Kinesiology (B.S.) with Teacher Certification

To be eligible for admission to the physical education teacher certification program, a student must meet the admission criteria of the College of Education teacher certification programs. 

The criteria includes attaining a 2.75 grade point average, successful completion of prerequisite courses, successful completion of GACE requirements, and submission of a formal application. 

Required to maintain a grade point average of 3.0 to graduate.

One important aspect of the teacher certification program is the constant vigilance exercised by the faculty to ensure that standards of quality are maintained. The following standards must be maintained for continued retention in a program:

1. compliance with rules and regulations prescribed for all students at North Georgia;
2. adherence to the Code of Ethics of the Georgia Professional Standards Commission;
3. completion of all courses in the academic major and professional education courses with an academic grade of C or higher;
4. demonstration of competence in the use of oral and written language;
5. maintenance of an institutional grade point average of 2.75 as required for program admission; and
6. satisfactory performance in all field experiences, including the on-going demonstration of dispositions required of teachers as professionals.

Students whose institutional GPA drops below a 2.75 or who receive D’s in major courses will be placed on teacher certification probation the next semester. If the problem is not corrected within the next semester of enrollment, the student could be withdrawn from the program.

For all courses with a field component, a student must complete all requirements and earn a grade of C or higher in the field component in order to pass the course. Students must complete all courses with a field component with a grade of C or higher before enrolling in any teaching courses in a subsequent semester.

Only under extreme circumstances will a student be allowed to extend or repeat field-based coursework at the 4000 level. A student who must extend or repeat the pre-internship block will have only one opportunity to complete internship. However, a student who successfully completes block in one semester without extension will have one opportunity to extend or repeat internship.

The College of Education has contractual agreements with designated systems and schools for placement of teacher certification students for field experiences and internships. Field placements are limited to those school sites. All public school field placements will be arranged through the College of Education Field Placement Coordinator.

Students will not be placed for field experiences in a school which they attended within the last seven years or in which they have immediate family employed or enrolled.

The internship is that part of the pre-service education program in which the prospective teacher works full time in a cooperating school with an assigned cooperating teacher. Depending on the program, the internship will take place during the last full year or the last entire semester of the program. During internship students are expected to assume all of the responsibilities of a classroom teacher, therefore permission for outside employment or enrollment in courses not associated with internship must be obtained from the Field Experience Coordinator.

A student must complete an Internship application, which is found on the College of Education website. Application deadlines are September 2 for spring Internships.

The following are prerequisites for the Internship:

1. admission to the teacher certification program;
2. completion of all professional education courses and courses appropriate to the teaching field (exceptions must be approved by the academic advisor) with a grade of C or higher;
3. maintenance of a minimum grade point average of 2.75;
4. senior classification as determined by the Registrar’s Office;
5. satisfactory completion of all previous field-based assignments;
6. completion of the appropriate GACE Content Assessments examination.

 For a complete listing of internship policies, see the Internship Handbook on the College of Education website.