Educational Foundations for Elementary Teachers

Educational Foundations for Elementary Teachers is a Bachelor of Arts degree that prepares students for a career in education, with the option of pursuing teacher certification in elementary education (Kindergarten-Grade 6). The course of study includes theories of learning, assessment, and human development, as well as key social, historical, and philosophical trends in American schools. It is designed to enhance students’ core content knowledge in essential subject areas of Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies. As such, our program provides its graduates with the rigorous educational and content knowledge necessary to teach in elementary school classrooms.

Different from other majors, our program is comprehensive, multi-disciplinary, concise, and targeted; with only 120 credit hours to complete the degree. Admission to the Teacher Education program is a separate process. Students interested in earning a K-6 certification will find that our program provides a seamless transition and alignment with the course of study needed for certification. Alternatively, for those individuals who do not intend to pursue certification, our program includes 27 credits as free electives, to provide students with a range of options to earn another major or minor.

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Faculty in Educational Foundations are nationally and internationally recognized experts, who have been leaders in their particular disciplines such as educational psychology, history of education, philosophy of education, philosophy for children, gifted and talented education, assessment, teacher education, teaching and learning, argumentation, and research methods among other areas of study.  In the last few years, faculty members on Educational Foundations have published more than 15 books, 100 journal articles in highly prestigious journals, and many articles in popular outlets for practitioners. Many have served in national and international organizations and have developed programs and curricula for schools.  More importantly, members in the Department of Educational Foundations are highly popular and effective teachers who are sought after by Montclair State students because of their effectiveness and caring approach to teaching and learning.