Oct 09, 2024  
Undergraduate Catalog 2024-2025 
    
Undergraduate Catalog 2024-2025

Education, Early and Primary Teacher, BS


For more information about the Education department, visit its website


Teacher Candidacy Screening


All teacher candidacy requirements are completed using Taskstream. The following outline presents criteria for the teacher candidacy programs.

  1. Verification of at least 48 semester hours in order to meet PDE chapter 354.23 regulations.
  2. Verification of at least 3.00 GPA overall and the grade of “C” or above in education and teaching area courses taken by the time of application.
  3. Clearances: Valid PA Criminal Record Check (Act 34), PA Child Abuse Clearance (Act 151), and Federal Criminal History Record Information - FBI Fingerprinting (Act 114) indicating “no record,” as well as the Arrest/Conviction Report and Certification Form (Act 24) and TB test results.  Any citation on the Act 34, act 151 or Act 114 will result in unsuccessful screening.
  4. Passing scores on the PAPA examinations (Reading, Writing, Mathematics) or Praxis I Core Exam or ACT or SAT examinations. The Education Department will inform the candidates about the examination requirements per updates from Pennsylvania Department of Education.
  5. Satisfactory completion of a candidacy interview process as designed and implemented by the Education Department.
  6. Completed positive recommendations from two (preferably, full-time) instructors in the Education Department with whom you have taken courses.  (It is the student’s responsibility to obtain the recommendation from each instructor.)

More specific criteria for teacher candidacy for each program is shown below.  More information is provided by the Undergraduate Program Director at scheduled meetings each semester that students are encouraged to attend.

Teacher Candidacy Requirements:


Student Teaching Requirements


“The culminating experience in the Teacher Education Program is student teaching. To apply for student teaching, the student will have: 

  • completed or be currently enrolled in all major courses required to be completed prior to student teaching (as noted on specific program guides),  
  • earned a grade of “C” or better in major courses completed prior to student teaching,  
  • earned a grade of “C” or better in teaching area courses completed prior to student teaching, 
  • obtained an overall GPA of 3.00. 

(All major courses must be completed prior to student teaching as noted in specific program guides; not all teaching area courses must be completed before student teaching.)

Students must demonstrate that these requirements are still met at the end of the fall or spring semester of application to student teach.”  

Early and Primary Education Program Curriculum


  Department and Number Descriptive Title of Course Fall Cr. Spr. Cr.

 First Year

   
 MAJOR  EDUC 144 - Foundations of American Education   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 142 - (D, S) Exceptional Lives   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 222 - (S, EPW) Educational Psychology, PreK-4     3
 COGNATE  MATH 102 - (Q) Fundamentals of Numerical Mathematics   3  
 COGNATE  MATH 105 - (Q) Fundamentals of Geometric Mathematics     3
 COGNATE  WRTG 107 - (FYW) Composition   3  
 GE EP  EP ELECT - Eloquentia Perfecta1   3
 GE S/BH  PSYC 110 - (S) Fundamentals of Psychology   3  
 GE T/RS  T/RS 121 - (P) Theology I: Introduction to the Bible     3
 COGNATE (GE HUMN)   HIST 110 - (CH) History of the United States to 1877  or HIST 111 - (CH) History of the United States from Reconstruction to the Present     3
 GE FSEM  First Year Seminar2    
                                         15 15

Second Year

   
 MAJOR  EDUC 250 - Early Development and Intervention   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 240 - Early Language and Literacy - Birth to Age 5   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 241 - Foundations of Literacy Development I     3
 MAJOR  EDUC 256 - (D) Family, School & Community Relations in a Diverse Society     3
 MAJOR  EDUC 252 - Assessment & Evaluation in Early & Primary Education     3
 MAJOR  EDUC 242 - Math for PreK-1   3  
 COGNATE  PS 120 - (S) U.S. Politics: Principles & Citizenship  or PS 121 - (S) U.S. Politics: Institutions & Policy  or PS 135 - (S) State and Local Government     3
 COGNATE  (CL) ENLT requirement - ENLT 100 Level 3  
 GE T/RS  T/RS 122 - (P) Theology II: Introduction to Christian Theology   3  
 COGNATE  (E) NSCI ELECT - Natural Science Elective3   3
    15 15

Third Year

   
 MAJOR  EDUC 363 - (EPW) Foundations of Literacy Development II   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 359 - (D) Introduction to English Language Learning   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 358 - Reading to Learn with Trade Books & Texts     3
 MAJOR  EDUC 346 - (D) Social Studies for PreK-4     3
 MAJOR  EDUC 344 - Integrated Science and Technology, Pre K-4   3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 339 - Math for Grades 2-4     3
 MAJOR  EDUC 357 - Integrated Methods Across Curriculum     3
 GE ELECT  FREE ELECT - Free Elective4 3  
 GE PHIL  PHIL 120 - Introduction to Philosophy   3  
 COGNATE (GE NSCI)  PHYS 102 - (E) Earth Science  or Upper-level PHYS course 3  
 GE PHIL  PHIL 210 - Ethics     3
    18 15

Fourth Year

                 
 GE HUMN  HUMN ELECT - Humanities Elective5 3  
 COGNATE (GE ELECT)  ECO 410 - Economic Concepts and Applications   3  
 GE HUMN  HUMN ELECT - Humanities Elective 3  
 GE T/RS-PHIL  T/RS - PHIL ELECT - Theology or Philosophy Elective 3  
 COGNATE (GE ELECT)  GEOG 134 - (S) World Regional Geography   3  
 FREE ELECT  FREE ELECT - Free Elective 3  
 MAJOR  EDUC 445 - Professional Practice Seminar, PreK-4 6   3
 MAJOR  EDUC 456 - Planning in Early/Primary (PreK-4) Student Teaching EDUC 457 - Instruction in Early/Primary (PreK-4) Student Teaching , EDUC 458 - Managing Classrooms in Early/Primary (PreK-4) Student Teaching EDUC 459 - Professional Growth in Early/Primary (PreK-4) Student Teaching                    10
                                          18 13
 

Total: 124 Credits

1This course must meet the FYOC and FYDT designations for Eloquentia Perfecta.

2The selection of a First Year Seminar is likely to fulfill requirements both for the First Year Seminar and a General Education Requirement.  Thus, the First Year Seminar will not add to the total credits for the semester.  Talk with your advisor if you have any questions.

3 Courses for NSCI Elective: BIOL 101 , NUTR 110  or any BIOL or CHEM courses.

4 Students admitted to Accelerated Special Education Program will take a graduate level course towards their graduate degree as a free elective.

5Humanities Electives: Students must earn 6 credits in one humanities field: world language (CF), history (CH) or literature (CL). The remaining 6 credits must come from the other humanities fields, with no more than 3 credits coming from the fine arts (CA).

6Students may complete student-teaching in the fall semester if the requirements for student-teaching are met at the beginning of the fall semester.