Secondary Education (7-12) Major
The secondary education major will prepare you as a professional educator to meet the many challenges of the 21st century classroom, teaching grades 7-12. You will be instructed and mentored by a highly qualified faculty: All full-time and adjunct faculty members in the education department at Cedar Crest are teacher scholars with a minimum of 5 years of teaching experience in K-12 classrooms.
This program leads to Level I certification in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The teacher preparation program at Cedar Crest College is grounded in a strong liberal arts foundation that is aimed at providing our future teachers with a strong background in academic content-area knowledge.
As an undergraduate student in the Cedar Crest College education department, you will co-major in Secondary Education and an academic content area appropriate for certification. Options for this co-major include:
- Biology
- Chemistry
- English
- General Science
- Mathematics
- Social Studies
- Spanish (K-12)
As a Cedar Crest College graduate, you will be more marketable as a teacher because you will have a firm knowledge base in adapting learning for special needs students and English language learners. While teaching positions are open in every content area listed above, school districts are currently expressing difficulty finding certified secondary teachers in science, mathematics, and K-12 Spanish. Successful graduates in these content areas are frequently promised contracts by school districts immediately upon certification.
If you wish, you may also pursue an additional certification in Special Education (7-12). This option is designed to make you even more marketable as a teacher.
Program Highlights
- The opportunity to participate in pre-teaching experiences in urban and suburban settings, beginning year one of your studies, including one experience in a special education setting.
- Faculty members who provide a strong mentoring and support system, helping you select and schedule classes. Also, when you student-teach, your supervisor will go into the classroom with you and provide you with weekly feedback.
- Guaranteed student-teaching placement in a local school district.
- Our superior reputation in school districts in the Lehigh Valley means that students who graduate from Cedar Crest are considered as strong candidates for future employment.
Course Requirements
Click on the boxes below to see the courses required to complete this major.
Secondary Education (7-12)
- EDU 100 Perspectives on Middle Level and Secondary Education 3 credits
- EDU 102 Educational Psychology 3 credits
- EDU 150 Educational Planning 3 credits
- EDU 151 Field Experience I 1 credit
- EDU 207 Technology for Educators 3 credits (Biology, Chemistry and General Science majors are exempted)
- EDU 214 Adolescent Literacy 3 credits
- EDU 215 Field Experience II: Middle Level and Secondary 1 credit
- EDU 346 Curriculum, Assessment and Learning Experiences for Secondary Science and Mathematics 3 credits or EDU 347 Curriculum, Assessment and Learning Experiences for Secondary Social Studies 3 credits or EDU 348 Curriculum, Assessment and Learning Experiences for Secondary English 3 credits or EDU 349 Curriculum, Assessment and Learning Experiences for K-12
- World Language 3 credits
- EDU 350 Field Experience III: Secondary 1 credit
- EDU 351 Assessment I 3 credits
- EDU 352 Assessment II 3 credits
- EDU 359 Teaching the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students 3 credits
- SPE 243 The Exceptional Child 3 credits
- SPE 245 Field Experience IV 1 credit
- SPE 320 Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities 3 credits
- SPE 344 Adaptations, Modifications, and Assistive Technology for the Exceptional Child 3 credits or SPE 250 Subject Area Content Access for Students with Learning Disabilities 3 credits
- EDU 373 Student Teaching: Secondary Schools 9 credits
- EDU 374 Professional Education Seminar 3 credits
Other Required Courses:
- MAT XXX 3 credits
- MAT XXX 3 credits
- WRI 100 3 credits
- ENG XXX [Any American or British Literature course] 3 credits
For students seeking certification in Spanish:
- ENG 303 Linguistics and the Development of the English Language 3 credits
52 credits plus content area and LAC credits
Please note:
*Students may not be enrolled in any other course(s) during the student teaching semester.
Special Education (K-8)
Requirements for students who are Secondary Education Majors or who hold Level I or II Secondary Education Certification. Special Education Certification as an undergraduate requires Dual Certification with Secondary Education.
Secondary Certification Pre-requisites:
- SPE 243 The Exceptional Child (Prerequisite EDU 150) 3 credits
- SPE 245 Field Experience IV 1 credit
- SPE 320 Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities (Prerequisite SPE 243) 3 credits
- SPE 344 Adaptations, Modifications and Assistive Technology for the Exceptional Child (Prerequisite EDU-150 and SPE 243) 3 credits
Certification Courses
- SPE 250 Subject Area Content Access for Students with Learning Disabilities
- SPE 310 Intensive Reading, Writing, and Mathematics Development and Intervention Approaches (Prerequisites EDU 150 and SPE 243) 3 credits
- SPE 315 Teaching Students with Pervasive Developmental Disorders (Prerequisite SPE 243) 3 credits
- SPE 333 Screening, Assessment, and IEP Development for Teachers 3 credits
- SPE 346 Collaborative Partnerships in Inclusive Settings 3 credits
- SPE 347 Classroom Management for Teaching Students with Behavioral Disabilities 3 credits
- SPE 348 Teaching Students with Low Incidence Disabilities 3 credits
- EDU 359 Teaching the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Student 3 credits
- SPE 375 Practicum in Special Education 3 credits
Students must complete the certification requirements for Secondary Education certification (7-12) to be eligible for Special Education (CBPH/D) (7-12) certification. Students seeking certification in teaching the Special Education will be required to take a second specialty test of the Praxis II.
