Early Childhood Education B.S.

The B.S. in Early Childhood Education degree program prepares students for careers in teaching, serving pupils from pre-kindergarten through 4th grade in schools, childcare settings, and child-focused agencies. The professional core courses, competencies, and experiences for the PreK-4 teacher preparation program develop teachers who are prepared to serve children and their families. The program also offers a concentration in Special Education for those who want to work with children facing learning and developmental challenges.

Graduates are certified to teach in preschool, kindergarten, and primary classrooms from grades 1-4 in Pennsylvania.

The initial teacher preparation and advanced educator programs in the School of Nursing, Education, and Human Studies have been accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (2020-2027). The B. S. in Early Childhood Education at Robert Morris University is accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Early Childhood Higher Education Programs of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (September 2021-September 2023).

Click here to view Early Childhood Education Program Accreditation Outcome Data.

Contact Information

Susan W. Parker, Ph.D.
Department Head, Education
parkers@rmu.edu
412-397-6245

4-Year Course Plan

Freshman Year, Fall (16 credits)

• *CSEN 1010 Reading & Writing Strategies OR CSEN 1020 Argument and Research
• PSYC 1010 General Psychology
• MATH 1050 Reasoning & Applications (B Skills)
• SOCI 1010 Principles of Sociology
• EDUC 1500 Foundations of Education
• Freshman Seminar (1 credit)
• Obtain three required clearances

* Depending on Placement Test

Freshman Year, Spring (15 credits)

• CSEN 1020 Argument & Research or CSCM 1030 Public Speaking & Persuasion
• SCIE 1020 Fundamentals of Science
• MATH 2010 Fundamental Concepts of Math (B Sk)
• HUMA 1010 Humanities: Art/Music
• EDUC 2100 Ed Psychology

Sophomore Year, Fall (15 credits)

• CSEN 1030 Public Speaking & Persuasion OR CSCM Intercultural Communication
• Any Intro Level Science
• GEOG 1020 World Geography
• PSYC 3535 Child Development
• ELIT 1070 Children’s Literature
• Apply for Candidacy Status

Sophomore Year, Spring (18 credits)

• CSCM 2040 Professional Communication
• HIST 1100 U.S. History I OR HIST 1200 U.S. History II
• ECON 1010 Survey of Economies
• ECED 2120 Early Literature & Language Development
• SDIN 2010 Intro. to Special Education K to 12 
• SDIN 3030 Cl. Mgmt. / Pos Bhvr Supp K-12

Junior Year, Fall (15 credits)

• Candidacy Status Required To Proceed
• ECED 3500 Developmentally App. Practices
• EDUC 2200 Tech for Teachers (or soph fall)
• EDUC 3165 Teaching Multi Lang. Learners
• EDUC 3400 Curriculum Inst. / Design
• SDIN 3020 Inclusive Classroom preK-12

Junior Year, Spring (15 credits)

• ECED 3060 Family/Community Relationships
• ECED 4030 Reading/Language Arts Methods
• EDUC 3600 Educational Assessment (prereq 3400)
• ECED  4020 Science Methods
• SDIN 3110 Early Intervention
• Apply for Pre-Student Teaching

Senior Year, Fall (15 credits)

• ECED 4000 Social Studies Methods
• ECED 4010 Math Methods
• ECED 4140 Reading Difficulties & Diagnosis
• ECED 4060 Pre-Student Teaching/Sem (3 credit)
• ECED 0101 Credential Prep (0 credits) if needed
• Elective
• Take Praxis Exam
• Apply for Student Teaching

Senior Year, Spring (12 credits)

• ECED 4200 Student Teaching (9 credits)
• ECED 4210 Student  Teaching Seminar (3)
• Apply for Graduation & PA Certification

Pre-Reqs and other Info:

EDUC 3400 is the pre-requisite for EDUC 3600 & all methods courses ECED 4030, 4020, 4010 and 4000
ECED 4030 is the pre-requisite for ECED 4140
EDUC 2200 & potential new EDUC xxxx/SDIN 3100 DEIB/Multicultural Course can be taken fall of sophomore or junior year

Multicultural course needs to go through curriculum process

SDIN 2010 is the pre-requisite for the other Special ed courses (SDIN 2010 is offered every semester as is SDIN 3020)

Admission Requirements

To receive acceptance to Robert Morris University's education programs, students must meet one of the following sets of academic criteria listed here:

• Freshmen
• Transfer (internal or external)

Additional admission requirements for RMU education programs are available on this page.