Online Bachelor of Science Early Childhood Education

Early childhood education and development benefits children, their families and their communities. The early years of a child's life is the most critical time of growth and learning. In fact, 85 percent of a child's brain develops by age five, before a child even enters school. Early childhood specialists have a tremendous influence on shaping a child's future, helping young children to thrive, learn and transition successfully to elementary school.

Degree Objectives

The Early Childhood Development Major focuses on understanding the learning and development during the early childhood years. Students will learn about the cognitive, language and social/emotional development of young children within the context of family and community studies. Although this track and degree do not result in a teaching certification, students also learn about general and early education practices and curricula.

This program provides theoretical and practical knowledge in the following areas:

• Educational Psychology

• Early childhood programs and curriculum

• Child development

• Early social and emotional development

• Special needs of children and their families

• Community and young children

• Teaching beginning literacy, math and science

FIU's B.S. in Early Childhood Education prepares students for a meaningful career focused on early childhood development. With a growing body of research that underscores the importance of early childhood education and development, there is increasing demand for high quality early care and education, and in turn, increasing demand for early childhood specialists in a variety of early childhood settings.

The Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education – Early Childhood Development Major, is a total of 120 credits, 60 each in both upper and lower division courses.

Professional Education Courses

There are a total of 30 credit hours taken in the area of professional education courses focusing on foundations, teaching methods and curriculum and early childhood education.

Foundations

Classroom Management   EDF 3251
Provides teachers understanding, skills and dispositions for successful classroom management.   Prerequisite: EDP 3004. Co-requisite: EDG 3321

Cultural/Social Foundations of Education   EDF 4604
Examines the cultural and social realities of teaching and learning in the U.S. Questions of class, race, ethnicity, gender and language are discussed.

Educational Psychology   EDP 3004
Application of principles for understanding individual differences, learning, adjustment, classroom environments and assessment to instructional and educational issues. Challenges of diversity and teacher effectiveness are addressed.

General Instruction Decision Making   EDG 3321
Instructional decisions facing classroom teachers including HOTS, multiple intelligence, learning styles, technology, theory and models of instruction.   Co-requisite: EDF 3251

Teaching Methods and Curriculum

Art in Early Childhood   EEC 3242
Principles, methods and materials for teaching music, movement, visual arts, and dramatic play in an early childhood setting.

ESOL Principles and Practices   TSL 3080
Introduces issues, principles and practices of teaching English to speakers of other languages.

Teaching Students with Exceptionalities in Inclusive Settings   EEX 3070
Focuses on the foundations of inclusive education, characteristics of students with disabilities, instructional strategies and collaboration among educators and parents.

Early Childhood Education

Early Childhood Educational Programs   EEC 4005
Philosophy and theories of early childhood education programs; physical, emotional, social and cognitive development. 

Issues in Early Childhood Education   EEC 3204
Introduces issues related to schooling of children age three through grade 3. 

Special Needs of Children and their Families   EEC 3403
Focus on understanding family problems, children’s behavior and intervention methods.

Early Development Courses

After completing the core professional education courses, students take a total of 30 credit hours in the area of early development that includes a focus on child development, family and community studies as well as literacy, language and reading development.

Child Development

Assessment, Evaluation and Diagnosis of the Young Child   EDP 4275
Intellectual, emotional and personality assessment of young children.   Prerequisite: EDP 3273

Child Development   EDP 3273
Examination of child growth and development from conception to age 8.  

Early Social and Emotional Development   EDP 4274

Personality, social and emotional development in early childhood.
 Prerequisite: EDP 3273

Family and Community Studies

Communities, Families and Young Children   EEC 3408
This course focuses on the varying cultural contexts of young children and the influences these environmental elements have on child development.

Family Literacy and the Young Child   EEC 3400

This course will provide an understanding of family literacy within the context of language and culture and introduce students to school and home-based literacy methods.

Literacy/Language/Reading Development

Children’s Literature   LAE 4405  
Focuses on the exploration of children’s literature and its role in early childhood classrooms. Current theories and methods about integrating literature into all curriculum areas from a developmentally appropriate practice perspective will be discussed.

Language and Literacy Development   RED 3313

Introduces linguistic elements of English, language development, emergent literacy, and their impact on L1 and L2 students.

Pre-Selected Elective Courses

Students also take 9 hours of pre-selected elective courses.

Education in History   EDF 3521
An examination of the concepts of childhood, and process of social initiation in differing historical American contexts. This course examines the transformation of the American public school system as it reflects the social, political and economic character of the development of the nation from 1620 to present.

Integrated Math and Science in Early Childhood   EEC 4211
This course prepares pre-service teachers to understand developmentally appropriate practices in math and science for young children and apply them to real-world integrated settings.

Play and Development of Social Competence   EEC 3315
To examine the role of play behaviors as they relate to social competence and academic development in the early years.

To ensure every student’s success, we have certain admissions requirements for each of our programs. To help you through the application process, our enrollment advisors are here to answer your questions and guide you every step of the way.

Please note This track does not result in teacher certification.  Licensure requirements may vary by state, which may include specific course requirements.  Please check with the Department of Education where you intend to teach to confirm certification requirements.

FIU Admission Requirements

Applications are accepted for Spring, Fall and Summer terms.

Steps to Apply

First Year Students

Please submit the following:

• Online application
• $30 application fee.
• Official SAT, ACT snd/or CLT scores.
• Official high school transcripts.

Transfer Students

Please submit the following:

• Online application
• $30 application fee.
• Official college transcripts.
• If you have less than 60 transferable college credits, you must also submit official high school transcripts and SAT, ACT snd/or CLT scores in addition to any transcripts from postsecondary schools to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

Returning Students

Returning students must meet the current university and degree-specific requirements to be admitted. For more details, FIU has policies for students who left FIU.

   Please submit the following:

• Online application
• $30 application fee
• Updated official transcripts

International Students

In addition to the above requirements, international applicants should submit:

• Official English Language Proficiency exam scores (TOEFL or IELTS).
• Official translations of any transcripts, if not in English.
• If you have less than 60 transferrable college credits, you must also submit official high school transcripts with translation.

Program Admission Requirements

The below requirements for full admission into the Early Childhood Development program may be completed at FIU.

• A minimum lower-division GPA of 2.5 or better on a 4.0 scale.

• 60 credit hours of lower division coursework.

• University Core/General Education or an A.A. degree from a Florida public, accredited institution.

Admission Documents

To complete the online undergraduate programs admissions form, select your program from the application form. You may complete the online application and submit it, even before taking any entrance exams. All supporting admission documents may be sent to:
Florida International University
Office of Undergraduate Admissions
P.O. Box 659003
Miami, FL 33265-9003
USA

FIU also accepts transcripts electronically via:

• Faster (All FL public institutions)

• Naviance (Typically used by private high schools)

• SMART/Joint Service Transcript – Military records

*Meeting the university minimum requirements does not guarantee admission

We’re thrilled that you’re considering online education and want you to know exactly what to expect for tuition and fees. Education is an investment in your future. Use the following student tuition and fees calculator to determine your costs.