About the Program
Accredited: Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) (formerly NCATE)
Enrollment in all teacher education programs follows the guidelines for "Admission to Teacher Education Programs" found in this catalog. Applicants who do not yet meet all admissions criteria should consult with the department.
Student Teaching
The program is clinically-rich with carefully designed field experiences that culminate in one full semester of student teaching. The culminating courses for the early childhood education majors may vary, but usually include two supervised student teaching experiences with children at different age levels in different types of schools. Eligibility and placement for each student teaching experience is determined by the department office in cooperation with public schools in the greater Buffalo area. It is expected that students in these majors will have at least one urban teaching experience.
Successful Graduates will be recommended for New York State Initial Certification to teach children from birth through grade 2 (early childhood, ECE).
Transfer Students
Most courses taken at an accredited institution and relevant to a Buffalo State degree program will be accepted, but the majority of professional sequence courses applied to the early childhood education major must be courses completed at Buffalo State. Grades for transfer courses are generally used in computing the required 3.0 cumulative GPA for admission to the major. Students planning to transfer as juniors into the early childhood programs and wishing to complete their programs in four semesters must seek advisement at the institution in which they initially enrolled to assure that the prerequisite course equivalencies are met.
Candidates should consult the Teacher Certification website for current seminars and workshops.
About the Elementary Ed, Literacy, Ed Ldrsp Department
302 Bacon Hall
1300 Elmwood Ave
Buffalo, NY 14222
Phone: (716) 878-5916
Fax: (716) 878-6033
https://elementaryeducation.buffalostate.edu/
Admission Requirements
To be considered for admission to the early childhood education major(ECE), students must have an 85% High School average or a cumulative GPA of 3.0, as well as submitted ACT or SAT scores as part of the application process.
For student currently enrolled at Buffalo State, an acceptable application to the department includes evidence that the above requirements have been met. Applications to ECE are available in Bacon 302. Acceptance into the department enables students to proceed through the curricular courses of their selected major.
Early Childhood education majors must complete one year of college-level study of one language other than English. Typically, two years of high school study of one language is equivalent to one year of college-level work. Early childhood education majors must also complete a distribution requirement of at least 6 credit hours in each of the following areas: mathematics, science, social studies, and English (not including CWP 101 and CWP 102).
Many of the courses in our professional sequence are taught in authentic settings for clinically-rich mentored experiences. As a result, the teacher candidates will have observation, tutoring, and teaching experiences in a variety of placements in our Professional Development Schools Consortium. Early childhood education majors are required to complete a 30-credit hour academic concentration in addition to the professional program requirements; the concentration seeks to broaden students’ academic backgrounds. Descriptions of the approved concentrations can be found in the Elementary Education Department Handbook for Majors, available on the department website, or from the department office. Currently, the concentration may be chosen from: American studies, English, Liberal Arts, foreign language, mathematics, science, social studies or urban studies.
Program Requirements
General Education 23 Requirements
30 credit hours 1 30
Concentration Requirements
30 credit hours 30
Distribution Courses Beyond IF
9 credit hours 9
Education Major Requirements (54 credit hours)
SPF 202 CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND EDUCATION 3
EDU 201 INTRODUCTION TO EDUCATION 3
SPF 302 EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY: ELEMENTARY EDUCATION 3
EDU 211 INTRODUCTION TO LITERACY 3
EDU 220 PROGRAMS FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS 3
EDU 311 THE TEACHING OF READING AND THE OTHER LANGUAGE ARTS IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 6
EDU 329 INTEGRATED THEMATIC INSTRUCTION FOR YOUNG CHILDREN 6
EDU 326 EARLY LITERACY AND LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT 3
EXE 362 BEHAVIOR AND CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT 3
EXE 371 FOUNDATIONS OF TEACHING CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES 3
EDU 375 INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION 3
EDU 400 PRACTICUM IN ELEMENTARY TEACHING I 6
EDU 402 SEMINAR IN EDUCATION 1-3
EDU 410 PRACTICUM IN EARLY CHILDHOOD TEACHING 6
EDU 411 PARENTS, SCHOOLS, AND COMMUNITY 3
Total Credit Hours 120
1 Up to 6 general education (IF 14) courses (math/quantitative reasoning, American Civilization, Western Civilization, Non-western Civilizations, Humanities, Natural Science, Global and Diversity) may overlap with required courses in the major which could reduce the total number of credit hours required. Advisement is strongly encouraged.
The total number of required hours will vary with course selection. Students should refer to the Elementary Education Department Handbook and an academic adviser for more detailed information.
Professional Licensure Disclosure
New York State prides itself in the high quality of its licensed and certified professionals. For the protection of its citizens, each license and certificate has requirements that individuals must meet in order to be licensed or certified in New York State. SUNY’s academic programs leading to licensure or certification are carefully designed to meet and exceed these State requirements. This is a role SUNY plays in protecting the public. Other states frequently have their own requirements, so if your goal is to practice in another state, this disclosure will help you check to see what that state requires.
Enrolled students and prospective students are strongly encouraged to contact their State’s licensure entity using the links provided in the full disclosure document to review all licensure and certification requirements imposed by their state(s) of choice.