Elementary Education

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Abigail Fuller, Ed.D.

Chair of the Education Department; Associate Professor of Education

Email:

abigail.fuller@avemaria.edu

Phone:

(239) 280-1631

Office:

Canizaro Library 229

Daniel Guernsey, Ed.D.

Associate Professor of Education; Director of M.Ed. in Catholic Educational Leadership Program

Email:

dan.guernsey@avemaria.edu

Phone:

(239) 304-7010

Office:

Canizaro Library 170

Erin O'Guinn, Ed.D.

Assistant Professor of Education

Email:

erin.oguinn@avemaria.edu

Phone:

(239) 304-7932

Office:

Canizaro Library 230

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In �鶹��ý��’s Education major you will experience:

Up to date teaching standards, expectations, and best practices, but rooted firmly in the liberal arts and resting on a deep understanding of the dignity of the human person as a son or daughter of God.
Extensive hands-on experiences in real classrooms under trained master teachers during each of the 4 semesters of the major.
Immediate and intimate access to caring professors with extensive degrees and years of service in small classes of about 15 students.
100% contract offers to program completers before graduation
Double the state average of first-time pass rates for all sections of the Florida K-6 Teacher Exam

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�鶹��ý�� is located in the Collier County Public school district and works closely with them. The district is currently growing and experiencing a real need for teachers. Our graduates will on average have spent a total of 40 or more full days serving as aids in at least 3 different schools over the period of three semesters, and another full 14 weeks of student teaching in the schools. A number of our faculty are also active K-6 teachers, trainers, and administrators ensuring the most up to date, relevant and real-world formation by those working in the field. Our graduates are ready to move right into a public or private school teaching position.

We are also extremely well connected to various dioceses and Catholic school networks around the nation seeking faithful teachers. Catholic school leaders are especially interested in hiring our uniquely well-formed graduates to enhance the academic quality and authentic Catholic identity of their schools. Ave Maria means excellence!

Because of your liberal arts core preparation, Classical schools, including many of the growing number of classical charter schools, are desperate for our graduates. Many �鶹��ý��graduates are already active in these schools and their leaders come directly to us seeking to fill the growing need, not just for teachers, but teachers “who get” the classical tradition and are well versed with first-hand experience in a liberal arts environment. Something �鶹��ý��is uniquely positioned to deliver, even among other faithful Catholic schools.

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Required Courses for the Major (64 total credits)

EDUC 201 Educational Foundations (4 credits)

EDUC 203 Career Path (0 credits)

EDUC 204 Practicum I (2 credits)

EDUC 210 Measurement and Assessment in the Classroom (3 credits)

EDUC 220 Instructional Strategies (3 credits)

EDUC 230 Reading Instruction: Principles and Methods (3 credits)

EDUC 240 Classroom Management and Organization (3 credits)

EDUC 250 ESOL Foundations (3 credits)

EDUC 302 Educational Psychology (4 credits)

EDUC 304 Practicum II (2 credits)

EDUC 310 Teaching Social Studies in the Classroom (3 credits)

EDUC 330 Reading Instruction: Assessment and Differentiation (3 credits)

EDUC 340 Teaching Diverse and Exceptional Students (3 credits)

EDUC 350 ESOL: Curriculum and Methods (3 credits)

EDUC 370 Teaching Language Arts in the Classroom (3 credits)

EDUC 380 Teaching Mathematics in the Classroom (3 credits)

EDUC 390 Teaching Science in the Classroom (3 credits)

EDUC 400 Internship with Seminar (14 credits)

EDUC 404 Practicum III (2 credits)

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Required Courses for the Minor

EDUC 201 Educational Foundations (4 credits)

EDUC 210 Measurement and Assessment in the Classroom (3 credits)

EDUC 220 Instructional Strategies (3 credits)

EDUC 240 Classroom Management and Organization (3 credits)

EDUC 302 Educational Psychology (4 credits)

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The Elementary (K-6th) Education major seeks to further teaching, inquiry, and scholarship in the field of education with a special focus on Catholic and classical education. While examining the field of education using methodologies and practices proper to the discipline, the program will maintain a deliberate and explicit foundation in the philosophical and theological insights of the Catholic tradition, especially its understandings related to the nature and dignity of the human person, the nature of Truth, and the unity of all knowledge as ultimately rooted in the order of creation and God.

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COURSE ROTATION

ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

BSN HANDBOOK

Will successful completion of this program result in a Florida teaching license
Yes! �鶹��ý��’s education major is approved by the state of Florida as an initial teacher preparation program. Graduates qualify for Florida professional certification for grades K-6, including ESOL and Reading Endorsements. We will stamp your transcripts with this certification. You will submit these transcripts to the Florida Department of Education and once confirmed they will issue your license!

What if I want to teach in another state immediately after graduation?
In most cases, reciprocity agreements between the states make getting a license from another state relatively easy after you graduate from AMU’s approved program. We will assist you in this transition, which may sometimes also involve taking the target state’s teachers exams; but once you pass Florida’s exams you will be well prepared, as teacher exams can be quite similar. You should contact your target state’s department of education and let them know that you are graduating a state-approved teacher preparation program in a regionally accredited university and they can talk you through any additional steps, if any to get your license from them.

How do I get certified to teach exceptional (“special needs”) students?
In Florida, as in many states, you can add endorsements to your basic teaching license. Florida lets you take a fill-in-the-bubble exam after graduation to add an Exceptional Student Education endorsement. Our program will partially prepare you for this exam. Additional test preparation resources are readily available online.

What if I want to teach high school?
�鶹��ý��is great preparation for high school teachers! Our graduates are highly sought after by high schools and many of our graduates get multiple high school job offers before graduation, even without a teaching license. We cannot even come close to meeting the demand high schools have for our graduates.

We recommend that those who want to teach high school major in the discipline they would like to teach with an education minor. The minor will provide most critical coursework necessary for high school teaching and help prepare you for teacher certification exams. Possession of the minor will signal your potential high school employers that you have both deep subject matter competency and basic teaching skills, and assist in your job application.

After you graduate with your discipline-specific BA of BS with a teaching minor, you will pursue what most states call “alternative certification.” You will usually first get a three year temporary teaching certificate and then over the next few years demonstrate successful teaching on the job, take any remaining coursework (may or may not be required depending upon your state and can be done online) and pass any of your target state’s required teacher exams. Every state has its own requirements, please contact the Chair of the Education Department for full details and assistance in planning your post-graduation teacher training.

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