The skills that students learn in the early childhood period are absolutely critical of their later success in elementary school. Students in our Early Elementary Education program will acquire the knowledge and skills they need to help young children excel in the Prekindergarten - Grade 4 classroom. To this end, the Early Elementary Education program at YCP offers coursework on the cognitive, social and emotional development of young children, language and literacy development of children from birth through age 9, teaching methods in the key content areas, how to address students with special needs, as well as strategies for English Language Learners. The Early Elementary Education program prepares students for licensure in Prekindergarten through Grade 4. Students may also add on licensure in grades 5 and 6.
Requirements for Graduation:
To be eligible for graduation, students majoring in Early Elementary Education must complete a minimum of 120 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 Early Elementary majors, these include PSY 223 , SPE 200 , SPE 270 , and an elective course within the Constellation. This elective course may come from the High Impact Practice and Innovation grouping.
In addition, students majoring in Early Elementary Education must achieve a grade of 3.0 or higher in each of the following six courses – FCO 105 , EDU 260 , MAT 115 , MAT 150 , ECH 201 and ECH 220 and demonstrate satisfactory progress on identified professional and personal dispositions. Moreover, a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 must be achieved in order to student teach. Students seeking certification in Early Elementary Education will be required to have a minimum of 190 hours of Field Experience prior to the Professional Semester and meet specific Certification Requirements as determined by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
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