Program Overview

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Early Childhood Education/Early Childhood Special Education (BS)

The dual-certification BS program in Early Childhood Education/Early Childhood Special Education is designed to prepare teachers in both early childhood (birth through 2nd grade) and early childhood special education settings. The curriculum helps prospective teachers develop as decision-makers and reflective practitioners who are committed to working in urban schools and to using the city as a core resource for their learning.

Program Description

This program integrates theory and practice, with a focus on developmental, linguistic, cultural, and racial diversity and educational equity. The pedagogical core introduces students to an integrated curriculum and emphasizes the theories of teaching and learning, educational formation, and linguistic and developmental diversity in early childhood. Each course in the program is tied to either fieldwork or student teaching, generating rich and authentic reflections upon theory and practice.

Honors

• Honors Societies: Phi Delta Kappa, Kappa Delta Pi, Pi Lambda Theta
  • Departmental Honors: Senior Honors Seminar for students with at least a 3.5 GPA, cumulative and major, culminating in an honors thesis based on faculty-supervised independent research

Admissions

New York University's Office of Undergraduate Admissions supports the application process for all undergraduate programs at NYU. For additional information about undergraduate admissions, including application requirements, see the university's admissions guidelines.

Program Requirements

Course List

• Liberal Arts Requirements
  • Foreign Language: 8 credits
  • Expository Writing:
    • EXPOS-UA 1: Writing as Inquiry: 4 credits
    • ACE-UE 110: Advanced Writing and Research: 4 credits
  • Foundations of Contemporary Culture:
    • Select one of the following: 4 credits
      • Cultures and Contexts
      • HSED-UE 1033: Global Culture Wars
    • Select one of the following: 4 credits
      • Societies & the Social Sciences
      • HSED-UE 1005: Introduction to US Education
      • INTE-UE 11: Globalization and Education
    • Select one of the following: 4 credits
      • Expressive Cultures
      • MPAET-UE 60: Theatre as Art Form
  • Foundations of Scientific Inquiry:
    • SCIED-UE 21X: Physical Science and Life Science: Science in our Lives (Series): 4 credits
    • SCIED-UE 21X: Physical Science and Life Science: Science in our Lives (Series): 4 credits
    • Select one of the following: 4 credits
      • MTHED-UE 1051: Counting and Chance
      • APSTA-UE 21: Cracking the Code
      • CAS or Steinhardt Approved Quantitative Reasoning course
  • Other Liberal Arts Requirements:
    • Select one of the following: 4 credits
      • ENGED-UE 71: Lit as Exploration I
      • XXXX-UA: CAS Literature Course, By Advisement
  • Liberal Arts Electives:
    • Open Liberal Arts Electives selected by advisement: 16 credits
• Additional Requirements:
  • SAHS-UE 1: New Student Seminar: 0 credits
  • Writing Proficiency Examination
• Specialization Requirements:
  • Content Core:
    • Liberal Arts Concentration (32 Credits): Students will complete the Liberal Arts for Teachers concentration which will include some General Education & elective (liberal arts) requirements.
  • Common Pedagogical Core:
    • TCHL-UE 1: Inquiries Into Teaching & Learning I: 4 credits
    • TCHL-UE 5: Field Observ in Schools and Other Educ Settings: 0 credits
    • TCHL-UE 1999: Drug, Alcohol Ed/Child Abuse ID/School Violence/DASA: 1 credit
    • APSY-UE 20: Human Development I: 2 credits
    • APSY-UE 21: Human Development II: Application for Early Childhood Educators: 2 credits
    • SPCED-UE 83: Foundations of Spec Educ: 3 credits
  • Specialized Pedagogical Core:
    • CHDED-UE 1145: Integrated Arts in Early Childhood and Childhood Education: 2 credits
    • ECED-UE 1019: Lrng Exp Fam/Sch/Comm: 3 credits
    • ECED-UE 1026: Integ Curr Early Chldhd Spec Ed II: 3 credits
    • ECED-UE 1033: Multilingual Learners in Early Childhood: 3 credits
    • ECED-UE 1124: Integrating Children’s Literature into Classroom Instruction: 3 credits
    • LITC-UE 1175: Language and Literacy for Young Children: 3 credits
    • LITC-UE 1176: Foundations of Literacy Development: 3 credits
    • MTHED-UE 1032: Mathematics in Early Childhood Education I: 3 credits
    • MTHED-UE 1033: Mathematics in Early Childhood Education II: 3 credits
    • SPCED-UE 1007: Principles & Strategies for Teaching Students with High Incidence Disabilities: 3 credits
    • SPCED-UE 1010: Principles & Strategies for Teaching Students with Low Incidence Disabilities: 3 credits
    • SPCED-UE 1035: Assessment & Intervention in Special Education: 3 credits
    • SPCED-UE 1161: Learning Environments, Behavior, and Students with Disabilities: 3 credits
  • Fieldwork and Student Teaching:
    • ECED-UE 1503: Student Teaching in Early Childhood Education I: 2 credits
    • SPCED-UE 1903: Student Teaching in Early Childhood Special Education II: 3 credits
    • ECED-UE 1904: Student Teaching in Early Childhood Education III: 3 credits
    • SPCED-UE 1904: Student Teaching in Early Childhood Special Education IV: 3 credits
  • Unrestricted Electives:
    • Open Electives selected by advisement: 7 credits
• Total Credits: 128

Sample Plan of Study

The sample plan of study outlines the typical sequence of courses over eight semesters.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the program, graduates will:

1. Build relationships with students and families with the goal of fostering student learning, engagement, and well-being.
2. Integrate theory/research with pedagogical and classroom practice.
3. Develop and implement discipline-based curricula, unit plans, and lessons that are coherent, use culturally relevant pedagogies, and foster experiential learning.
4. Create and apply classroom strategies that are explicit, innovative, appropriate for a specific context, and use technology to support student learning.
5. Develop a practice that is equitable and inclusive and acquire the skills of a professional educator.

Policies

Program Policies

Fieldwork Placement

Be advised that fieldwork placement facilities that provide training required for your program degree, and agencies that issue licenses for practice in your field of study, each may require you to undergo general and criminal background checks, the results of which the facility or agency must find acceptable before it will allow you to train at its facility or issue you a license.

Grading Policies

Pass/Fail

Undergraduate students can only pass/fail Liberal Arts and Unrestricted Electives or CORE-UA courses not being used to fulfill a content area. Students are not permitted to pass/fail more than one course per semester and cannot pass/fail more than 16-20 credits total (depending on the program of study).

Minimum Grades

All students must maintain a minimum 2.0 GPA to maintain good academic standing. Students who fall below that mark for the semester GPA or overall GPA will be reviewed by the Committee on Student Progress.

• Childhood Education/Childhood Special Education:
  • A minimum grade of B- in all Specialized Pedagogical Core Courses, and a minimum grade of C in Common Pedagogical Core Courses.
  • A minimum grade of C in Liberal Arts Content Core Courses.
• Early Childhood Education/Early Childhood Special Education:
  • A minimum grade of B- in all Specialized Pedagogical Core Courses, and a minimum grade of C in Common Pedagogical Core Courses.
  • A minimum grade of C in Liberal Arts Content Core Courses.

NYU Policies

University-wide policies can be found on the New York University Policy pages.

Steinhardt Academic Policies

Additional academic policies can be found on the Steinhardt academic policies page.