Early Childhood Education/Early Childhood Special Education - Associate of Arts in Teaching Degree (Transfer)
Application Code 254
For curriculum information, contact the Social Sciences and Teacher Education Division – Room ST-149—443-518-1620.
Early Childhood Education is defined as grades Pre-K through three in the state of Maryland. This curriculum prepares students to transfer to an Early Childhood Education or Early Childhood Special Education program at a four-year college or university in the state of Maryland. The Associate of Arts in Teaching (A.A.T.) degree has been articulated with all of the transfer programs in early childhood education in the state of Maryland. Students who receive the A.A.T. degree must have a cumulative G.P.A. of 2.75, *pass a required basic skills test, and **complete 45 hours of field experience. Upon completion of the A.A.T. degree, students are eligible to be admitted as an early childhood education major at their Maryland transfer institution.
General Education Core
Students enrolled in transfer patterns must take a minimum of 30 credits in General Education. Each student’s total of general education and required courses must equal at least 60 semester hours of credit.
English Composition
Arts & Humanities
Social & Behavioral Sciences
Biological & Physical Sciences
Mathematics
Core Electives - Select one of the following:
Required Courses Related to Major
| EDUC-111 | Child Growth and Development | 3 |
| EDUC-112 | Methods and Materials in Early Childhood Education | 3 |
| EDUC-130 | Introduction to Early Childhood Education | 3 |
| EDUC-200 | Introduction to Special Education | 3 |
| EDUC-201 | Processes and Acquisition of Reading | 3 |
| GEOG-101 | Introduction to World Geography | 3 |
| MATH-127 | Concepts of Mathematics I | 4 |
| MATH-128 | Concepts of Mathematics II | 4 |
| PHYS-106 | Earth and Space Science | 4 |
| SOCI-101 | Introduction to Sociology | 3 |
A graduate should be able to
- 1. Explain the major concepts, principles, theories, and research related to development of children and young adolescents to construct learning opportunities that support individual students’ development, acquisition of knowledge, and motivation.
- 2. Use the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of content for students across the K-8 grades and be able to create meaningful learning experiences that develop student competence in subject matter for various developmental levels.
- 3. Plan and implement instruction based on knowledge of students, learning theory, subject matter, curriculum goals, and community.
- 4. Describe how students differ in their development and approaches to learning, and create instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners.
- 5. Use a variety of teaching strategies that encourage students’ development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.
- 6. Apply their knowledge and understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior among students K-8 to foster active engagement in learning, self-motivation, and positive social interaction and to create supportive learning environments.
- 7. Use formal and informal assessment strategies to plan, evaluate, and strengthen instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social, emotional, and physical development of each student.
- 8. Evaluate the effects of their professional ethical and legal decisions and ethical and legal actions on students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community and actively seek out opportunities to grow professionally.
- 9. Discuss the importance of establishing and maintaining a positive collaborative relationship with families to promote the intellectual, social, emotional, and physical growth of children.
- 10. Access, evaluate, and process information efficiently and effectively.
- 11. Use technology effectively and appropriately to interact electronically.
- 12. Use technology to communicate information in a variety of formats.
- 13. Identify the legal, social, and ethical issues related to technology use.
Total Credit Hours: 63
*Students in a Teacher Education transfer pattern must submit qualifying scores as established by the State Superintendent of Schools on pre-professional basic skills tests (e.g., SAT, ACT, PRAXIS/CORE) approved by the State Board of Education to the Social Sciences and Teacher Education division prior to the completion of the 30th credit hour. Scores from the basic skills tests are used for admission to four-year Teacher Education programs and are required for teacher certification in Maryland and most other states.
**Students are required to complete 15 hours of field experience for each of the following courses as part of the degree requirements: EDUC-110, EDUC-200, and EDUC-260.
The Introduction to Special Education course required by Howard Community College is a necessary requirement of the College’s A.A.T. degree but is not sufficient to meet all special education or inclusion course requirements for four-year teacher education programs. Students may be required to take additional special education or inclusion courses as part of the requirements for a baccalaureate degree and teacher education certification at four-year institutions.