Bachelor of Arts: Early Childhood Education
Are you someone who interacts easily with young children? Are you passionate about providing a nurturing environment where children thrive?
Concordia University Chicago’s Early Childhood Education program will prepare you to work with, lead and mentor children during their early stages of development.
Program Overview
First established in 1864 as Addison Teachers Seminary, Concordia University Chicago continues its proud legacy of educating teachers for private and public schools. A testament to the quality of our programs is that 13 CUC alumni have been recognized by the Golden Apple Foundation for outstanding teaching. All of our education programs exceed the requirements of the Illinois State Certification Board and meet rigorous national accreditation standards.
Students who major in early childhood education learn how to teach children from infancy through third grade. Hands-on experience is a cornerstone of our program. You are required to gain at least 100 hours of field experience observing, assisting and teaching in the classroom. Our 16-week student teaching semester is four weeks longer than most programs, providing our graduates with additional experience and confidence.
CUC offers extensive graduate-level programs in education, with options for advanced degrees and additional certificates—supporting your professional development needs throughout your teaching career.
General Course Information
Pedagogy coursework includes the foundations of early childhood education, literacy, language development, psychology, and methods for teaching the exceptional learner. Methods classes will teach you how to teach art, music, reading, writing, math, science and social science to young children. Additionally, you will learn how to develop and organize curriculum for the early childhood classroom.
For details about required courses and course descriptions, please visit our onoine catalog pages.
Opportunities
The Early Childhood Education Center (ECEC), located in the state-of-the-art Christopher Center for Learning and Leadership, is Concordia’s highly regarded laboratory school. Working with the center’s professional staff, students have the opportunity to observe, participate and evaluate a variety of experiences with children from birth to age 6.
Professional development opportunities abound. The University hosts an annual Early Childhood Conference featuring prominent speakers who offer hands-on workshops and seminars for students and teachers alike. In addition, Chicago and its suburbs provide a diverse range of public and private schools where students can observe and learn.