Program Description

An ideal choice for those who seek to prepare for the unique challenges and opportunities of teaching in urban classrooms, the Teacher Education Program (TEP) offers students a world-class preparation to change the course of adolescents’ lives at the middle- and high-school levels.

Students acquire the skills necessary for long-term success in urban school settings so that they are better able to provide high-quality instruction for all students, address the causes of unequal access in our educational system, and create classrooms and schools where all students can thrive and succeed.  Furthermore, these future teachers are well positioned to participate in organizational diagnosis and assume new leadership roles within schools.

A distinguishing feature of TEP is the value it places on the role of critical reflection in the development and mastery of classroom practice, understanding the multiple contexts of education, and understanding the nature and purposes of teaching and learning.  Students leave the program not only with the ability to reflect upon their practice, but also with the skills needed to build and grow their practice based upon that reflection, an ability that will sustain and nurture them throughout their professional lives.

With a focus on creating systemic school changes that will inspire new levels of success for adolescent learners, TEP offers two 11-month options:

Midcareer Math and Science (MCMS) is designed for students with undergraduate or graduate degrees in math or the sciences and a minimum of five years of applied work experience.   

Teaching and Curriculum (TAC) is intended for students with degrees in the humanities, math, or the sciences who have a passion for the liberal arts and social justice.

Students begin the program by taking summer coursework and team-teaching in the Cambridge-Harvard Summer Academy under the guidance of a master teacher. Teaching continues throughout the academic year at a partnership school in Cambridge or Boston, supported by bi-weekly advisory sessions planned to enrich the experience and exploration of classroom practice.

Students must take the state-administered test for initial Massachusetts public school teacher licensure. With a passing test score and the program’s endorsement, candidates qualify for a license to teach biology, chemistry, earth science, English, general science, history, mathematics, physics, or political science/political philosophy at the grade 5–8 or 8–12 level in Massachusetts. The license is also reciprocal with approximately 45 other states.