EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM

Program initiatives include four goals:

Goal 1: Selective Admissions and Retention

A new program of selective admission and retention will take effect for Early Childhood Education candidates in Fall Quarter 2006.  Changes were designed to improve candidate preparation and to include successful completion of critical program assessments.  Current Transition Points for all unit teacher education programs are at the times of Application for Professional Education, Application for Advanced Standing, Application for Student Teaching, and at program completion.  The new Early Childhood admission/retention system identifies six Phases of progress, given below with performance criteria.  Criteria added for the Fall 2006 system are shaded. 

Phase 1: Admission to Early Childhood Education (and, at the unit level, to Professional education)

1. completion of 45 quarter hours with grade-point average (GPA) of 2.75 or higher
2. completion of each of these courses with a grade of “C” or higher:

- PSY 101: Introduction to Psychology

- Freshman Composition and COMS 103: Introduction to Public Speaking

- two science courses  with a labs

- two mathematics courses, MATH 120 or above (NOTE: A “C” or higher in all             math and science requirements is required for Advanced Standing)

- HCCF 160: Introduction to Child Development

3. a score of 172 or higher in writing and math, an 173 or above in reading, on the PRAXIS I (PPST/CBT) Test; OR a score of 21 or higher on the ACT; OR a score of 990 or higher on the SAT
4. submission of acceptable results of a background check through BCII
5. submission of negative results for a tuberculosis skin test
6. submission of two professional references

Procedures for Application

1. Candidates must complete the application by June 1.
2. Candidates must meet the criteria for selective admission and retention for Early Childhood Teacher Education.  Enrollment in the major is limited to promote quality instruction, appropriate field placements and effective advisement.  Admission is competitive, and not all candidates who apply and meet the minimum criteria will be accepted.  Contact the Office of Student Services in either college for details on the Early Childhood Selective Admission Policy.
3. Candidates who are admitted to the Early Childhood Education major will automatically be admitted to Professional Education.
4. Early Childhood faculty members will select the best-qualified candidates based upon the application materials and available resources.  Candidates will be informed before Fall quarter of the following academic year of acceptance to or denial from the program.  

Transfer students must meet all of the above requirements and submit an official transcript from the institution previously attended.

Phase II: Admission to Advanced Standing

1. completion of 90 quarter hours with a GPA of 2.75 or higher
2. completion of Early Childhood courses (HCCF 160, 160A, 170, 260, 260L, 361, 361L, and EDEC 206) with a grade of “C” or higher for each
3. an accumulative GPA of 2.75 or higher
4. satisfactory reports from Campus Judiciaries and from faculty members
5. application to the junior-year teaching partnership*
6. satisfactory mid-level portfolio review [Assessment #2: Content Knowledge]

*Ohio University’s Teacher Preparation Unit enjoys partnership agreements with three local elementary schools: The Plains, East, and Chauncey.  The requirement that all candidates be members of a cohort that takes coursework together and spends 2.5 days per week in a junior-level field experience in a partnership school will be phased in over three years, as enrollment decreases to a level that the partnership schools can accommodate.

Phase III: Preparation for/Admission to Student Teaching

1. Submission of application, by December 1 of the academic year prior to the requested student teaching experience
2. completion of at least 135 quarter hours with an accumulative GPA of 2.75 or higher
3. completion of all prerequisite Early Childhood courses with a GPA of 2.75 or higher, and no grade below a “C”
4. satisfactory demonstration of effective planning and implementation of appropriate teaching and learning experiences in the Instructional Adaptations assessment given in EDTE 371C [Assessment #3: Ability to Plan and Implement Appropriate Teaching and Learning Experiences]
5. satisfactory completion of the Child Literacy Case Study assessment given in EDEC 421 [Assessment #8: optional assessment]
6. satisfactory demonstration of the Curriculum Reflection Portfolio assessment given in HCCF 455 [Assessment 36: Additional Assessment That Addresses NAEYC Standards]

Phase IV: Completion of Student Teaching

1. Satisfactory demonstration of knowledge, skills, and dispositions in clinical practice and candidate effect on student learning in the Pre-Primary Student Teaching Portfolio assembled in HCCF 474 [Assessment #5: Candidate Effect on Student Learning]
2. satisfactory demonstration of effective application of candidate knowledge, skills, and dispositions in clinical practice in EDPL 458 and EDPL 459 [Assessment #4: Assessment of Student Teaching or Internship]

Phase V: Graduation

1. completion of a minimum of 192 quarter hours
2. an overall minimum GPA of 2.75
3. a minimum GPA of 2.75 in Early Childhood courses with no grade below a “C”
4. satisfactory completion of the Exit Portfolio [Assessment #7: Additional Assessment That Addresses NAEYC Standards]
5. satisfactory completion of the pre-primary and primary student teaching experiences

Phase VI:

1. a score of 166 or higher on the PRAXIS II examination “Principles of Learning and Teaching in Early Childhood”
2. a score of 166 or higher on the PRAXIS II examination “Education of Young Children” [Assessment #1: Content Knowledge]

Goal 2: Implementation of Assessments

There are eight and they are identified above in Goal 1.

Unique to the Early Childhood program are assessments 2 through 8.  Much work and expertise have been devoted to designing assessments that require of candidates a synthesis of dispositions, skills, and knowledge gained and demonstrated during the program.  A strong mixture of formative and summative assessments, a commitment to collaborative evaluation, and a design that includes intervention for at-risk candidates form a system of assessment that complements the unit-wide system and demonstrates commitment to program excellence.

Goal 3: Receive NCATE-NAEYC Recognition

The NCATE-NAEYC Program Review Report was submitted on February 1, 2006. 

Goal 4: Evaluation of the Current Curriculum

Plans are being formulated to reorganize the curriculum so that it reflects clearly the following standards promulgated by our specific professional association, the National Association for the Education of Young Children:

a)      Promoting Child Development and Learning

b)      Building Family and Community Relationships

c)      Observing, Documenting, and Assessing to Support Young Children and Families

d)      Teaching and Learning

e)      Becoming a Professional