Early Childhood Education BS
Program Purpose
In the Early Childhood Education Program, "we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, and we prophecy of Christ…that our children may know to what source they may look…" (2 Nephi 25: 26). The goal is to prepare you to work with young children, recognizing the importance of development, support, spiritual guidance, and care.
As you participate in the Early Childhood Education program, you will:
- Deepen your understanding of the principles, theories, and practices of early childhood education.
- Foster, articulate, and enact your personal philosophy to teach children, supporting their social-emotional, cognitive, and physical needs.
- Design, implement, and reflect upon learning opportunities for young children in both the BYU Child and Family Studies Laboratory and local, public-school settings.
- Collaborate with families, educators, and communities to build relationships that promote meaningful learning and growth for all children.
Experiences in the program will help you develop the expertise and disposition to bless the lives of others in a variety of early childhood settings. Your commitment to early childhood education, advocacy, and realizing one's full potential will foster your own personal and spiritual growth, serving you throughout life.
Curricular Structure
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the Early Childhood Education Program, teacher candidates meet the needs of early childhood students through competencies related to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and the Utah Effective Teaching Standards (UETS). The four primary learning outcomes of this program include:
1. Learner Development and DifferencesTeacher candidates draw from Gospel truths to integrate knowledge of child development and learner differences to support children and their families and advocate for equitable access to learning for all children.
Teacher candidates use discipline-specific concepts, tools of inquiry, learning trajectories, and spiritual insights to facilitate engaging and equitable learning experiences for all children.
Teacher candidates create and foster nurturing pedagogy by providing meaningful learning experiences and supportive environments for all learners through developmentally, culturally, and spiritually informed practices.
Teacher candidates demonstrate the highest standard of professional conduct as they advocate for young children and their families, engage in renewal through reflection, recognize the divine potential of all God's children, and collaborate with stakeholders to build a shared vision for student growth.
Evidence of Learning
Assessment Tools
The Early Childhood Education program has established four transition points (admission to the program, preclinical phase, post-clinical phase, and alumni) for assessing teacher candidates. At each of these transition points, teacher candidates are evaluated on multiple, common assessments developed and established by the faculty. These assessments include, but are not limited to, evaluations of academic performance (lesson plans, cases studies, teacher work samples, etc.), professional and interpersonal behavior measures, dispositional measures, and clinical practice measures, all of which are linked and tied to the program aims and UETS standards.
Data for major assessments are collected through the use of MYLink as the unit data management system, which facilitates the creation, sharing, saving, and storing of information, assignments, assessments and other artifacts to be used as evidence of candidate performance. Candidate work samples are stored on MYLink as well. Data are exportable to display software such as FileMaker Pro and Excel for program and unit reports.
Direct Measures
BYU Professional Teacher Candidate Assessment (TCA)
PRAXIS II Subject Assessment: Elementary Education
Utah Foundations of Reading Assessment (UFORA)
Indirect Measures
Current syllabi for these courses can be found at syllabi.byu.edu.
1. Learner Development
Successful completion of: ECE 202, ECE 335
2. Learning Differences
Successful completion of:CPSE 300, ELED 203, SFL 352, SFL 355
3. Learning Environments
Successful completion of:ECE 335
4. Content Knowledge
Successful completion of: ELED 323, ECE 433, Math 305, Music 378, ELED 340, ECE 445, ECE 446, ECE 447
5. Assessment
Successful completion of:ELED 213, ECE 336
6. Instructional Planning
Successful completion of: ELED 213, ECE 336
7. Instructional Strategies
Successful completion of: ECE 336, ECE 433, ECE 445, ECE 446, ECE 447
8. Reflection and Continuous Growth
Successful completion of: ECE 331, ECE 332, ECE 441,ECE 442, ECE 425
9. Leadership and Collaboration
Successful completion of:ECE 442, ECE 425
10. Professional and Ethical Behavior
Successful completion of: ECE 441
The following surveys are used to gather data for program evaluation:
- BYU Senior Survey
- BYU Alumni Survey
- Employer Survey by Educational Benchmarks Inc (EBI)
Learning and Teaching Assessment and Improvement
Analysis, Evaluation, and Improvement Process
Faculty members and administrative leaders in the Department of Teacher Education analyze and evaluate the generated data and assessment outcomes at regular intervals associated with the four major transition points. This analysis takes place with reports generated by and through the Assessment Team. These reports are prepared at the end of each semester, providing summaries of student performance as well as access to the artifacts and assessments that produced the data. These summaries are reviewed by administrative leaders and the faculty at large in identifying program strengths and weaknesses. Through thoughtful discussion and debate, consensus is reached, targets/goals for change are identified, and procedures are put in place to achieve the goals. When and if necessary, proposals are forwarded to the University Council on Teacher Education and the University Curriculum Committee for approval.
Unit level analysis, evaluation, and improvement occur on a systematic basis. Under the direction of the Educator Preparation Program Executive Committee, assessment instruments are developed, tested, implemented, evaluated, and revised for the EPP. Data are aggregated and reported to the respective programs. Comparisons are made within and between programs.
Assessment Scales