Early Childhood Education Degree

B.A. in Early Childhood Education
(Type 04 certification and ESL endorsement)

LEARN FROM THE EXPERTS: "HOW TO BECOME A TEACHER"

Special Information Session, May 20, 2013

Discover how NLU can make your dreams of becoming a classroom teacher a reality. Attend this information session to learn more about our bachelor's in education programs.


National Louis University’s Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education degree program prepares graduates to work with children from birth through age eight, including teaching in classrooms serving English Language

Learners. The program coursework is aligned to meet the new Illinois Professional Teaching Standards (IL-PTS). Upon successful completion of all required coursework, graduates will earn a Type 04 Illinois teaching license and an English Language Learner (ESL) endorsement.

Consider getting your Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education degree at NLU if you:

  • Want to help shape young children’s views of themselves and the world and positively affect their educational futures
  • Want to learn in a highly regarded program with an innovative approach to teacher education
  • Wish to gain valuable classroom experience in a pre-school or primary school setting to enable you to enter the classroom ready to support the growth and development of all your students
  • Seek a program that provides you with a Type 04 teaching license (birth — grade 2) and an ESL endorsement upon completion

Why NLU for an Early Childhood Education Degree

NLU was an early leader of the American kindergarten movement from the time it was founded in 1886, preparing some of the first early childhood teachers to be employed in the Chicago area. NLU’s early childhood degree program provides:

  • Faculty members bring deep experience teaching young children in classrooms, childcare facilities and communities.
  • The program is aligned with the standards determined by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and IL-PTS to insure all graduates leave with the highest level of knowledge and expertise needed to teach young children.
  • A new linked primary practicum and student teaching experience places students in one primary classroom setting (grades K-2) for two consecutive terms to gain greater knowledge and expertise.
  • A student teaching experience that provides a learning laboratory for candidates to complete the new Illinois requirement related to the educational Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA) which will become an exit requirement in Illinois in September 2015.
  • NLU’s professional portfolio assessment process documents student learning experiences and practices so that graduates may present a substantive body of work to potential employers.

Accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), NLU has since trained thousands of Chicago-area teachers and graduated more prestigious Golden Apple award winners than any other institution in Illinois.

What You Will Learn

  • Principles of child development that affect teaching and learning
  • Different instructional and evaluative methods and their historical and theoretical foundations
  • Methods for teaching content and skills in a supportive learning environment
  • How to incorporate technology into practice
  • Techniques for developing curriculum and lesson plans that impact student learning and allow for differentiation
  • An appreciation of diverse needs and perspectives in working with children and families
  • How to teach fluency in both written and spoken English

Students will graduate with over 100 hours of pre-clinical experiences in infant/toddler, pre-primary and primary school settings required for the program.

Career Outlook

Employment of preschool teachers is expected to grow faster than the average for other professions between now and 2018. The demand for childcare centers and the professionals to staff them will increase as states implement preschool programs for 3- and 4-year-old children. The number of subsidies for children from low-income families attending child care programs is rising. Additionally, there are a growing number of employers funding and operating child care centers for their employees. This increase in children being served through early child care programs will result in excellent opportunities for teachers within this industry.1,2

Program Requirements

The Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education program (Type 04 Certification) requires a minimum of 60 quarter hours or the equivalent in general education coursework for the completion of the degree. This includes demonstration of competence in all areas of general education as well as NAEYC Standards and Illinois Professional Teaching Standards. The early childhood education degree program accepts the following types of equivalent work: transfer from approved and accredited institutions, appropriate scores in advanced placement tests, and passing scores in CLEP and DANTES examinations.

Teaching English as a Second Language Endorsement         30

Students take 30 quarter hours of coursework leading to an ESL endorsement on the Type 04 teaching certificate. All coursework must be completed at NLU. The coursework is sequenced throughout the junior and senior years of the early childhood education degree program.

Clinical Experiences

A minimum of 100 hours of pre-clinical experience are required before student teaching. Students complete pre-clinical hours in coursework and field experiences prior to student teaching. All students take a pre-primary practicum as well as a primary practicum experience linked to student teaching.

Admission Requirements

All applicants must meet NLU’s general admission requirements as well as the requirements specific to the B.A. in Early Childhood Education degree program. Refer to the appropriate Application Checklist available online at www.nl.edu/applyonline.

Get more information today about enrolling in NLU’s Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education program. Talk to your enrollment advisor or call 888.NLU.TODAY (888.658.8632).


1 Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, www.bls.gov/oco/cg/cgs032.htm#outlook
2 Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, www.bls.gov/oco/ocos318.htm

Locations

  • CHICAGO DOWNTOWN CAMPUS

    NLU’s Chicago campus on South Michigan Avenue occupies five floors of the historic Peoples Gas Building. This landmark building, across the street from the Art Institute of Chicago and Grant Park, is easily accessible by train, bus and car and is surrounded by restaurants, parking lots/garages and shops.

    122 S. Michigan Avenue
    Chicago, IL 60603
    800.443.5522

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  • ELGIN

    Conveniently located in a fast-growing business district off I-90 and Route 31, NLU Elgin features 10 classrooms with high-tech media equipment; a computer lab with high-speed Internet access; two conference rooms; and comfortable student lounges. Parking is free at this recently remodeled and upgraded teaching site, which now includes wireless Internet access.

    620 Tollgate Road
    Elgin, IL 60123
    800.443.5522

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  • NORTH SHORE

    Opened in the summer of 2006, NLU North Shore at Skokie is a state-of-the-art modern campus located just off the Edens Expressway near the Old Orchard Shopping Center. The campus includes 44 wireless classrooms equipped with high-tech media equipment; four computer labs with high-speed Internet access, including a walk-in lab in the library; six conference rooms; a public café for beverages and snacks; a student welcome center; a library for research and study; and multiple, comfortable student lounge areas.

    5202 Old Orchard Road
    Skokie, IL 60077
    800.443.5522

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  • LISLE

    Located just minutes from the East-West Tollway (I-88), NLU Lisle features 42 wireless classrooms equipped with high-tech media equipment; four computer labs with high-speed Internet access, including a separate walk-in lab in the library; a café for beverages and snacks; a student welcome center; a library for research and study; conference rooms; and six comfortable student lounge areas with wireless access.

    850 Warrenville Road
    Lisle, IL 60532
    800.443.5522

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  • WHEELING

    Located in one of Chicago's major northwest suburbs, the newly renovated NLU Wheeling includes 20 classrooms with high-tech media equipment, four conference rooms, four computer labs with high-speed Internet access, large student lounge areas with wireless capabilities and interactive video capabilities, and an extensive research library. The site also houses the university library research collection.

    1000 Capitol Drive
    Wheeling, IL 60090
    800.443.5522

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  • FLORIDA (TAMPA)

    Established in 1988 and located in one of the city's major business districts, NLU's Tampa campus serves students in 13 counties in central Florida. In addition to six classrooms, the campus features a conference room, a computer lab with high-speed Internet access, an extensive research library and comfortable student lounges.

    4950 West Kennedy Blvd. #300
    Tampa, FL 33609
    800.366.6581 | www.nl.edu/florida

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  • WISCONSIN

    NLU's Milwaukee campus has a proud history of serving graduate students in education in southeastern Wisconsin. Nearly one in five certified Wisconsin teachers looks to NLU for graduate education programs – more than any other university in the state. In addition to classrooms with high-tech media equipment, the campus offers a state-of-the-art computer lab with wireless Internet access and an extensive IDS research library.

    12000 West Park Place, Suite 100
    Milwaukee, WI 53224-3007
    414.577.2658

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