called the New Neighbor Center.
The two states that make up this place called Southern Indiana have different rules when it comes to teaching. Coker-Kolo said that in the city of Louisville, aspiring teachers have to have your master’s to teach, but in Indiana, it is not required once you first start. However, she did say that teachers eventually have to acquire their master’s degrees.
“You can get an official license to anyone with a Bachelor’s degree,” Coker-Kolo said. “But you do have to pass certains tests.”
In April, the School of Education hosts an awards ceremony where they recognize students that have outstanding accomplishments.
“It’s a big event,” Coker-Kolo said. “We bring their parents in and our stakeholders in to celebrate with them.”
The School of Education is also in the community. Here at IU Southeast, the School of Education have school clubs. The SEA, or School of Education Association, stay active in the community.
“They have projects in the community and compete in competitions in the region,” Coker-Kolo said.
One of the sororities takes on one of the programs head on.
“We have the Pi Delta sorority that prepares students to be school leadership roles in the ,” Coker-Kolo said.
A goal of Coker-Kolo is to create a alumni association solely for teachers in the local area. It is still in the works, but Coker-Kolo plans on making it a dominant area for alumni to help teachers.
“Right now we are just collecting names and contact information of past alumni just to get that association together and working,” Coker-Kolo said.
Iu Southeast’s School of Education has been going strong for nearly 50 years and Coker-Kolo said she doesn’t plan on slowing down.
“The School of Education is a jewel in the community,” Coker-Kolo said. “We should encourage people to come here and encourage them to get an education. When the student graduates, he or she still gets a IU teaching degree.”
