General Catalog 2023-2024

Secondary Education in Biology (BA)

The Bachelor of Arts Program in Secondary Education with a major in the Teaching of Biology rests on the fundamental principles of the development of the human being able to think, to analyze critically and to evaluate the learning processes. This Program has as its standards the foundation, theories and methodologies, relevant to the teaching of chemistry in the classroom. This will permit graduates to apply in the classroom the content (knowledge, skills and attitudes), the methodology (strategies, methods and techniques) and the learning evaluation methods, learned during their study program.

It will use the appropriate curricular structure and will be governed by the standards of excellence applicable to the study of biology.

The Aguadilla, Arecibo, Barranquitas, and San Germán campuses are authorized to offer this program.

Competencies Profile of Graduates

The Program aims to provide the theoretical and practical base for future biology teachers. This implies that they possess:

Knowledge

  1. The theory, methodology and application of the curricular structure.
  2. The usefulness of the scientific method in understanding natural phenomena in relation to living beings.
  3. The fundamental and developing concepts that make up biological sciences.
  4. Evaluation and assessment in the classroom.
  5. The historical and philosophical frame of education.
  6. The different stages of development of the human being and how they affect the capacity to learn.

Skills

  1. The use of technology and scientific instrumentation for the comprehension, analysis, synthesis and evaluation of natural phenomena.
  2. The interpretation and analysis of scientific information.
  3. Communication within the scientific frame.
  4. The use of the investigation process in the classroom.
  5. The design and evaluation of curriculum and how this act in response to the education of a society.
  6. The use of technology in the field of the education.

Attitudes

  1. Strengthening ethical aspects in biology.
  2. Promoting respect and appreciation for nature.
  3. Promoting favorable changes in society through solutions or alternatives that improve the quality of biology teaching.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Secondary Education in Biology

General Education Requirements 51 credits
Core Course Requirements 41 credits
Major Requirements 48 credits
Elective Courses 3 credits
Total 143 credits

General Education Requirements - 51 credits

Fifty-one (51) credits are required in General Education for this Program. In addition to GEHS 2010, students will take GEHS 4020 and 4030 in the Historic and Social Context category. Students will take courses GEPE 4040 and GEPE 3010 or 3020 to fulfill the six credits required in the Philosophical and Esthetic Thought category. They will take the course GEST 2030 in the Scientific and Technological Context category. Students will take the course GEMA 1200 in the Basic Skills in Mathematics category.

Core Course Requirements - 41 credits

EDUC 1080Field Experiences in The Educational Scenario I

1

EDUC 2021History and Philosophy of Education

3

EDUC 2022Society and Education

3

EDUC 2031Developmental Psychology

3

EDUC 2032Learning Psychology

3

EDUC 2060Integration of Technology in Education

2

EDUC 2870The Exceptional Student Population

4

EDUC 2890Field Experiences in The Educational Scenarios Ii

2

EDUC 3013Teaching Strategies

2

EDUC 3015Clinical Experiences in The Educational Scenario I

2

EDUC 4011Evaluation and Assessment

3

EDUC 4012Classroom Research

2

EDUC 4013Clinical Experiences in the Educational Scenario II

4

EDUC 4050Curriculum Design

2

EDUC 4551Integration of Basic Knowledge and Communication Skills

1

EDUC 4552Integration of Professional Skills

1

HIST 3010Historical Process of the United States of America

3

Major Requirements - 48 credits

BIOL 1101General Biology I

3

BIOL 1102General Biology II

3

BIOL 1103Biology Skills Laboratory I

1

BIOL 1104Biology Skills Laboratory II

1

BIOL 2103Zoology

3

BIOL 2104Botany

3

BIOL 3010Genetics

3

BIOL 3106Human Anatomy and Physiology

4

BIOL 3503Ecology

3

EDUC 3863Instructional Theory, Methodology and Technological Resources in the Teaching of Biology

3

CHEM 1111General Chemistry I

4

CHEM 2212General Chemistry II

4

MATH 1500Precalculus

5

PHYS 3001General Physics I

4

PHYS 3002General Physics II

4

If, in addition to their certification as Biology teachers, students wish to be certified as Junior High School Science teachers, they must take course EDUC 3864 (Instructional Theories, Methodology, and Technological Resources in the Teaching of Science in the Junior High School) in addition the 42 credits of the core requirements.