Elementary/Early Childhood Education Department

The Elementary/Early Childhood Education Department, accredited by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), seeks to have students acquire the knowledge, skills, and dispositions essential for becoming successful members of the teaching profession.

The Elementary/Early Childhood Education Department supports a constructivist model of teaching and learning, which has as its foundation the developmental theories of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. Ten standards, based on the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) standards, define constructivist teaching and provide a performance based process for preparing preschool through sixth grade teachers.

New undergraduate students are admitted to California University as pre-education majors, with a concentration in Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education, or Elementary and Early Childhood Education (dual certification major).  Click Elementary/Early Childhood Education Student Resources for additional information.