Skip to main content

Physical therapy is a second career for me. I hold a Master of Arts in Teaching, and I worked as a teacher for eight years before pursuing my DPT.

Just as physical therapy school includes clinicals, my education to become a teacher involved an experiential component: student teaching.

The whole idea behind student teaching is that knowing the theories and having the knowledge is far from the experience of standing in front of 28 kids and guiding them through a curriculum. And that's certainly what I experienced: starting student teaching felt a bit like stepping off a cliff. As I considered putting my knowledge into practice, I realized just how little I really knew. Thankfully, I had a wonderful mentor teacher, and I gained a lot of skills and confidence.

And now I'm about to head out on my first full-time clinical education experience this summer.

Here we go again!

Log in or create a free account to keep reading.


Join APTA to get unlimited access to content.


You Might Also Like...

Website

APTA Guide to Physical Therapist Practice

Feb 9, 2023

The Guide is the description of physical therapist practice for use by PT and PTA educators, students, and clinicians.

Article

Student Special Interest Groups (SIGs)

Jan 19, 2023

Some APTA chapters and section have student special interest groups to increase involvement.

Open Access

APTA National Advocacy Dinners

Jan 6, 2023

Connect with other students and leaders in the profession and learn about advocacy issues impacting your profession.