Post-Baccalaureate Teacher Licensure Program
Teacher Licensure Programs
Since its founding in 1838, Westfield State University has been a leader in teacher preparation. We are happy to welcome you as a prospective teacher.
The Division of Graduate and Continuing Education sponsors and supports a variety of licensure programs. The information in this section is designed for students who have a bachelor’s degree and now wish to be certified as a teacher or want to earn an additional licensure in Massachusetts.
Our vision is the outgrowth of community discussions among education faculty, liberal arts and science faculty, students, and prek-12 teachers. Central to all conversations has been the tenet of building learning communities, including the desire to strengthen the ability of teachers to advocate for their students and their profession. At a time of increased accountability, the larger Westfield State University learning community continues its commitment to prepare graduates to educate the children of the Commonwealth. Consequently, all our Teacher Education Programs embrace a vision of Teachers as Leaders Building Learning Communities.
At the Initial Licensure level, learning communities are perceived to be environments where learners share skills and experiences that enhance individual and common goals. Recognizing that leadership takes many forms, we prepare our students to serve the learning communities in a variety of ways: in the classroom, on committees, with parents, and through mentoring and professional development. This preparation is grounded in an awareness of the professional self together with an integration of fundamental theory and practice. And, this knowledge, in turn, supports the development of subsequent relationships: with colleagues, with students, and with the communities our teachers seek to build or change. These professional relationships will define the nature of the learning communities our graduates help to create and the context for their community leadership.
Initial Licensure programs are performance-based and designed so that our candidates will be able to meet both subject matter and pedagogical outcomes:
- The candidate can describe/explain the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) he or she teaches and can create learning experiences that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful for students.
- The candidate can describe and discuss how children learn and develop, and can provide learning opportunities that support their intellectual, social and personal development.
- The candidate can describe/explain how students differ in their approaches to learning and create instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners.
- The candidate uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students’ development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.
- The candidate creates a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
- The candidate uses a variety of instructional media to foster student learning, and collaboration.
- The candidate plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals.
- The candidate uses formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and ensure the continuous intellectual, social and physical development of the learner.
- The candidate is a reflective practitioner who continually evaluates the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community) and who actively seeks out opportunities to grow professionally.
The candidate fosters relationships with school colleagues, parents, and agencies in the larger community to support students’ learning and well-being.
Additional Requirements
PROGRAM OF STUDY FOR TEACHER OF EARLY CHILDHOOD, PreK-2
General curriculum coursework meeting subject matter outcomes:
ART 0106 Art Survey or ART 0104 Design Fundamentals
MUSC 0101 Music Appreciation or MUSC 0110 Basic Music Theory
ENGL 0104 Intro to Theatre (may be substituted for art or music course)
HIST 0131 US History & Government to 1865
PHYS 0101 Physical Science
PSYC 0101 Intro to Psychology (prerequisite to PSYC 0202/0203)
BIOL 0102 Environmental Biology or BIOL 0104 Human Biology or BIOL 0106 Biology Today
MATH 0153 Foundations: Number Systems or MATH 0251 Foundations: Geometry or MATH 0252 Foundations: Data Analysis & Probability
GARP 0210 Cultural Geography or GARP 0101 World Regional Geography
HIST 0213 World History to 1600
Mathematics or Science Elective
Professional coursework meeting pedagogical outcomes:
EDUC 0220 Schools in American Culture OR EDUC 0633 Social Cultural Theories
EDUC 0201 Learning and Assessment
EDUC 0221/0540 Introduction to Students with Exceptional Learning Needs
EDUC 0303/0503 Early Literacy & Reading
EDUC 0305/0505 Literature & the Language Arts
EDUC 0308/0508 Early Childhood Curriculum
EDUC 0309/0509 Children’s Literature OR Other children’s literature course
EDUC 0314/0514 Classroom Management
EDUC 0319/0519 Principles of Teaching & Learning
EDUC 0363/0631 Sheltered English Immersion
EDUC 0380/0580 Multicultural Education
EDUC 0381/0581 Early Intervention for Young Children with Special Needs
EDUC 0396/0596 Seminar: Recent Developments: Computers in Education OR Other ISTE standards-based technology course
PSYC 0202 Child Development
GNSC 0360/0560 Methods of Science Education for PreK-6
MATH 0352/0552 Foundations of Teaching Mathematics
MOVP 0212 Concepts of Nutrition
MOVP 0301 Physical Education in the Elementary School
MOVP 0303 Health Education in the Elementary School
EDUC 0536 Practicum: Early Childhood (PreK-2)
Note: Field Experiences in pre-practicum courses must be in a variety of educational settings. Either a 30-hour pre-practicum experience or the practicum/practicum equivalent must be in an educational setting with a diverse student population.
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