How To Find the Best Colleges for Teaching Degrees

By Elizabeth West (BA 26)

Are you an aspiring teacher with a passion for training the next generation? Finding the right education program will equip you for the classroom and a lifelong career positively impacting children. 

The question is, how do you find the best colleges for teaching degrees? We’ve compiled a list of five things to look for when choosing a teaching preparation program, from college class necessities to preparation for your own classroom in the future.

As you look for the best colleges for teaching degrees, the first thing to consider is the classroom instruction offered at the college. It is essential to learn how to write a lesson plan and understand the psyche of an elementary student in order to be a good teacher. So, how do you evaluate whether or not an education school provides a quality program to teach you these skills?

One way to determine whether a program is strong is to learn about the professors and get to know them on your college visits. Do your research and take any opportunity you can to sit in on a class and experience it for yourself. Another way to determine if a college’s classroom is effective is by looking at a program’s accreditation. If you’re looking for a highly regarded education program, look no further than Grace. 

 Grace College’s School of Education:

• Is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).
• Earned an A+ for the science of reading preparation from the National Council of Teacher Quality (NCTQ).
• Received 100% “strong” ratings from Teacher Preparation Inspection (TPI-US) across all three review areas. 
• Received the 2023 Frank Murray Leadership Recognition from CAEP for continuous improvement. 

A TPI-US co-founder called our program among the best in the nation, and schools agree: There’s a 100% principal satisfaction rate for our Grace graduates. Our students also appreciate the quality education they receive at Grace:

“Grace’s education classes provide hands-on, practical experiences to prepare us for the classroom as future educators,” said Hattie Brisco, a senior in English education. “We learn evidence-based practices and the skills we need to put them into action.”

While four years at college may be the perfect pace for you, Grace also offers a three-year program that includes a semester of student teaching, making us one of the best colleges for teaching degrees. An accelerated degree is perfect for those looking to save time, money, and build time management skills for the workforce or graduate school. 

At Grace, you’ll also find a strong Christian community to support you. Your classes will teach you how to integrate your faith into your work. Want to see for yourself? Come visit Grace and spend the night in a dorm, sit in a classroom, go to chapel, and eat at the dining hall!

Whether you plan on teaching locally or on the other side of the world after graduation, connecting with the kids in your college town will prepare you for your career and help you build meaningful relationships each year. As you search for the right education school, ask yourself, what community connections does the school have?

Student-teaching should be a major factor when you’re considering education programs. Grace provides opportunities and class requirements for you to teach in local schools as soon as the first semester of your college experience. By graduation, you’ll have completed over 150+ hours of classroom experience.

Meet some of the Grace College students who have recently been awarded for their excellence in student teaching: 

• Claire Thomas student-taught at Washington STEM Academy in a first-grade classroom. She came from generations of educators, and says her time at Grace taught her how to make teaching a ministry, intertwining principles of character, competence and service to help form her into a well-rounded teacher.
• Breah Liles, who always wanted to be a teacher, majored in our Teaching All Learners program. She split her time between a general education placement at Lincoln Elementary and a special education placement at Madison Elementary. “Grace’s education program was without a doubt one of the biggest blessings of my whole college experience,” said Liles. “Each professor and staff member poured into both my personal and academic life.”

These are just two of many successful students in Grace’s education program. Read our blog to learn more about them and others!

Special Education is an important part of any education department. Whether you want to be a Special-Ed teacher or not, understanding how to work with all kinds of students is an essential part of your training.

Dr. Cheryl Bremer, dean of the school of education, shares that students who are interested in special education should have strong reasons to pursue this focus. 

“When you work in special education, you really need to have a ‘why,’ because there are a lot of reasons why special education has the highest teaching shortage,” said Bremer. “It is a demanding role, and the calling has to come from a deeper place. It’s not that teachers are ‘special’ or that they have more patience than others – for me, it has everything to do with what God put in my heart.”

Grace’s special education program is joined with elementary education training, according to Bremer, so when a student is licensed in special education, they are also highly qualified in elementary education and have a dual license, with 90–100 percent passing scores the first time they take the license test. 

Most importantly, Bremer believes that special education must start by recognizing the principle of Imago Dei. 

“Before we teach anyone, we have to understand what it means to be made in God’s image,” said Bremer. “The journey has to begin with ourselves and what our identity in Christ looks like  as image bearers, because otherwise we won’t recognize the image of God in others.”

To learn more about special education, explore Grace’s Teaching All Learners program. 

The best colleges for teaching degrees will give you a strong advantage when looking for a job after college. After all, if a college has everything else on the list but fails to lead to a career, what is the point? When you’re looking for colleges, pay attention to the career connections and job placement statistics in your department. When you’re visiting, ask the advisors, professors, and current students about how the college is setting them up for post-grad success.

Our students enjoy one of the best undergraduate education programs in the country, and those benefits don’t stop at graduation; they continue in their career placements as well. If you want to learn about Grace alumni who are already in their dream education careers, read Brandon Kleber’s story. He recommends Grace’s hands-on program, which led to his current position as a kindergarten teacher at Jefferson Elementary. 

At Grace, we make a point of being intentional with our career connections. Every class, every program, and every day of student teaching will push you toward the goals you have and the future God has prepared for you.

When you’re narrowing down your list of the best colleges for teaching degrees, explore, research, and visit your options to find the education school that fits you the best. And if you’re still stuck, look for unique opportunities, such as assisting after-school clubs (like Baker Youth Club in Warsaw), tutoring in Grace’s Center for Literacy & Learning, or even studying abroad in places like Thailand or Ghana! You might also be interested in the School of Education Go Encounter Trip to New Mexico, which incorporates education into ministry on a Native American reservation. Students live in the dorms on the reservation for 10 days and get to interact with local kids, build confidence in teaching, and share the love of Jesus at the same time. 

To get in contact with one of our education department professors and learn more, contact our School of Education. Learn more about one of the nation’s best undergraduate education programs today!