Pellissippi State offers new associate’s degree in teaching

Getting a teaching degree just got easier for Pellissippi State students.

Pellissippi State has received Tennessee Board of Regents approval to offer an Associate of Science in Teaching (A.S.T.) degree for Elementary Education, with a K-6 emphasis.

TBR has made the course requirements uniform across the state. That means the degree will transfer to any TBR institution, and it will also transfer to Carson-Newman College.

“The A.S.T. is uniform across community colleges,” said Meg Moss, “so if students transfer to another community college, or any TBR university, they’re not going to lose credits.” Moss is coordinator of teacher education and an associate professor in Mathematics.

“That’s a nice advantage to our students, because before the A.S.T., they had to decide pretty quickly which college they were transferring to. Now they will be automatically accepted into the college of education at any four-year TBR school, or Carson-Newman, once they earn their A.S.T.”

The A.S.T. coursework includes 15 hours of field experience in elementary schools, and the early exposure to real classrooms is invaluable, Moss says.

“It helps students decide if teaching is the right career choice for them.”

Although the A.S.T. degree is new, Pellissippi State has had a teacher education program for about five years.

“We’ve created a lot of pathways for transfers,” she said.

Students even have the option of completing a bachelor’s degree without ever leaving town.

The A.S.T. degree leads directly into Tennessee Technological University’s education program. Through that program, Pellissippi State graduates can earn elementary teaching licensure (grades K-6) and a bachelor’s degree in Multidisciplinary Studies: Human Learning—and they can physically stay at Pellissippi State while doing it.

“Tennessee Tech has four full-time professors that are on the Pellissippi State campus teaching the junior- and senior-level courses,” Moss said.

Students who want to teach grades 7-12 or special education can benefit from starting at Pellissippi State also.

“We have articulation agreements in secondary education and special education. Students can come here and follow the articulation agreement and then transfer to the University of Tennessee, TTU and other area universities,” she said.

Community colleges and universities in the TBR system have joined together to develop a common core of courses for prospective elementary school teachers, says Moss. The core includes an introduction to teaching and technology course and hands-on conceptual mathematics and science courses.

The A.S.T. degree involves a total of 60 credit hours. In addition, students must achieve a cumulative grade-point average of 2.75, successfully complete the Praxis I exam, pass a criminal background check and achieve a satisfactory rating on an index of suitability for the teaching profession.

For more information, contact Meg Moss at 694-6673 or mvmoss@pstcc.edu , or visit the www.pstcc.edu/departments/edu.