Secondary Education (7-12), Social Studies, B.A.

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This program provides students the opportunity to prepare for a career in teaching Social Studies at the middle school and or high school level. Students in the program learn the content and pedagogical knowledge required to become transformative classroom teachers and to support their future students’ academic achievement. Content courses help students develop knowledge and skills in the field of Social Studies; including History, Geography, Economics, Government, and Sociology. Education courses help students learn the instructional techniques, assessment methods, and technological knowledge to succeed in today’s dynamic classrooms.

Requirements for Graduation:

To be eligible for graduation, students majoring in Secondary Education Social Studies must complete a minimum of 125 credits, achieve a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 or higher, satisfy the College’s residency requirements, and complete the General Education Requirements of the College. A minimum grade of 2.0 is required for First Year Seminar and all courses taken as part of Foundations. Courses used to complete the General Education Requirements may not be taken on a pass/fail basis. A minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 is required to student teach and to obtain Pennsylvania teaching certification.

The General Education Requirements of the college require students to successfully complete First Year Seminar, Foundations (FCO 103 will be a required co-requisite with FCO 105 for students who have a high school GPA below 3.20), Disciplinary Perspectives, and a Constellation. Students who enter the college with 30 credit hours completed will not take a First Year Seminar course and therefore must take an additional 3 credits for graduation. Transfer students that are awarded 60 or more credits upon acceptance to York College will not be required to complete a Constellation. However, all Education majors are required to take courses found in the Transformation: Children, Families, and Development Across the Lifespan as part of their teaching certification requirements. For Secondary Education majors these include PSY221, SPE200 and SPE271 and a course that is required in this major (EDU225).

In addition, students majoring in Secondary Education Social Studies must achieve a 3.0 or higher in each of the following six courses- FCO105, EDU260, MAT115, MAT150, SE201 and SE220 and demonstrate satisfactory progress on identified professional and personal dispositions. Students seeking certification in Secondary Education Social Studies will be required to have a minimum of 190 hours of Field Experience prior to the Student Teaching semester and meet specific requirements as noted in the Certification Requirements section in the Department of Education.

General Education Requirement

First Year Seminar

FYS 110 (EDU200) Education in Today’s Society 3 credit hours
FYS 102 Common Hour 0 credit hours

Foundations Requirements

Communication course:
FCO 105 Rhetorical Communication 3 credit hours
Advanced Communication course:

Satisfied by major (EDU 260)
Quantitative Fluency course:

Satisfied by major (MAT 115 or MAT 150)
American Citizenship course:
PS 101 American Government and Citizenship 3 credit hours
Global Citizenship course:
G 100 World Regional Geography 3 credit hours

Disciplinary Perspectives Requirement

Humanities course:
LIT 200 Introduction to Literary and Textual Studies 3 credit hours
Choose 3 credits of the following Arts courses:
ART 101 Art and Visual Culture 3 credit hours
CRW 272 Introduction to Creative Writing 3 credit hours
MUS 186 Listening to Music 3 credit hours
THE 154 Introduction to Theatre 3 credit hours
Social and Behavioral Sciences course:
PSY 100 General Psychology 3 credit hours
Natural and Physical Sciences course:
G 151 Introduction to Physical Geography 3 credit hours
G 152 Introduction to Physical Geography Lab 0 credit hours

Constellation Requirement

The Constellation requirement is met when a student completes four courses from a minimum of three disciplines within the Constellation requirements. Transfer students that are awarded 60 or more credits upon acceptance to York College will not be required to complete a Constellation except for Education majors.

All education majors are required to declare the Transformation: Children, the Family, and Development across the Lifespan constellation as part of their General Education requirements. This constellation provides coursework in areas that relate directly to the field of education such as child development, literacy development and English language learners. The content in these specific courses will includes competencies that are required to earn a Pennsylvania Teaching Certification. The courses include PSY 221 , SPE 200 , SPE 271 and a course that is required in this major (EDU 225 ).

Required Major Courses:

A grade of 2.0 is required in all the courses listed below.

Pre-Professional Education Coursework

ANT 220 Cultural Anthropology 3 credit hours
ECO 200 Principles of Economics (Macro) 3 credit hours
EDU 225 Instructional Needs of English Language Learners 3 credit hours
EDU 260 Effective Communication in the Field of Education 3 credit hours
HIS 101 The Foundation of the West 3 credit hours
HIS 102 The West in the World 3 credit hours
HIS 111 American History from Colonization to Civil War 3 credit hours
HIS 112 American History from Civil War to Global Power 3 credit hours
HIS 200 Methods and Theory in History 3 credit hours
HIS 499 Senior Seminar in History 3 credit hours
MAT 115 Mathematical Foundations 3 credit hours
MAT 150 Using Data to Improve Decision Making 3 credit hours
SE 201 Early Field Experience 2 credit hours
SE 210 Educational Technology for Middle and Secondary Education 3 credit hours
SE 220 Curriculum Development for Middle and Secondary Education 3 credit hours
SE 240 Educational Assessment for Middle and Secondary Education 2 credit hours
SOC 100 Introduction to Sociology 3 credit hours
Choose one of the following courses: PS 303 , PS 371 , PS 372 , PS 463 .

History/Political Science Electives (6 credits)

Choose two three-credit courses, 200-level or higher

Pro Seminar

Choose one of the following. This course must be completed prior to HIS499.

HIS 363 Coming of the Civil War 1846-1861 3 credit hours
HIS 366 Twentieth Century American History, 1914-1945 3 credit hours
HIS 402 The Black Death 3 credit hours
HIS 420 The First World War 3 credit hours
HIS 421 Nazi Germany and the Holocaust 3 credit hours

Professional Preparation Courses

Must attain PPES status to complete.

SE 311 Advanced Field Experience 2 credit hours
SE 312 Advanced Field Experience 2 credit hours
SE 351 Teaching Strategies for Middle and Secondary Education 3 credit hours
SE 352 Middle and Secondary Social Studies Pedagogies 3 credit hours
SE 356 Reading and Writing in the Content Areas 3 credit hours
SPE 300 Effective Instructional Methods and Supports for Students with Disabilities in Inclusive Settings 3 credit hours

Professional Semester

Students are required to have earned a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 before admittance into the Professional Semester.

SE 494 Student Teaching Seminar 2 credit hours
SE 495 Student Teaching 10 credit hours

Suggested Course Sequence: