Early Care and Early Childhood, (Teacher Certification), Bachelor of Science

This program leads to a profession which requires an occupational license as defined under Texas Occupations Code 58.001 This requires that all applicants seeking to become licensed must undergo a criminal background check prior to licensure. Students in this program should check with the College of Education and P-16 Integration on the requirements for a criminal background check prior to student teaching.

To prepare highly skilled professionals to assume roles and positions in teaching, research, educational leadership, and human development to contribute to the educational achievement of all young children ages birth - 8 years in early childhood settings.

Core Curriculum Requirements – 42 Hours

The Core Curriculum serves as a broad foundation for the undergraduate degree. All candidates for a bachelor’s degree must achieve core student learning outcomes, including communication, critical thinking, empirical and quantitative skills, teamwork, personal responsibility and social responsibility, by completing courses within each category or component area of the Core Curriculum as outlined below.

The University has approved specific courses that satisfy Core Curriculum Requirements. Approved courses can be found on the Core Curriculum Page. Students seeking the most efficient way to complete the core curriculum and major or minor requirements are advised to take approved courses that can fulfill both requirements. Although core curriculum courses can also be used to fulfill major or minor requirements, earned credits hours are only applied once. The courses listed below fulfill core curriculum and major requirements. Students who have completed a core curriculum category with courses other than those listed below will still be required to take the listed course(s) to meet major requirements.

020 Mathematics – 3 hours

MATH 1314College Algebra

3

030 Life and Physical Sciences - 6 hours

Choose from:
ASTR 1401Introduction to Astronomy I

4

ASTR 1402Introduction to Astronomy II

4

BIOL 1406General Biology I

4

BIOL 1407General Biology II

4

BIOL 2401Anatomy and Physiology I

4

BIOL 2402Anatomy and Physiology II

4

 

CHEM 1311General Chemistry I

3

Or

CHEM 1309Chemistry for Engineers

3

 

CHEM 1312General Chemistry II

3

ENVR 1401Introduction to Environmental Science I

4

ENVR 1402Introduction to Environmental Science II

4

GEOL 1403Physical Geology

4

GEOL 1404Historical Geology

4

PHYS 1401General Physics I

4

PHYS 1402General Physics II

4

PHYS 2425Physics for Scientists and Engineers I

4

PHYS 2426Physics for Scientists and Engineers II

4

Students may choose any 6 hours except PSCI 1421 - Physical Science I & PSCI 1422 - Physical Science II.

Major Requirements - 77 hours

Required Courses - 53 hours

Academic Content - 29 hours

READ 3320Early Literacy Development

3

READ 3324Reading Comprehension and Assessment

3

HIST 3333Texas History

3

PSCI 1421Physical Science I

4

PSCI 1422Physical Science II

4

MATH 1350Fundamentals of Mathematics I

3

MATH 1351Fundamentals of Mathematics II

3

EDSL 3310Emergent Bilingual Students in Schools

3

SPED 4310Inclusion and Differentiated Instruction in Special Education

3

Must apply for admission and be accepted to the College of Education and P-16 Integration for EDSL 3310 and SPED 4310.  
 

Early Care and Early Childhood Studies Specialization - 24 hours

ECED 4391Foundations of Early Childhood Education

3

ECED 4392Guidance of Young Children

3

ECED 4314Dynamics of Play and Play Environments in Childhood

3

ECED 4315Linguistically-Diverse Early Childhood Students

3

ECED 4394Principles of Curriculum Design in Early Childhood

3

ECED 4395Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math for Young Children

3

ECED 4312Administration of Child Development Centers

3

ECED 3310Quality Programs for Infants & Toddlers

3

Teacher Certification - 24 Hours

Required

EDCI 3331/EPSY 3331Human Development and Student Learning

3

EDCI 3332Designing and Implementing Instruction and Assessment

3

EDCI 3333Teaching Science to Elementary Students

3

EDCI 3334Teaching Mathematics to Elementary Students

3

EDCI 3335Teaching Social Studies to Elementary Students

3

EDCI 3336Teaching English Language Arts and Reading to Elementary Students

3

EDCI 4637Student Teaching for Elementary Teachers (EC-6)

6

Free Electives – 1 Hour

Free elective credit hours at the advanced level may be needed to achieve the institutional minimum of 42 advanced hours. 
 

Total Credit Hours: 42

Total Credit Hours: 120

Major Admissions Requirements

Admission requirements required for this program beyond university admission requirements. 

For teacher certification, students must apply for admission and be accepted to the teacher preparation program prior to enrolling in teacher certification courses, except for EDFR 2301 which is open to all students. Admission requirements include:

1. Junior status (60 hours toward degree plan with teacher certification) and an overall GPA of 2.75 or higher. Sixty-hours of coursework includes core completion. Students must be core complete at time of admission. Elective courses are not included in the 60 hours. 

2. Attain minimum passing score on one of the following exams (may mix and match): 

  • THEA: Reading -260, MATH 230, Writing 240 
  • ACT or ACT-R: Composite Score of 23 
  • SAT: 1070 (Verbal + Math) 
  • TSI: Reading 351, Math 350, 340-390 on TSI Writing Placement and minimum 4 on WritePlacer essay; or 310-339 on TSI Writing Placement and levels 4-6 on ABE Diagnostic and minimum 5 on WritePlacer Essay 

3. (FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS ONLY) 

  • As per Texas Administrative Code, Chapter §227.10(6)(b), an applicant to a university undergraduate program that leads to a bachelor's degree may satisfy the English language proficiency requirement by meeting the English language proficiency requirement of the accredited Institution of Higher Education (IHE) at which the applicant is enrolled, 
  • or students must take all four parts of the Test of English as a Foreign Language-Internet Bases Test (TOEFL-iBT) and obtain a minimum score of 24 for speaking, 22 for listening, 22 for reading, and 21 for writing. Exam is required for students that graduated from a Non-English speaking High School outside the United States. 

4. Prerequisite Coursework and Grades: 

Admission to the Teacher Education Program at the Office of Educator Preparation and Accountability is required for completion of teacher certification requirements with the undergraduate degree. All admission requirements are in accordance to Texas Administrative Code rules §227.10 and the HEA Title II accountability requirements. All applicants must meet the current certification requirements in effect at the time of application, regardless of the catalog year of degree plan.

Major Progression Requirements

Progression requirements required for this program.

For teacher certification, students must apply for admission and be accepted to the College of Education and P-16 Integration prior to enrolling in teacher certification courses and ECED major courses. In addition, a GPA of 2.75 is required for program progression.

Teacher Education Program progression requirements include GPA, course grades, certification courses, benchmarks/key assessments and testing.

Major Graduation Requirements

Specific graduation requirements required for this program beyond university bachelor’s degree requirements. 

GPA of 2.75.