Department of Teacher Education

About the Department
Undergraduate Program Offerings, Course Descriptions & Curricular Tables

Fernando Valle, Ed.D., Chairperson

Professor: Hamman, Valle
Associate Professors: Coward, Flores, Wang
Assistant Professors: Brice, Carrizales, Greenlees, Lammert
Instructors: Anderson, Babalola, Brasher, Brito, Bufford, Burke, Cowart, Daniel, Delay, Dennis, Durham, Focarile, Franklin, Garcia, Griner, Halsey, Heider, Hickman, Jenkins, Jimenez, Jones, Khan, Kiser, Lackey, Lamm, Lay, Lopez, Mahan, Marquez, Matthews, McCall, McClure, Mitchell, Muñoz, Nelson, Osuna, Pollart, Reeves, Richardson, Saenz-Azua, Salinas, Sneed, Son, Spears, Starnes, Stoneham, Tomlinson, Torres, Tristan, Varnado, Vice, Wilson, Woodington, Zavala, Zeng

CONTACT INFORMATION: 104 Education Building | Box 41071 | Lubbock, TX 79409-1071 | T 806.742.1958 | F 806.742.2179 | https://www.depts.ttu.edu/education/undergraduate/who-to-contact.php

About the Department

This department supervises the following degree programs (see Program Offerings for list of available concentrations):

Bachelor of Science in Education
Concentrations in:
Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Science

Undergraduate Program

Program Requirements

Core Curriculum Requirements. The university has established core curriculum requirements for all students. These requirements will ensure breadth in each academic program. Students should consult their academic advisor regarding specific course requirements. Students are urged to seek advisement prior to their first enrollment to avoid losing credit. Students may find a listing of core curriculum requirements in the Academic Requirements section of the catalog.

Advisory Program. The advisory program is designed to provide aid to each student in planning and completing the appropriate degree and teacher certification program. The academic advisor is responsible for (1) assisting the student in planning a program and in updating degree plans, (2) helping the student in selecting the proper areas of certification and/or teaching fields, and (3) advising the student in meeting admission and retention standards of teacher education and student teaching. The College of Education has a mandatory advising requirement for each semester of enrollment.

Admission to the Bachelor of Science Degree Program and Admission to the Teacher Certification (Education) Program. The college seeks to maintain rigorous academic programs to produce outstanding educators for Texas and the nation. Admission to college degree and certification programs is open to all individuals on the basis of academic preparation, ability, and availability of space in the program selected. When there are more qualified applicants than can be adequately instructed by available faculty or accommodated in available facilities, the college will control enrollment in specific programs by limiting the admission of new students. The number of students accepted into the undergraduate programs is limited. Therefore, admission into a teacher education program is competitive and based on GPA and other criteria. A complete description of eligibility requirements is available in the Certification Office in the College of Education. (Entrance criteria may be subject to change.) Admission to a college degree program does not ensure admission to an upper-division teacher certification program. See “Educator Certification ” to read about admission requirements for the teacher certification program, information on the Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES), recommendations for teacher certification, admission to student teaching, and transferability.

Academic Foundations. During their freshman and sophomore years, students normally complete their general degree requirements for the Bachelor of Science. Coursework in professional education and advanced courses, particularly in academic concentrations or teaching fields, is taken in the junior and senior years.

Professional Education. Teacher education programs in the College of Education are field-based. Students will complete observations and activities in public school settings. These field experiences may require time in addition to class time to complete. Students should refer to the handbook on the College of Education website for dates and time requirements.

Full-Year Student Teaching. Teacher candidates will be assigned to a classroom for a full year of student teaching. Appropriate coursework will accompany both semesters of student teaching. Candidates will follow the calendar for the school district they are assigned. This will likely mean beginning and ending outside the semester calendar set by TTU. Candidates should plan accordingly. All students seeking initial certification at Texas Tech must successfully complete a series of competency-based performance assessments to be recommended by the university for a teaching certificate.

Field Experiences. TechTeach is a field-based teacher education program. In the semesters prior to student teaching, teacher candidates will spend one day each week in a public school setting. Field experience begins in Block 1 (fall term), typically the first semester of the junior year, and continues through Block 2 (spring term). Assignments to apply and evaluate what candidates have learned in the courses will be completed in the school settings. Students seeking a secondary education should consult with an education advisor concerning field experience requirements.

Student Load. The maximum load for a student in the College of Education is 19 semester hours. No student will be permitted to enroll in more than 18 semester hours without written approval from the department chair or associate dean. During the student teaching semester, the maximum load is 12-15 semester hours. Requests to take more than 15 hours must be approved by the certification officer.

Course Rotation. The coursework for the Bachelor of Science in Education and Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Science is a prescribed curriculum. The coursework required supports the attainment of knowledge and information to be successful in teaching the content and attaining required knowledge for the state certification exam. Exceptions for listed coursework are very limited and should be discussed with an education advisor. Coursework related to the educator preparation program may not be taken prior to admission and must be completed as sequenced on the degree/certification plan. Requirements may be subject to change due to changes made during legislative sessions.

Length of Degree Program. The Bachelor of Science degree can be completed in approximately eight semesters. The education major requires 120 hours, and the multidisciplinary science major requires 125 hours. A student may be required to attend summer term to complete all requirements. Assistance in completing the degree and certification plan is provided by advisors in the College of Education. An Intent to Graduate form should be filed one year prior to graduation.

Pass/Fail Option. Courses used to meet stated degree plan requirements may not be taken pass/fail. Up to 13 hours of courses that are taken as free electives to total 133 hours and are not used to meet any other degree requirement may be taken pass/fail. Courses that are designated pass/fail by departmental policy rather than student choice do not count in the 13-hour limit on elective courses that may be taken pass/fail. A student on probation is not allowed the pass/fail option.

Teacher Certification

All students in the TechTeach program will be prepared to teach at their certification level (elementary, middle, or secondary) and in their selected content area as well as English as a second language (ESL) and Special Education (Sped). Students selecting middle level or secondary will select a content area in math, English, social studies (middle level only), or science.

Students completing the program requirements will achieve an initial certificate in their selected content area and will be eligible to add supplemental certificates in both ESL and Sped.

All coursework on the degree plan must be completed with a grade of C or above. Students must meet all program benchmarks detailed in the student handbook as well as pass all state certification requirements to be eligible for teacher certification.

Concentrations

English as a Second Language. Students wishing to become certified with supplemental certification in English as a second language (ESL), will seek a B.S. in Education. Students will learn skills/strategies necessary to work with children whose first language is not English. It is not necessary to speak a language other than English to become ESL certified. Students will complete four semesters of professional education work with field experience in classrooms with ESL identified students.

Special Education. Students wishing to become certified with supplemental certification in Special education (Sped), will seek a B.S. in Education. Students will learn skills/strategies necessary to work with children who are identified as in need of services by the local school district. Students will complete four semesters of professional education work with field experience in classrooms with Sped identified students.

Undergraduate Program Offerings & Course Descriptions

(Click on program for curricular table.)

Programs

Bachelor’s

Undergraduate Minor

Courses

EDBL - Bilingual Education (Undergraduate Courses)

EDCI - Educational Curriculum and Instruction (Undergraduate Courses)

EDCI 3325 - Honors Seminar: Trends and Issues in Educational Policy and Practice

EDEL - Elementary Education (Undergraduate Courses)

EDIT - Educational Instructional Technology (Undergraduate Courses)

EDIT 3328 - Computational Thinking in Education

EDLL - Language Literacy Education (Undergraduate Courses)

EDML - Education Middle Level (Undergraduate Courses)

EDSE - Secondary Education (Undergraduate Courses)

EDTP - Education Teacher Preparation (Undergraduate Course)