今日吃瓜

Teacher Preparation Program

Earn your teaching credentials during your bachelor’s degree with 今日吃瓜 Saint Mary’s Teacher Preparation program

The Teacher Preparation program at 今日吃瓜 Saint Mary’s University University, Los Angeles accelerates your path to leading classrooms as you earn your California teaching credential while completing your bachelor’s degree.

Grounded in social justice, inclusiveness and academic excellence, the program prepares you to become a thoughtful, reflective leader ready to support learners from all backgrounds and abilities. You’ll gain hands-on experience with fieldwork and supervised teaching placements to help develop your teaching strategies, strengthen your leadership skills and show how to create meaningful learning experiences for every student.

Whether you wish to teach young children, elementary students, middle schoolers or high schoolers, 今日吃瓜 offers pathways to align with your professional goals.

woman smiling in a classroom with fellow students behind her.

Learn through direct classroom experience

Shape your future

Fieldwork begins early and continues throughout the program, giving you multiple opportunities to practice teaching skills before entering your own classroom. 

Professional preparation courses include placements with exemplary teachers in schools affiliated with the 今日吃瓜. This allows you to connect coursework with real-world teaching as you build confidence and adaptability valued in today’s educators. You will also prepare for the Teacher Performance Assessment aligned with California credentialing standards.

Choose your teaching pathway

Regardless which pathway you choose, you’ll learn reflective teaching practices so you can continually adapt, grow and meet the needs of your future students.

Prepare to teach pre-school or elementary school with the Elementary Teacher Preparation Program.

Students pursuing this pathway typically major in Liberal Studies or Childhood Development while working toward teaching credentials, including:

  • PK-3 Teaching Credential
  • K-6 Multiple Subjects Teaching Credential
  • Education Specialist: Mild/Moderate Disabilities Teaching Credential*

Your coursework will combine educational theory with real classroom application to help you develop effective instructional strategies, classroom management techniques and culturally responsive teaching practices.

Early fieldwork placements in urban schools allow you to gain experience working with diverse student populations, including English learners and students with special learning needs.

Prepare to teach middle or high school with the California Secondary Teacher Preparation Program.

Major in the subject you plan to teach, such as English, mathematics, science, music or Spanish while you simultaneously prepare for a California Single Subject teaching credential. 

This pathway helps you transform subject-area expertise into engaging classroom instruction. Through fieldwork, supervised teaching and coursework grounded in the California Standards for Teaching Profession, you’ll learn how to: 

  • Design effective lesson plans
  • Support diverse learners
  • Build inclusive classroom environments
  • Teach with confidence in urban school settings
  • Use reflective teaching practices to improve student outcomes

Teaching credentials

Adding teaching credentials to your pathway helps better prepare you for the classroom setting. Choose the pathway and credential combination that best aligns with your career goals.

  • Multiple Subject Credential: prepare to teach multiple subjects in elementary school classrooms (K–6).
  • Single Subject Credential: prepare to teach a specific academic discipline, such as English, mathematics, science, music or Spanish, at the middle or high school level.
  • Mild/Moderate Disabilities Credential: develop the knowledge and instructional strategies to support students with mild to moderate disabilities in inclusive and specialized educational settings.
  • Deaf and Hard of Hearing Credential: gain specialized preparation to teach Deaf and Hard of Hearing students using effective communication methods and evidence-based instructional practices.