How to Choose a Teaching Program

Know your licensure options in Colorado, and learn what to consider in a teacher preparation program.

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To get your Colorado teaching license, you’ll need to complete a teaching program. Teacher preparation programs equip you with the skills and knowledge to teach in your chosen grade and subject. 

Here, we’ll go over the types of teaching programs available in Colorado, and what criteria you might use to choose the right program for you.

Attending a teaching program is one of several steps to get licensed in Colorado. Get a full explanation of the steps to licensure, plus a downloadable guide, at the TEACH Colorado teaching licensure page.

On this page:

  • Explore pathways to teaching for undergraduates, college graduates and career changers.
  • Find a program that works for you.
  • Know what to look for in a teaching program. 
  • Explore key program hallmarks.

Find your teacher preparation pathway

Whether you’re in school, out of school or considering a career change, there’s a pathway for you to become a teacher. The right program partly depends on your educational background. Click through the tabs below for more information about each pathway.

With TEACH Colorado’s program explorer, you can find and compare teaching programs across the state. Each program profile includes info like the program’s duration, format, endorsement areas and tuition costs. You’ll also find hallmarks such as hands-on experience, mentorship and coaching, insider info from current students and more.

Teaching Pathways in Colorado

A bachelor’s degree and licensure program may be a good fit if:

You know what subject area and grade level you want to teach in a public school setting.

With a bachelor’s degree and licensure program, you can:

  • Complete your teaching program as part of earning your bachelor’s degree.
  • Reduce the total cost and time you spend working toward your license.

Most colleges and universities that have an undergraduate teaching program also have a master’s program. 

A master’s degree and licensure program may be a good fit if:

You decide later in college or after earning a degree that you want to teach in a field closely related to your undergraduate major. 

With a master’s degree and licensure program, you can:

  • Explore full-time and part-time program options.
  • Control when you enroll in your program.

In an alternative licensure program, you'll teach in your own classroom and take coursework in the evenings. 

An alternative licensure program might be a good fit if: 

  • You’re a career changer.
  • You decide later in college or after earning a degree that you want to teach.
  • You are a paraprofessional interested in getting your license faster.

With an alternative licensure program, you can…

  • Teach in a school district while you meet your licensure requirements. 
  • Earn a salary during your licensure program.

Other things to know about alternative licensure programs: 

  • Alternative licensure programs often prepare candidates to teach in high-needs schools or in subject matter shortage areas.
  • Programs vary in how much support they offer to help you get hired as a teacher. Be sure to ask about this when choosing an alternative licensure program. 

Learn more about alternative licensure at the TEACH Colorado alternative licensure page. 

Depending on your career experience, you can also consider a Career and Technical Education credential, to teach subjects like agricultural science, business education and trade skills.

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Make sure your program works for you

Once you have an idea of which pathway is right for you, you’ll want to make sure that your must-haves are covered. 

Your teaching program should:

  • Offer an endorsement in the grade and subject you want to teach.
  • Be approved for licensure in Colorado. TEACH Colorado’s program explorer can get your search started.
  • Work for you financially.
  • Work with your schedule. Program coursework can be mostly online, in-person or a mix of both, and all programs require fieldwork in schools. 

Once you have these logistics covered, you can look more closely at the values and focus of the programs you’re considering, to find the best fit. 

TEACH Colorado’s program profiles each have a “Program Hallmarks” section. There, you can learn more about opportunities like hands-on experience and mentorship for each program. In the next section, we’ll go over what program hallmarks to look for and how to evaluate them for a program you’re considering.  

TEACH Colorado offers support for every step of your teacher prep journey, including how-to guides, deadline reminders, application checklists and 1-on-1 support. Learn more.

 

What to look for in a teaching program

Each teaching program has its own approach to skill-building, mentorship and instruction. As you explore teaching programs, consider how you learn best and what skills are important to you. 

Current teachers, teacher preparation program officials and school district HR chiefs (you know, the experts) say that a strong teaching program should offer these hallmarks:

  • Lots of hands-on experience
  • Preparation to teach diverse populations
  • Mentoring and coaching
  • Commitment to continuous improvement

How do you know what teaching programs have to offer in each of these categories? We can help with that! 

How to use this section

When you visit a teaching program’s profile through the program explorer, you’ll see that most profiles include a “Program Hallmarks” section (toward the bottom of the profile). Program hallmarks explain how individual programs incorporate each of the categories we listed above. 

Below, we’ll go over what each category includes, why it matters and how to find out what it looks like at your prospective programs. Basically, this is a guide to help you understand the information on the TEACH Colorado program profiles—and dig deeper into why each program hallmark is meaningful. 

Have more questions? Don’t worry! You can talk through your program options with free 1-on-1 coaching. Get advice from an experienced teaching professional, over phone, video chat or email (text coming soon!). 

Teaching Program Hallmarks

What is hands-on, pre-service experience? 

Pre-service experience refers to any teaching practice you get before you lead your own classroom. This experience can come in a variety of forms.

Pre-service experience in traditional licensure programs

In traditional undergraduate or master's programs, your pre-service program typically includes one or two semesters of working in an experienced teacher’s classroom. This is usually called "student teaching" and often occurs during your final year. 

Pre-service experience in alternative licensure programs

In an alternative licensure program, you’ll teach your own class (supported by a mentor teacher), and take classes in the evenings. Some alternative licensure programs also offer several weeks of pre-service practice with an experienced teacher during summer school. Make sure you understand the hands-on experience components before you enroll in your program! 

Some alternative licensure programs mention "internship” or “on the job" components. This can sound like pre-service experience, but these terms just refer to your first year teaching your own classroom while you earn your license.

Why is hands-on experience important? 

Teachers are more likely to feel prepared for their first year in the classroom if they get plenty of classroom experience as a part of their prep program. Opportunities to observe other teachers and to practice teaching can make all the difference for early-career educators. 

As a rule, more pre-service experience is better, but quality definitely matters. 

Make sure to ask any prospective programs about what their pre-service experience entails, including:

  • How long it lasts.
  • How the program selects mentor teachers.
  • How you will receive feedback on your practice.

What does “teaching diverse populations” mean? 

Your teaching program should prepare you to teach students with diverse learning styles, cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and social and emotional needs.

Preparation to teach diverse populations can include: 

  • Coursework that specifically addresses the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse student populations.
  • Training on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) or trauma.
  • Coaching and feedback on culturally relevant pedagogy. 
  • Learning how unconscious biases can lead to disproportionately disciplining some students, especially students of color.
  • How to check for biases when teaching.

Why is preparation to teach diverse populations important? 

Colorado schools serve culturally and linguistically diverse students. With a growing immigrant population and a high percentage of rural students, diversity is a key strength and core value of many Colorado communities.

Colorado needs more teachers who are licensed in special education, bilingual education and culturally and linguistically diverse education. These teachers sometimes receive signing or yearly bonuses from their districts.  

Ask teaching programs about how they prepare teachers to work with diverse students, including:

  • What, if any, required courses focus on diverse populations.
  • What hands-on practice you’ll get working with diverse students.
  • What skills you’ll build to work with diverse students.

What does “mentoring and coaching” mean? 

Your teaching program should provide an experienced and highly effective mentor, teacher and coach to give meaningful feedback during your training process. 

Mentorship in the classroom

Most programs will put you in a classroom under the supervision of a mentor, master or host teacher (different names for essentially the same thing) during your pre-service experience.

You will generally start off observing and then start teaching more and more. Mentor teachers give you constructive feedback to help you grow in ability and confidence.

Program coaches

Programs also send coaches to visit and observe you in your classroom at regular intervals. Coaches can give you additional feedback and help you think through challenges you're experiencing. 

Sometimes, coaches will visit you even after your pre-service experience is over, when you are the primary teacher in a classroom. 

Why is mentoring and coaching important?

When you’re starting out as a teacher, you want to learn from someone whose work you want to emulate. Many teachers will tell you that having a mentor teacher, especially a mentor in a similar subject area and grade level, is critical for success.

Your mentor teacher will have a big impact on the kind of teacher you’ll become, your attitude toward teaching and your professional growth mindset. 

Ask prospective programs about their mentoring and coaching support, including:

  • How they select mentor teachers and coaches.
  • How they match you with a mentor teacher or coach.
  • What they expect from mentor teachers and coaches.
  • How they ensure that mentor teachers and coaches model effective practices and give helpful feedback. 
  • Whether they provide any continued support during your first few years as a teacher.

Be picky! You will be better prepared if your mentor is an engaged, highly effective teacher in your chosen field. The most highly rated teaching programs typically have strong mentor teachers.

What does “commitment to improvement” mean?

Your teaching program should show commitment to continuous improvement of its teacher preparation practices. This might be the hardest criteria to spot as you shop for programs. 

Programs with a strong commitment to improvement might: 

  • Ask for regular feedback from students, recent alumni, partner schools and districts. 
  • Research data on child development and learning styles. 
  • Actively work to recruit and retain diverse teacher candidates, mentors, professors and instructors. 
  • Partner with diverse schools, districts and professional enrichment programs.
  • Set clear goals and standards for student achievement and skill-building. 
  • Make changes in response to current events in education, policy and cultural shifts. 

Why is commitment to improvement important? 

Our world is changing rapidly, and so are the skills you’ll need to teach students. To be prepared for the classrooms of today and tomorrow, you’ll want your program to be up-to-date on research about childhood development, serving diverse populations and how humans learn and grow. This benefits you and your future students!

You can ask prospective programs about their improvement practices, including: 

  • How they collect, share and use research and data with teaching faculty and students.
  • How they gather feedback from students and alumni.
  • How they assess partnerships with schools and districts.
  • How they respond to school and district needs. 
  • How they stay up-to-date on effective, relevant educational practices. 
  • What their goals are for their teaching programs’ growth.

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