K—12 Campus Observation for Students

What is Field Observation?

Your education courses may require you to observe a classroom on a local K-12 campus. Your professor may want you to observe specific classroom techniques, the classroom or playground environment, or work with small groups of students. These experiences are called field observations and they can be required in any UNT Dallas School of Education classroom. The School of Education has legal agreements with our local school districts that allow our students to be placed. We cannot place students on campuses where we do not have a legal agreement.

How to Apply

UNT Dallas students must apply through the office of Clinical Practice in the School of Education.  You will need to submit an application, letting us know what district, what grade level, how many hours and what campus you would like to visit.

Then the Director of Clinical Practice will liaison with our cooperating districts to place you as soon as possible. Realize that this process can take about two weeks.  You will be required to register as a volunteer and submit to a criminal history background check and possibly fingerprinting, depending on the school district.

School districts are not required to offer field placements, and we must be polite and appreciative of the opportunity to observe their teacher’s classroom. School districts do not allow students to arrange their own placements without letting the University or Human Resources be the first contacts.

For more information contact the Director of Clinical Practice, Emily Waneck, emily.waneck@untdallas.edu 

When You Arrive on Campus

You will be given specific instructions from the Director of Clinical Practice about where to sign in and what to do when you arrive on campus.  Log all of your time in the classroom observing on your Field Experience log.  You will also need to write a reflection for each observation that you complete.  This log will be turned into the professor that requested that you complete field hours.  Keep these logs as you may need to present them again to the Director of Clinical Practice prior to your clinical semesters. 

Before You Apply

1. Do not request a date to observe that is less than two weeks away.
2. Make sure to have a copy of the syllabus that explains what you will need to observe and how many hours.
3. Know your ID and Driver’s License number.
4. The Director of Clinical Practice will let you know what the steps are after you have applied with UNT Dallas.
5. If you do not have reliable transportation plan to partner with a friend to the same campus or choose a campus that you can walk or get to with the bus or Dart.

How to Submit your Observation Log

Toward the end of the semester, to submit your observation log to the Clinical office, please email it to SOEClinical.Field@untdallas.edu. Include all logs with reflections so that the Director of Clinical Practice can credit you for your early field experience hours. 30 hours are required PRIOR to entrance into Clinicals.