Children need dedicated teachers, helping them get a good start in their educational and social development. The role is especially vital as not all children have the support they need at home–teachers can truly make the difference in a child’s future success or failure.
The Childhood Education Program offers a liberal arts degree that prepares you to continue in a teacher education program at a senior college in order to become certified in Childhood Education (first through sixth grades). The program is designed for a seamless transfer to the teacher education program at City College.
- Read about the careers of some of our male alumni who have studied Childhood Education.
Transfer Options
After meeting BMCC/CCNY requirements (minimum of 2.5 GPA, completion of all courses in the curriculum with grades of C or above, an interview with City College School of Education faculty, and a passing score on the LAST or City College SEAT), students in this jointly registered program are accepted at the School of Education at City College where they can complete the Bachelors of Science in Education and apply for initial teaching certification for first through sixth grades. In addition to meeting general education requirements for education majors at the four-year college level, the Childhood Education program offers transferable courses in education. Students will participate in classrooms for elementary school-age children as part of their coursework.
Explore Careers
BMCC is committed to students’ long-term success and will help you explore professional opportunities. Undecided? No problem. The college offers Career Coach for salary and employment information, job postings and a self-discovery assessment to help students find their academic and career paths. Visit Career Express to make an appointment with a career advisor, search for jobs or sign-up for professional development activities with the Center for Career Development. Students can also visit the Office of Internships and Experiential Learning to gain real world experience in preparation for a four-year degree and beyond. These opportunities are available to help BMCC students build a foundation for future success.
Contact
Professor Yolanda Medina
Program Coordinator
ymedina@bmcc.cuny.edu
Related Communities
Requirements
Childhood Education Academic Program Maps
Required Common Core
| English Composition | 6 |
| Mathematical and Quantitative Reasoning1 | 3 |
| Life and Physical Sciences | 3 |
| TOTAL REQUIRED COMMON CORE | 12 |
Flexible Core2
| Creative Expression3 | 6 |
| Individual and Society | 3 |
| U.S. Experience in Its Diversity | 3 |
| World Cultures and Global Issues4 | 3 |
| Scientific World5 | 3 |
| TOTAL FLEXIBLE COMMON CORE | 18 |
| TOTAL COMMON CORE | 30 |
Curriculum Requirements
- Basic cellular structure, tissue organization, physiological process, reproduction, and genetics are studied. Special attention is given to selected zoological specimens with particular emphasis upon man.
Course Syllabus - This course focuses on children's physical, cognitive, linguistic and socio-emotional development, and the related implications for learning. Within the context of race, class and culture, the following topics are explored in depth: the nature of intelligence, gender identity, attachment and other psychosocial attributes (typical and atypical). Students participate in a minimum of 20 hours of course-related fieldwork.
Prerequisites: PSY 100
Course Syllabus - This course provides an overview of the social context of schooling within the diversity of American society. It focuses on the historical, philosophical, social, and political foundations of education, especially in urban settings. The following topics are explored in depth: the notion of schooling, culturally relevant pedagogy, school reform, and issues of inequality and privilege. Students participate in a minimum of 20 hours of course-related fieldwork.
Prerequisite: EDU 201 or EDS 201
Course Syllabus - This course is an introduction to the theories, methods and materials for integrating visual arts into the elementary school curriculum. Through reading, writing, and viewing of visual art and participation in hands-on studio projects, student will explore the intellectual and emotional importance of expressing creativity through visual art.
Course Syllabus
OR
- This course will prepare future elementary school teachers to bring music to the classroom. Elementary level vocal music will be studied with an emphasis on singing, conducting, and choreographing. The first several weeks will be devoted to gaining an understanding of rhythmic notation through written work and score study. An understanding of time signatures and meter will be emphasized through classroom and homework. Subsequent lessons will focus on pitch and reading melodies. An understanding of basic musical forms such as binary and ternary will be gained with consideration given to body movement. Each student will prepare a sample lesson plan for teaching movement in a simple choral piece and teach it to the class. Discussion of standard public school requirements for lesson planning will be included.
- This course is designed to develop your theoretical, practical, methodological and evidence-based knowledge for teaching literacy in grades 1-6. It will also introduce you to key findings that have emerged across the past several decades of literacy research. You will explore principles, methods, and materials for teaching emergent to fluent literacy within a developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive interdisciplinary curriculum that encompasses strategies for developing children’s listening, speaking, reading and writing competencies. Throughout the semester you will be introduced to curriculum development and planning, and assessment tools for teaching literacy with an emphasis on multiethnic and multi-racial children’s literature, as well as the importance of oral storytelling in literacy development. This course offers a flexible set of tools for achieving equitable literacy outcomes with diverse student populations.
Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in EDU 202 - This course covers the second half of the mathematics recommended by NCTM for prospective elementary school teachers, including probability, statistics, plane and transformational geometry, congruence, and similarity. This course meets the mathematics requirements ... for students in the ECE program. Students who have taken MAT 150 may not receive credit for this course.
Prerequisite: MAT 214
Course Syllabus
Notes
Please note, these requirements are effective for students starting in the 2024-2025 catalog year or later. Please check your DegreeWorks account for your specific degree requirements, as when you began at BMCC will determine your program requirements.
Footnotes
- Students are advised to take MAT214.
- No more than two courses in any discipline or interdisciplinary field can be used to satisfy Flexible Core requirements.
- Students are advised to take SPE 100 and another appropriate Creative Expression course.
- Students are required to take two semesters of the same Modern Foreign Language to graduate. One semester can be satisfied by taking a Modern Foreign Language in the World Cultures and Global Issues category in the Common Core.
- Students are advised to take PSY 100.
- These credits can be satisfied by taking STEM variants in the Common Core.
