Hi cwhite - There may be two answers to your question. 

1)  The degree program probably doesn't require fieldwork (as many people in these Masters programs are already teachers and so they've already done their student teaching internships).

2)  If you haven't already done a student teaching internship then you'll almost certainly have to do so before you can obtain a teaching certificate.

The laws about this sort of thing vary from state to state so you'd do well to carefully read the requirements as set forth on the website of your state department of education.

I'm enrolled at WGU in business.  I'm NOT up-to-date on the requirements for education majors, but I do know that undergraduates have to complete a semester teaching fulltime, plus all the usual razzle-dazzle about background check (at your expense) BEFORE you can enter the classroom, and PRAXIS or similar pre-screening depending on state requirements where you will be certified.  The master's program assumes you've met all those requirements, so with a bachelor's in education, you'll probably have to take a boatload of additional 'courses.'  That could add another 70 or so 'hours' to your requirements for a master's - which is substantial, to say the least :-(   Call them and talk with a counselor about this; it may not be as drastic as I'm painting it.

No worries though!  WGU is competency-based so you're not held back or herded around like a bunch of retarded lemmings, nor expected to adjust you life to meet someone else's schedule ;-)

Terms at WGU are 6 months instead of 3, and the tuition is fixed for term regardless of how many competencies you complete. But, obviously, with twice the length, you should be able to do twice as many, right?  You can take online cohort-based courses if you prefer, but most of us opt for self-study - which is extremely convenient and flexible, but it does demand self-discipline or you'll end up proscratinating yourself right out of school ;-)  With no manditory school holidays or breaks, running 24/7/365, you can save additional time to completion going year-round  - assuming there are no problems or interruptions on your end. So realistically instead of taking 8 years to finish your bachelor's degree parttime, you can comfortably go from zero to BA/BS in 5 years or less with a mere two hours a day, 6 days a week, and half that if you have experience and/or previous training in the require subjects.  A master's that migth otherwise take 3 or 4 years parttime, can be done in 1 1/2 to 2 years, or less - again with experience and/or previous training.  The more time you have to study, the quicker you complete all the requirements.  [Recently, a couple of exceptional students have completed two years of coursework in a single term - but they're been working at it 45-50 hours per week, which is impossible for most of us!]

 Now, I'll caution you in advance that there is a tremendous amount of reading AND writing, and almost all of the writing has to be up to academic standards with full-bore APA formatting ;-) 

There are a couple of recent changes that have stirred up the rabble-rousers and rumor-mongers, but neither will affect you or any other new student since you won't be traumatized by the change - you'll start with them already in place, and trust me they WILL help you - despite what a few say about how it has absolutely, positively destroyed their whole life ;-)

Initially, you'll be assigned a mentor or progress manager to help you through the program; you'll also have a month-long orientation to distance learning, personality and learning preferences, basic skills with software, the student portal, study guides and learning resources, yada-yada-yada. You mentor or progress manager will contact you often enough, and you can always ask for help from them via e-mail or on the online forums (communities) from other students and facilitators.  All in all, it's a great system and you will get answers within 24 hours worst case (usually much less).

Teacher education is one of the prime reasons WGU exists and why WGU uses this competency-based model.  [Those familiar can best appreciate that WGU was awarded NCATE certification and also best of state (Utah) award in education.] 

Hi Kizmet:

I do know that any good teacher education leading to initial licensure must have demonstration teaching and fieldwork.  I am most concerned with when I can do it and how. 

WGU has a program that fits my needs and is very flexible.  The plus is not only are they RA (which I know is the most important of accreditation), but they are also NCATE accredited as well.  GCU is not.  Therefore, after some research and lots of telephone conversations, I have decided to enroll in WGU's program.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Hi Henryw:

I appreciated your help.  I have decided to go to WGU for my masters.  It turns out they are very flexible.  Yeah, the fact that they are NCATE accredited is a plus.  Grand Canyon University is not.

I will let you know how things go.

Thanks again.

June 1st? 

I think you'll like it.  If you run into any problem, don't hesitate to ask your mentor/progress manager, or post on the student support community (common to all majors).   

The first requirement is EWOB, which can be a little tedious and seem like busy-work, but don't let that get to you. 

As soon as you have access to the communities, I strongly recommend you download copies of ALL the study guides and read through them in order.  This will give you a bird's eye view of the upcoming required tasks and textbooks, and can save you a lot of grief not being whipsawed too much ;-)  Quite a few of the textbooks have been revised in the past year, and undoubtedly more are in the works, so don't buy any of them until you need them.  Fortunately, at graduate level there aren't that many you will need, and amazon.com has been running a special code on textbooks each semester that will save you an additional 10% on an order up to $150.  [Also check the used vendors - quite often you can save another 10-20% on a given title - 'course, with that your actual mileage may vary, but I've had very good to excellent results with them.]

Hi Henryw:

Thanks.  I really appreciate your input.   I really believe this program is right for me.  I have no problem with self-directed study and probably need little guidance.  However, I intend to follow your advice and stay in contact with my mentors, faculty, advisors once they are assigned to me.  Can you tell me how long it takes for you to complete a class or the fastest you have completed a course? For example, if possible, can I concentrate on one class, one month (or a couple weeks) at a time, etc?  I know these are things I can ask the enrollment advisors, but it's better to get some feedback from someone attending the university.

Thanks

 Clinette

Hi Henryw:

...and yes, June 1st.

Yes, indeed, you can concentrate on one 'class' at a time, and take as much time as you need - within the 6 month term, of course; and others where you have some previous knowledge or experience, you can race through without being held back by antiquated 'seat-time' or a cohort that only marginally smarter than a box of rocks. Just don't get ahead of yourself! 

WGU is about demonstrating competency; these will primarily be performance tasks, but about a quarter of them in B school are proctored 3-hour objective tests that really shouldn't take you more than half that.  Each competency or course will have a study guide to detail what and how you have to do it, and you will know the standards or rubrics for assessing before you even start.  

Traditionally, a semester length course generally works out to roughly 40 hours of classroom time and outside reading, study, and assignments. Replace the lectures with a 'transcript' you can read in half the time; eliminate all the superfluous assignments, and you're probably closer to 30 hours per credit without breaking a sweat.  Actually, the time requirement is a function of reading speed and comprehension, keyboarding skills (speed AND accuracy), as well as your comfort level and proficiency with software programs you're going to have to use forthose performance tasks - word processor, spreadsheet, graphics, yada-yada-yada, and that infamous APA formatting and citing :-(  So I really have to fudge on a direct answer - realistically, though, 30 hours per credit will put you in the right ballpark.  Any way you slice it, there is a lot of reading involved, and a lot of writing - and because of the APA requirements, the written part of performance tasks can take easily twice as long as you thought.   That said, however, you'll be relieved to hear that many if not most in graduate education finish in  three terms - and almost all of them have families and are working fulltime, so they aren't exactly overwhelmed with spare time to spend on their studies.

As I said before, if you read through the study guides for all the assessments as soon as you get access to them, you'll have a much more detailed overview of what lies ahead, and this will help you fine-tune your consultation with your mentor.

Henryw:

 First, I hope you had a great weekend.

 Second, but not least, I thank you very much for your help and feedback.

I will be in touch as much as I can as soon as I am admitted and afterwards.

Thanks again

How did grand canyon university come to be as it is today?

tokmik:

How did grand canyon university come to be as it is today?

It's tough to answer that without knowing more about what you mean.  Care to share?

-=Steve=-