(Non-teacher Certification Degree)
The Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Studies (ECS) prepares professionals who will serve young children, their families, and the agencies that support them both. This degree program will assist graduates in becoming advocates for children from diverse family structures and will provide them with the critical knowledge to advance the intellectual life of the children and families they serve.
Program Overview
This program is for candidates wishing to work with young children, from birth through preschool. The program offers opportunities to combine theory and practice through application experiences in early childhood settings. The Early Childhood Studies Program offers a choice of specialization with the following emphases: birth to three years, special needs students, or agency leadership. These specialization options are designed to meet the professional goals of each candidate.
The bachelor’s degree satisfies the Head Start Reauthorization Act of 2007 that at least 50% of Head Start teachers have a baccalaureate degree in early childhood education by September 2013. Degree completion does not lead to a Washington State Teaching Certificate.
Program Admission Requirements
The minimum requirements for entering the program are the completion of the ECS alternative General University Course Requirements (Options II-VI), as approved by the ECS director, or an AA/DTA degree and a cumulative GPA of 2.6. Also, students must have a program selection interview. Students short of meeting these requirements will be considered with the approval of the associate dean of Residency Teacher Preparation Programs in the College of Education and Psychology.
Candidates must meet all background screening, as required by the university; Washington State licensure requirements; and the Washington State Department of Early Learning.
Specialization Choice
Candidates make a decision by the end of the third semester of course work in an area they wish to specialize in. Choose one area of emphasis:
- Birth to three specialization
- Special needs students: Birth to five specialization
- Agency leadership
Total specialization credits: 9
Application Experiences
Application experiences are required each semester for candidates to apply the knowledge, skills, and dispositions required in that semester’s course work. These application experiences will give candidates the opportunity to learn at the infant, toddler, and preschool levels. These application experiences should include both private and public settings. Professors will work with candidates who have full-time work responsibilities in order to design meaningful observation opportunities.
Elements of each application experience include:
- Analysis of context
- Application of theory and practice in professional situations to demonstrate their impact on children’s learning
- Demonstration of candidate’s impact on children’s learning
- Development and updating of candidate’s professional growth plan based on NAEYC and Washington State competencies
- Development of reflective practice skills
- Each experience course will include time spent in a variety of locations, reflective journal, and seminars
- Development and continual updating of initial advocacy statement
Senior Project and Specialization Internship in Early Learning, with Focus on Area of Emphasis
- Research project based on assessment, instruction, and impact on children’s learning and area of specialization
- Presentation to PEAB, Heritage University faculty, and ECS professional community leaders
- Advocacy paper “Iit”ernship in area of specialization
- Internship based on agreement of faculty and advisor; internship arrangements will take into account employee and family obligations
- Demonstration of impact on child and family learning
1. ECS Alternative General University Course Requirements................................................. 61-67 credits
Or
AA/DTA........................................................................................................................... 60 credits
2. Major Requirements ..................................................................................................... 66 credits
ECS 300W Literacy Development.............................................................................................. 3
PSY 330 Child Development and Learning............................................................................... 4
PSY 331 Applied Experience for Child Development and Learning ............................................. 1
ED 311 Learning in an Online Program.................................................................................. 1
ECS 301 Early Childhood Literacy Development....................................................................... 3
PSY 333 Observation, Documentation, and Assessment of Young Children..5
PSY 334 Appl. Exp. for Observation, Documentation, and Assessment of Young Children............. 1
ECS 302W Issues in Early Learning............................................................................................ 2
BLE 307 Language Acquisition................................................................................................ 3
ECS 305 Developmentally Effective Instructional Practices Aligned with Approaches
to Learning and Assessments.................................................................................. 4
ECS 306 Appl. Experience for Developmentally Effective Instructional
Practices Aligned with Approaches to Learning and Assessments................................. 1
ECS 308 Diversity and Cultural Competence in Young Children and Families............................. 3
ECS 309 Appl. Experience for Early Learning Curriculum Domains:
Language, Literacy, and Communication................................................................. 1
ECS 400 Early Learning Curriculum Domains: Language, Literacy, and Comm.......................... 3
ECS 401 Appl. Experience for Early learning Curriculum.......................................................... 1
ECS 404 Early Learning for Curriculum Domains: Social, Emotional
Development, Physical Well-Being, Health, and Motor Development............................ 3
ECS 405 Appl. Experience for Curriculum Domains: Social, Emotional
Development, Physical Well-Being, Health, and Motor Development............................ 1
ECS 408 Early Learning Curriculum Domains: Cognitive and General Knowledge........................ 3
ECS 409 Appl. Experience Curriculum Domains: Cognitive and General Knowledge.................... 1
ECS 410 Collaboration and Communication in Early Learning................................................... 2
ECS 411 Appl. Experience Collaboration and Communication in Early Learning......................... 1
ECS 495W Senior Internship and Project.............................................................................. 8-10
Select One Area of Specialization..................................................................................... 6-8 credits
Birth to Three Specialization
ECS 415W Infant Development: The First Three Years of Life....................................................... 3
ECS 416 Educating Infants: Environment for Learning.............................................................. 2
ECS 417 Play Theory............................................................................................................ 3
Special Needs Students: Birth to Five Specialization
SPED 430 Introduction to Special Education............................................................................. 3
SPED 420 Methods in Early Childhood..................................................................................... 2
SPED 433 Behavior Management and Positive Behavior Support................................................. 3
Agency Leadership Specialization
ECS 421 Adult Development and Organizational Foundations for Program Admin...................... 3
ECS 425 Leadership Theory and Practice in Early Learning Sites............................................. 3
Minimum total credits 126, including 48 upper-division credits