Degrees for Education

Welcome to Benedictine University! We hope our Web site will make your college search process simple and convenient. We invite you to learn about the benefits of attending Benedictine University. U.S.News & World Report’s 2009 rankings listed Benedictine University as one of the top universities in the Midwest Region (seventh in Illinois) for Master’s Universities, a Best Value (second in Illinois), 11th in the Midwest (and sixth in Illinois) for Racial Diversity, and as a Top Campus with the Most International Students (fifth in Illinois). The publication also recognized Benedictine University in the top half of Midwest schools for Economic Diversity and Average Freshman Retention Rate.

Whether you have just graduated from high school, are looking to transfer from another institution, are an adult looking to earn an undergraduate or graduate degree or are visiting from another country, we welcome you and offer programs that meet your needs.

Benedictine believes education is a life-long process, not something that just happens during college years. Hands-on learning is essential to prepare you for your potential career. Benedictine University offers a wide selection of academic majors and programs from which to choose.
44 traditional undergraduate majors
13 adult accelerated undergraduate degree programs
11 graduate programs
29 graduate certificate programs
2 doctoral programs

The Childhood Education Program prepares candidates for New York State certification in Childhood Education (1-6). The program is built around a progressive, child-centered philosophy, one that values the multiple facets of children’s experience. Attention is paid to ethnic and racial diversity; to the importance of family and community in child-rearing; and to a holistic understanding of the emotional, social, intellectual, and physical lives of children in contemporary society. In terms of pedagogical arts, candidates receive extensive preparation in literacy, mathematics, science, and social studies instruction, as well as in formal and informal methods of assessing children’s progress.

Faculty in childhood education share a commitment with other departmental faculty to ideals of social justice and equality, as well as to the importance of the arts, and these concerns are interwoven throughout our programs in childhood education.

Program Description

The M.Ed. in Multicultural Education is committed to providing quality education and instruction that will equip our graduates to face the challenges of the highly diverse school-age population of the United States in the coming decades.

The M.Ed. in Multicultural Education program seeks to:
help students to integrate faith and learning into a philosophy of education which can guide to
education professional in daily activities, both personal and professional;
enable students to understand the theoretical and research base of education;
assist students to demonstrate sensitivity to ethnic, gender and racial diversity;
enable graduates to provide leadership in professional positions within the schools;
encourage graduates to demonstrate evidence of a continuing commitment to further professional development for themselves and their colleagues.
enable graduates to draw from multicultural materials to develop curricula for the schools; and
enable graduates to integrate students from multicultural backgrounds into the classroom by using the students’ cultures in the teaching process.

Course Requirements

The M. Ed. in Multicultural Education (Total 30 cr.)
Course Number
Course Name
Credit

M. Ed. Core Courses (21 credits)

EDU 500
Philosophy of Education
3

EDU 512 OR EDU 513
Teaching English as a Second Language OR ESL/Teaching Foreign Language (*If EDU 412/413 was fufilled at the undergraduate level, thsi requirement will be waived)
3

EDU 517
Multicultural Education
3

EDU 521
Statistics
3

EDU 535
Urban Education
3

EDU 545 OR EDU 606 OR EDU 617
Education in a Global Context OR Multicultural Literature & Curriculum OR Advanced Seminar in Multicultural Education
3

EDU 635
Research Design
3

Culmination Requirement (3-9 credits)

EDU 610/620 OR EDU 640 OR EDU 650
Student Teaching/Practicum (Required for teaching certification) OR Thesis/Project OR Internship (required for Principal certification)
6 + 3, 3, 3

Electives (0-6 credits)

EDU xxx
*Any other graduate education courses
3-6

The Interdisciplinary Education Minor consists of six courses, at least two, but not more than three, in education. Courses in this minor must contribute to a theme grounded in education courses; courses outside education must be conceptually related to the education courses. At least four of the six courses must be at the 300 level or above. Only one independent study may be counted toward the minor. At least three courses must be unique to the minor.

For example, Kate Young ’01 was a mathematics major in the secondary teacher certification program; she was interested in how adolescents learn. Her Interdisciplinary Education Minor includes the following configuration of courses:
Educ. 401 – Analysis of Teaching in Secondary School
Educ. 402/403 – Secondary School Student Teaching
Psych. 231- Cognition
Psych. 205 – Adolescent Psychology
Math 320 – Seminar for Mathematics Teachers

The Disciplinary Education Minor
The Disciplinary Education Minor consists of any five education courses with at least two courses at the 200 level, and at least two at the 300-400 level. Only one independent study may count toward the minor. SOC 261 Sociology of Education may substitute for one of the 200-level education courses; WRRH 322 Adolescent Literature, and AEP 335 Arts and Human Development may substitute for 300 or above education courses. At least three courses must be unique to the minor. Students majoring in arts and education may not minor in education.

Arisleidy Fuchu ’02, was an English major interested young children at risk. She created a Disciplinary Education Minor with the following courses:
Educ. 200 Human Growth and Development
Educ. 203 Children With Disabilities
Educ. 320 Children’s Literature
Educ. 337 Education and Racial Diversity in the U.S.
Educ. 338 Inclusive Schooling: Children With Special Needs in Public Schools

The M.Ed. in Multicultural Education is committed to providing quality education and instruction that will equip our graduates to face the challenges of the highly diverse school-age population of the United States in the coming decades.

The M.Ed. in Multicultural Education program seeks to:
help students to integrate faith and learning into a philosophy of education which can guide to
education professional in daily activities, both personal and professional;
enable students to understand the theoretical and research base of education;
assist students to demonstrate sensitivity to ethnic, gender and racial diversity;
enable graduates to provide leadership in professional positions within the schools;
encourage graduates to demonstrate evidence of a continuing commitment to further professional development for themselves and their colleagues.
enable graduates to draw from multicultural materials to develop curricula for the schools; and
enable graduates to integrate students from multicultural backgrounds into the classroom by using the students’ cultures in the teaching process

Programs in early childhood and childhood education prepare teachers and other professionals to work with children from birth through later childhood. The graduate programs, leading to the Master of Arts degree, fulfill academic requirements for initial/professional or permanent teacher certification in New York State. To meet certification requirements, preservice students may need liberal arts credits in addition to those taken for their undergraduate degree.

The students in the Programs in Early Childhood and Childhood Education are not a homogeneous group. They vary widely in age and background. Many are liberal arts or business majors as undergraduates. Some are making a career change. All have chosen teaching because they are interested in children and are seeking a career that is personally rewarding. The childhood teacher certification program aims to help prospective teachers to develop as researchers and reflective practitioners who are committed to work in urban schools and to using the city as a core resource for their learning. Prospective teachers are immersed in thoughtful discussions of and interactions around the critical educational issues of our times, especially issues of developmental, linguistic, cultural, and racial diversity and educational equity. Each course in the program is tied to either fieldwork or student teaching, generating rich and authentic reflections upon theory and practice.

The program:
Involves deep study of how children at different developmental stages and in different contexts learn and strategies for supporting their learning process;
Fosters an understanding of the relationships between and among schools, families, and community-based organizations as they interact to impact student learning;
Develops both content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge with an understanding that both are needed at high levels by teachers;
Supports the growth of teachers as social advocates for educational equity in a pluralistic culture. Our foremost concern is creating quality care and education for all children. The belief in social justice is inherent in the multiple strands of our graduate early childhood teacher certification program at New York University.

Children are at the center of our curriculum and study. We see children as competent persons actively engaged in meaning making in the multiple contexts in which they find themselves. We recognize the singular importance of parents and families in nurturing young children and the need of educators to develop reciprocal relationships with each family. The family’s rich knowledge of their children should help inform care giving and educational practices, and our advocacy efforts should take that knowledge into consideration. Our view is that the central component of teachers’ development as teacher-researchers is continual reflection on their own and others’ educational practices. We believe that careful reflection and examination will especially help preservice teachers to develop powerful tools as caring, talented, and committed professionals who will be equipped to address our stated program strands.

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the Early Childhood and Childhood Education Programs have a number of career opportunities: teaching children in public or private child-care centers, early childhood centers, and elementary schools; educating teachers and conducting research in schools and universities; and directing curriculum development and educational programs in schools, colleges, and universities. In nonschool settings, graduates write, edit, and publish educational materials for children and work in children’s television.

The M.Ed. in Multicultural Education is committed to providing quality education and instruction that will equip our graduates to face the challenges of the highly diverse school-age population of the United States in the coming decades.

The M.Ed. in Multicultural Education program seeks to:
help students to integrate faith and learning into a philosophy of education which can guide to
education professional in daily activities, both personal and professional;
enable students to understand the theoretical and research base of education;
assist students to demonstrate sensitivity to ethnic, gender and racial diversity;
enable graduates to provide leadership in professional positions within the schools;
encourage graduates to demonstrate evidence of a continuing commitment to further professional development for themselves and their colleagues.
enable graduates to draw from multicultural materials to develop curricula for the schools; and
enable graduates to integrate students from multicultural backgrounds into the classroom by using the students’ cultures in the teaching process.

The Childhood Education Program prepares candidates for New York State certification in Childhood Education (1-6). The program is built around a progressive, child-centered philosophy, one that values the multiple facets of children’s experience. Attention is paid to ethnic and racial diversity; to the importance of family and community in child-rearing; and to a holistic understanding of the emotional, social, intellectual, and physical lives of children in contemporary society. In terms of pedagogical arts, candidates receive extensive preparation in literacy, mathematics, science, and social studies instruction, as well as in formal and informal methods of assessing children’s progress.

Faculty in childhood education share a commitment with other departmental faculty to ideals of social justice and equality, as well as to the importance of the arts, and these concerns are interwoven throughout our programs in childhood education.