Early Childhood Education Program

Inspire a lifelong love of learning.

UIndy's Early Childhood Education program fosters, embraces, and celebrates human diversity. Building upon UIndy’s demonstrated success in the K-12 classroom, our program focuses on laying the social, emotional, and academic foundation necessary to promote a lifelong love of learning.

You can enter the field of Early Childhood Education at UIndy!

UIndy provides two unique pathways to a Pre K - 3^rd grade teaching license: Early Childhood Education program and an Ivy Tech 2+2 program.

UIndy offers a 21-hour program in Early Childhood Education embedded within the Elementary Education Program. There are a number of benefits to students:

Greater level of specialization and expertise
- Child development and learning
- Learning environments
- Role of family and culture
Increased job opportunities
- Better job placement in a growing field of education
- More flexible career directions
  - School settings
  - Family support agencies
  - Social and human services
  - Other businesses / organizations serving early childhood

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Multi-track Program Design

This program innovatively responds to traditional and nontraditional students by offering a four-year face-to-face experience for traditional undergraduate students and by offering an articulation agreement with hybrid and online options for students who have an associate’s degree in early childhood education.

Tracks:
- Traditional 4-year program (traditional undergraduate, primarily day classes; 8 semesters) in Elementary Education with an additional 21 credit hours in Early Childhood Education Minor courses.
  - Degree Bachelor of Arts Elementary Education with Early Childhood Education (and Mild Intervention Minor)
    - Licensure K-6, Pre-K (age 3) – Grade 3
- Ivy Tech 2+2 TSAP Agreement (Primarily day classes; 4 semesters)
  - Degree Bachelor of Arts Early Childhood Education with Mild Intervention Minor
    - Licensure Pre-K (Age 3) - Grade 3

Global & Multicultural Emphasis

Early Childhood Education students will work with children from varied cultures in their multiple Pre-K through grade 3 field experiences in local schools. Through their classes, they will explore the varied influencers on early childhood education including Froebel, Montessori, Steiner, Malaguzzi (Reggio Emilia), and Vygostsky.

Pre-K (Age 3) - Grade 3 & Mild Intervention License

Often the first people beyond family to spend time with children, Early Childhood Teachers have the important role of creating inclusive learning environments where all students thrive and want to learn. They also have the added responsibility of helping identify students with special needs. Early identification and interventions can help children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development. By incorporating the mild intervention coursework into the Early Childhood curriculum, UIndy candidates are better prepared to support all learners, including those with special needs.

Wholistic, Child Centered, Authentic Approach

Building upon early learners' natural curiosity, this program will help teachers learn to use play and other developmentally appropriate child centered activity as a context for teaching and learning. There will be opportunities to explore how both child-initiated and teacher-supported learning can occur simultaneously.

Integrated & Interdisciplinary Content

Incorporating all content areas, from art and music to math and reading, into rich interdisciplinary units gives preschoolers and primary students an opportunity to experience the world in authentic, meaningful ways. UIndy Early Childhood candidates will learn to engage children's interests and implement them in Pre K to grade 3 classrooms

Preschool & Primary Field Experiences

To complement the coursework, UIndy Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education candidates have the opportunity to put theory into practice when they spend time in actual Preschool and Primary classrooms. Working under the belief that learning and doing are inseparable, UIndy candidates get practical experience in real classrooms culminating with student teaching placements in both a Preschool and Primary Classroom.

diverse experiences high job placement

Diverse Opportunities and Experiences

Through this program, students will work in a variety of urban, suburban, rural, charter, and private school environments to determine which setting is best for them as a future educator. These environments will provide opportunities to learn, hands-on, how to create, develop, and nurture relationships within local, global, and international communities. Students of the Early Childhood Education program will also work within the Indianapolis community through supervised classes and travel internationally for teaching opportunities, if available.

High Job Placement

UIndy School of Education graduates have enjoyed a 100% job placement rate for the last several years (collected via alumni survey)! While many graduates choose to accept teaching positions within the Hoosier state, some also choose to teach outside of Indiana.