Early Childhood and Elementary Education, B.A.
The Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood and Elementary Education provides undergraduate students with a solid foundation in child development, methods of teaching and significant concepts in early childhood and elementary education necessary for supporting the education of students ages birth to grade 6. Students who pursue this major are interested in working in a classroom setting with children, typically preschool aged to 6th grade. Topics in this major include best practices in curriculum, a variety of assessment techniques, culturally relevant pedagogy, methods of teaching in literacy, math, science and social studies, equity-informed practice, and other relevant topics in early childhood and elementary education.
Successful completion of the program enables students in Illinois to apply for a Professional Educator License, endorsed for early childhood (B-2) and elementary education (1-6). Students may also obtain an additional endorsement in either ESL/Bilingual or Special Education upon completion of the associated concentrations.
Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs):
At the completion of the Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood and Elementary Education program, students will be able to:
PLO 1. Use knowledge of self, students, curriculum content and effective instruction to develop appropriate learning outcomes and design activities to meet diverse learner needs including students with special needs and diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds;
PLO 2. Develop a variety of assessments and explain how they will use them to anticipate varied ways students might perform, make accommodations, monitor student progress, and adjust and evaluate instruction;
PLO 3. Demonstrate respectful and responsive interactions with students that motivate, support, and advance students’ development and learning;
PLO 4. Establish a culture of appropriately high expectations for student learning and behavior and design a classroom environment that supports all students to be successful;
PLO 5. Persist in their efforts to engage all students in content learning through effective instructional discourse, use of appropriate technologies, ongoing performance monitoring, flexibility, and adaptability to support students’ behavior and advance their learning;
PLO 6. Use knowledge of human development and learning to interpret a variety of assessments to inform their instruction and provide meaningful feedback;
PLO 7. Use feedback from a variety of stakeholders to develop meaningful professional learning goals and identify appropriate professional activities to continuously improve their practice; and
PLO 8. Demonstrate the capacity to collaborate effectively and ethically with colleagues, families, and community members to promote positive and inclusive learning for all students.
Admissions Requirements:
Admission to the Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood and Elementary Education program is a two-step process. In the first step, students are admitted to National Louis University with a preliminary status in the Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood and Elementary Education program. In the second step, students must be admitted to the licensure program which updates the admission to full status in the Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. Students must be admitted to the licensure program before beginning their Early Childhood and Elementary Education Student Teaching course (ECE/ELE 470).
Full Admission requirements for students beginning Early Childhood and Elementary Education Major courses:
- Successful completion of EDU 200, EDU 210, EDU 290, and EDU 299 with a grade of "C" or better
- Achieve a GPA of 2.5 or better on all previous coursework, with a grade of "C" or better in all courses
- Creation of account in the Educator Licensure Information System (ELIS)
Program Details:
- Requires 180 QH including 75 QH of General Education for completion
- Requires completion of all courses in the program with a grade of "C" or better, with the exception of ECE/ELE 470, which must be completed with a grade of "B" or better
- Requires completion of the following courses at NLU: EDU 305, EDU 420, EDU 477, EDU 480, EDU 483, EAL 312, SPE 435, ECE 470 and ELE 470
- Requires completion of field hours built into courses across the entire program. They are mapped to the following Credentials and Endorsements listed below. As such, candidates will be required to complete field hours in at least two of the ECE grade/age range bands (birth to age 3, Pre-K and/or K-2nd grade) and at least one experience in 3rd – 6th grade. Student teaching placements are dependent upon the candidate’s previous field experiences. Credentials and Endorsements that ECL graduates may be eligible for (dependent upon concentrations chosen) are as follows:
- Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) Early Childhood Education Endorsement.
- Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) Elementary Education Endorsement.
- ISBE ESL/Bilingual Endorsement (for students who choose to pursue the ESL/Bilingual Concentration, a state exam is required for the bilingual endorsement).
- ISBE ECE Special Education Approval (for students who choose to pursue a Special Education Concentration)
- ISBE Learning Behavior Specialist 1 (LBS1) Endorsement (for students who choose to pursue the Special Education Concentration and pass the LBS1 Content test).
- Illinois Gateways to Opportunity Level 5 ECE Credential.
- Requires completion of coursework that addresses the following:
- At least three areas of sciences:
- Life Science (e.g. Biology, Botany, Ecology, Infectious Diseases, Human Physiology, Genetics, Biochemistry, Zoology, Environmental Science)
- Physical Science (e.g. Chemistry, Physics)
- Earth and Space (e.g. Geology, Oceanography, Meteorology, Astronomy, Environmental, Ecology)
- At least four areas of the social sciences:
- History
- Cultural Geography
- Civics and Government
- Economics
- Demonstrate a 2.5 GPA or greater on a 4.0 scale prior to EDU 305 and a 2.75 GPA or greater on a 4.0 scale prior to beginning methods coursework
- Credit for Prior Learning may be accepted for EDU 210 and EDU 305
- Candidates may complete one of the concentrations listed below:
- ESL/Bilingual Education
- Special Education
Required Courses
General Education Requirements
Communications
| ENG 101 | Beginning English Composition | 5 |
| ENG 201 | Intermediate English | 5 |
| ENG 203 | Effective Speaking for the Undergraduate | 5 |
Note: Students transferring credit from other institutions or applying coursework previously completed at NLU may use any three general education courses in the following disciplines: academic writing, oral communications, and any course that satisfies the area of communications.
Humanities and Fine Arts
| ART 105 | Race, Identity and Experience in American Art | 5 |
| HIS 103 | History Across the Globe | 5 |
Note: Students transferring credit from other institutions or applying coursework previously completed at NLU may use any two general education courses in the following disciplines (as long as Gen Ed licensure requirements are completed with another coursework):
- Humanities: foreign language, history, literature, philosophy, religious studies, interdisciplinary humanities and fine arts, interdisciplinary humanities and social sciences
- Fine Arts: visual arts (including art history, art appreciation, and studio arts, such as drawing, painting, digital art, or film), film and cinema studies, and performing arts (including music appreciation, music theory, and music performance, theatre appreciation and performance, and dance)
Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Note: Students transferring credit from other institutions or applying coursework previously completed at NLU may use courses in the following three general education disciplines:
- Mathematics: college-level and not developmental in nature
- Physical Science: coursework which covers physical science as long as both chemistry or physics and earth/space science is fulfilled
- Life Science: coursework that covers life science
Social and Behavioral Sciences
| HIS 102 | Civics and American Government | 5 |
| PSY 101 | Introduction to Psychology | 5 |
Note: Students transferring credit from other institutions or applying coursework previously completed at NLU may use any two general education courses in the area of Social and Behavioral Sciences as long as the following licensure requirements are met: History, Cultural Geography, Civics and Government, and Economics.
Additional Program Specific General Education Requirements
| CAR 214 | Creating and Communicating the Professional Brand | 5 |
| | and | |
| GEN 103 | Student Success Seminar | 5 |
| | or | |
| GEN 203 | NLU & You: Tools & Strategies for Student Success | 3 |
| | and | |
| EDU 200 | Applied Educational Psychology | 5 |
| EDU 220 | Children’s Literature for Educators | 5 |
| MTH 115 | Math for Educators II | 5 |
Note: GEN 103 is required for the first-time freshman students only. Students transferring in less than 90 QH are required to complete GEN 203.
Career Development Requirements
First-time Daytime Students - 5 QH
| CAR 214 | Creating and Communicating the Professional Brand | 5 |
| | or | |
| BRV 200 | Braven Leadership and Career Accelerator | 5 |
Transfer Students - 5 QH
| BRV 200 | Braven Leadership and Career Accelerator | 5 |
| | or | |
| CAR 214 | Creating and Communicating the Professional Brand | 5 |
| | or | |
| CAR 202 | Creating Professional Identity | 0 TO 2 |
| | and | |
| CAR 203 | You The Professional | 3 |
Educator Preparation Core - 35 QH
| EAL 300 | Educational Foundations for Learning English as an Additional Language | 5 |
| EAL 331 | Cross Cultural Studies for Working with English Language Learners | 5 |
| ECE 334 | Language and Early Literacy Development | 5 |
| EDU 210 | Educational Philosophy- A Historical Account | 5 |
| EDU 290 | Professionalism and Ethical Engagement with Children, Families and the Community | 5 |
| EDU 299 | Practicum I Child Development | 5 |
| EDU 305 | Equity in Education | 5 |
Early Childhood and Elementary Education Major - 60 QH
| EAL 312 | Linguistic Considerations for Learning to Read in a New Language | 5 |
| ECE 324 | Integrated Preprimary Methodology in Early Childhood Education | 5 |
| EDU 350 | Teacher Preparation Curriculum and Assessment | 5 |
| EDU 420 | Practicum II: Professional Practices and Classroom Contexts | 5 |
| EDU 477 | Literacy Teaching Methods | 5 |
| EDU 480 | Methods of Teaching Mathematics | 5 |
| EDU 483 | Inquiry Based Teaching Methods: Science and Social Studies | 5 |
| SPE 300 | Introduction to Special Education and Methods of Teaching Students with Disabilities | 5 |
| SPE 435 | Autism-Spectrum Disorders and Characteristics of Children With Disabilities | 5 |
| STEM 300 | Inquiry and Thinking in STEM for Teachers | 5 |
| | and | |
| ECE 470 | Early Childhood Education: Student Teaching | 10 TO 14 |
| | or | |
| ELE 470 | Elementary Education: Student Teaching | 10 |
Note:
ECE 470 must be taken for 10 QH.
ESL/ Bilingual Education Concentration - 15 QH
| EAL 305 | Methods and Materials for Teaching English as a Second Language | 5 |
| EAL 306 | Methods and Materials for Teaching Bilingual Education | 5 |
| EAL 310 | Assessing Students Learning English as an Additional Language | 5 |
Special Education Concentration - 15 QH
| SPE 432 | Methods of Teaching Young Children with Special Needs | 5 |
| SPE 433 | Screening & Assessment of Young Children with Special Needs | 5 |
| SPE 434 | Teaming, Collaborating, Communicating: Resources for Families in Special Education Settings | 5 |
Early Childhood and Elementary Education Student Teaching Enrollment Requirements
Admission to and continuance in student teaching are contingent on the following actions.
Candidates must:
- Be accepted into the Undergraduate College of Education Licensure Program (see above).
- File, by the designated deadline, the application form for student teaching.
- Submit to the Undergraduate Office of Field Experience a report of a TB test taken within 90 days of the student teaching placement, results of criminal background check and acknowledgement of Mandated Reporter status form.
- Pass the Early Childhood Education and/or Elementary Education Content Area Tests prior to EDU 420, per ISBE requirements. Students may move forward with EDU 420 with only one test passed but will not be able to earn the second endorsement until the second test is passed.
- Complete all of the licensure courses except for ECE/ELE 470 (Student Teaching) with a grade of "C" or better.
- Successfully complete necessary program assessments, including the professional disposition assessment.
Graduation and Licensure Requirements:
Completion of the degree requires the following be met:
- All courses leading to licensure must have a grade of "C" or better, except for ECE/ELE 470: Student Teaching.
- Pass ECE/ELE 470: Student Teaching with a "B" or better.
- Have an overall program GPA of 3.0.
- Achieve a satisfactory rating on all field assessments during student teaching demonstrating knowledge, skills and dispositions to teach the early childhood and elementary grades.
Completion of the Professional Educator License, awarded by ISBE, requires the above, as well as the following:
- Earn a passing score on the appropriate content test.
- Earn a passing score on the edTPA.