Program Overview
College of Education and Behavioral Sciences
Contact: School of Teacher Education, Main Campus Greeley
Location: McKee 216
Telephone: 970.351.2929
Fax: 970.351.3159
Website: www.unco.edu/cebs/teacher-education/undergraduate-programs/elementary-education/
Advising Information:
Students must consult with a major advisor each semester prior to registering.
To find your advisor, log into ursa.unco.edu; go to 'Student' tab and click 'View Student Information' link. If no advisor is listed, contact the major program for advisor information.
The program consists of four parts:
- Liberal Arts Curriculum (LAC) Credits
- Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) Credits
- Concentration Credits
- University-Wide Credits
Program Description:
The curriculum consists of recommended Liberal Arts curriculum requirements, courses in professional teacher preparation, courses in elementary education theory, practice, and pedagogy, and specific required content to ensure students have the breadth of knowledge needed to be an elementary education teacher.
Program Admission Requirements:
- Admission: Must be in academic good standing
- Program: Must have a 2.75 cumulative GPA prior to Practicum and a 3.0 cumulative GPA prior to Student Teaching.
PTEP Program Requirements:
Teacher candidates who complete an approved content degree and the UNC professional teacher education program, as well as pass the appropriate Colorado Department of Education designated PRAXIS exam (if applicable), will be eligible for recommendation from UNC for a Colorado Department of Education teaching license.
If you are seeking licensure in your program area, the following items are required to complete your program.
- Completion of Application for Initial Admission to PTEP – referred to as Checkpoint #1 (Enrollment in this checkpoint will result in a one-time program fee, assessed to student accounts to pay for assessment software. This checkpoint will also require an out-of-pocket payment - to the chosen approved vendor - to obtain a fingerprint background check, which is required by the Colorado Department of Education.)
- Completion of Full Admission to PTEP – referred to as Checkpoint #2
- Completion of Application for Student Teaching – referred to as Checkpoint #3
- Completion of content specific PRAXIS test prior to Student Teaching
- Candidates may not take extra courses with Student Teaching without prior approval from the Program Coordinator and the STE Director.
- All PTEP Field Experiences and methods courses need to be successfully completed prior to Student Teaching.
- Student Teaching outside the supervision of UNC Faculty may or may not be approved.
- Teacher Candidates will not be placed in a school where they were once students or where they have a close relative attending and/or working.
- Teacher education and educator preparation licensure programs do not accept Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) or field based courses that are more than ten years old. PLEASE NOTE: Teacher Candidates have the right to petition this policy at the discretion of the program coordinator.
Please work with your content advisor to determine when these requirements will be completed throughout your program.
Degree Requirements — 120 Credits
1. Liberal Arts Curriculum — 31 credits
To complete the degree in 120 credits as outlined, the program recommends the below LAC courses that also count toward the required major credits.
Any additional coursework completed outside of the recommended list below may extend the length of the program of study.
Written Communication — 6 credits
Select any courses to fulfill this requirement from the currently approved LAC course list.
These courses are recommended to better prepare students for Elementary teaching and successful Praxis testing, but they are not required by the major.
See Written Communication courses
Mathematics — 3 credits
MATH 181 (3) and MATH 182 (3) are recommended to satisfy the Mathematics requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
See Mathematics courses
Arts & Humanities, History, Social & Behavioral Sciences, U.S. Multicultural Studies [MS], and International Studies [IS] — 15 credits
To complete the LAC in the minimum number of credits, be sure to choose at least one course with an IS designation and one course with an MS designation.
The following course is recommended to satisfy the Arts & Humanities requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements. This course will also fulfill the Multicultural Studies designation.
- ELIT 290 Survey of Culturally Diverse Literature for Children
This course is recommended to better prepare students for Elementary teaching and successful Praxis testing but is not required by the major.
- PVA 220 Creative Thinking and Strategies
Please work with your academic advisor to choose courses in the Social & Behavioral Sciences and History categories that are recommended to better prepare students for Elementary teaching and successful Praxis testing, but not required by the major.
See Arts & Humanities, History, and Social & Behavioral Sciences courses
Natural and Physical Sciences — 7 credits
The following courses are recommended to satisfy the Natural and Physical Sciences requirement and better prepare students for Elementary teaching and successful Praxis testing and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.
See Natural & Physical Sciences courses
See Liberal Arts Curriculum
2. General Licensure/PTEP — 87 credits
PTEP Core — 69 credits
Take all the following courses:
| ECLD 360 | Second Language Acquisition | 3 |
| ECLD 455 | Approaches to Content Literacy for Diverse Learners | 3 |
| EDEC 250 | Diverse Early Language and Literacy | 3 |
| EDEL 101 | Elementary Teaching as a Profession | 1-3 |
| EDEL 220 | Teaching with Writing | 3 |
| EDEL 310 | Reading Assessment Informs Teaching | 3 |
| EDEL 339 | Assessment Data for Elementary Classrooms: Large Sets | 1 |
| EDEL 360 | Teaching Foundational Reading Skills | 3 |
| EDEL 420 | Elementary School Mathematics Methods | 3 |
| EDEL 425 | Elementary School Social Studies Methods | 3 |
| EDF 290 | Foundations of Education | 3 |
| EDSE 201 | Culture of Special Education | 3 |
| EDSE 325 | Behavioral Dimensions of Students with Exceptionalities I | 3 |
| ELIT 290 | Survey of Culturally Diverse Literature for ChildrenLAA2LAMS | 3 |
| ET 240 | Integration of Technology into Content and Pedagogy | 3 |
| HIST 224 | History of Colorado | 3 |
| | or | |
| HIST 230 | Class and Culture in America | 3 |
| | or | |
| HIST 290 | American Immigration | 3 |
| | or | |
| GEOG 200 | Human GeographyLAB2 | 3 |
| | or | |
| GEOG 224 | Exploring Colorado | 3 |
| | or | |
| GEOG 250 | The Making of the American LandscapeLAB2 | 3 |
| MATH 181 | Fundamentals of Mathematics I: Number and OperationsLAX1 | 3 |
| MATH 182 | Fundamental Mathematics II: Algebra, Probability and Data AnalysisLAX1 | 3 |
| MATH 283 | Fundamental Mathematics III: Geometry and Measurement | 3 |
| PSY 330 | Child and Adolescent Psychology | 3 |
| SCED 475 | Teaching Science in the Elementary School | 3 |
| SCI 265 | Physical Science ConceptsLAS1LASL | 3 |
| SCI 266 | Earth and Life ScienceLAS1LASL | 4 |
| SES 403 | Physical & Health Education for Elementary Teachers | 1 |
EDEL 101: Students taking the course at UNC need to register for 3 credits
Required Fieldwork — 18 credits
Take the following courses:
3. Concentration Credits — 12 credits
Take four 3-credit courses from the list below for a total of 12 credits. Courses may be chosen from one Prefix Area or be a combination of two or three areas. *Note: MUS 210 and MUS 310 should be taken together for 3 credits
| ART 183 | 2D Design | 3 |
| ART 184 | 3D Design | 3 |
| ART 234 | Drawing I | 3 |
| ART 290 | Visual Problem SolvingLAA1 | 3 |
| MUS 140 | Exploration of Music through American IdentitiesLAA1LAMS | 3 |
| MUS 143 | Musical Styles and ContextLAA1 | 3 |
| MUS 150 | History of Rock and RollLAA1LAMS | 3 |
| MUS 247 | Music as Cultural IdentityLAA1LAIS | 3 |
| MUS 296 | Jazz Music: History and AppreciationLAA1LAMS | 3 |
| MUS 210 | Introduction to Music Education | 1 |
| | and | |
| MUS 310 | Teaching General Music in Elementary Schools | 2 |
| THEA 130 | Introduction to the TheatreLAA1 | 3 |
| THEA 255 | Creative Drama | 3 |
| THEA 265 | Theatre for Young Audiences Tour | 3 |
4. University-Wide Credits — 3 credits*
*Note: Students must apply the recommended courses to both the liberal arts curriculum requirements and the major requirements to complete this degree program in 120 credit hours. Students who apply the recommended courses in LAC and the major will have up 3 credits of university wide electives to apply to this degree. See your advisor for details.