Secondary education at Emporia State University consists of on-campus courses and two semesters of internship/student teaching in a content area, listed below.

Secondary education students first select the teaching field(s) in which they would like to teach. They are then advised by a faculty member in that area. When far enough into their curriculum, they also join The Teachers College. They continue to be part of their major department as they complete the professional education. This approach sets ESU apart from many other institutions, where much of the curriculum happens in the college of education. At ESU, it is a joint endeavor.

Secondary education students join The Teachers College when they are admitted into teacher education. Admission into secondary teacher education is also admission into the first professional semester, called Phase I. Phase I consists of a block of education courses and a mutli-placement internship in which candidates from all teaching fields participate. It gives candidates pre-student teaching, broad experience in teaching and the education profession which allows them to see the big picture of the profession. The extensive internship is designed to have the candidate gain first-hand experience in classroom operations and in working with students in a public school setting. Candidates can expect to do some whole class teaching, small group teaching, working with individual students, and various teaching tasks as assigned by their mentor teacher.

Phase II is the second professional semester and is commonly known as student teaching. Candidates meet a number of requirements to qualify for student teaching. Student teachers are placed with experienced mentor teachers who have the ability to work with ESU student teachers to assist them with teaching skill development. Student teachers are with their Phase II mentor teacher(s) full-time for 16 weeks.

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