Dual Certification in Early Childhood Special Education & General Education – MSEd
Discover creative ways to help young children learn and grow.
As a student in this program, you will become well-grounded in child development and its variations and develop the capacity to work in a range of settings and engage all children. This includes working with children from diverse racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and linguistic backgrounds and also includes children with a variety of social, emotional, behavioral, physical, and cognitive variations.
This program will support your understanding that learning develops through play, social interaction, and sensory experiences and will help you to implement strategies based in current research of inclusive practices.
Become A
Bank Street Teacher
You will learn to:
- Learn to carefully observe children and use that knowledge to guide and inform your teaching.
- Engage all young children in play, learning, and interaction.
- Develop a strong social justice focus in order to advocate for and with children and families.
- Plan for dynamic and collaborative partnerships with families and school professionals.
- Develop skill in engaging with young children of varying development in meaningful ways.
This program is for you if:
- You are seeking your first teaching certification.
- You want to work with children birth through grade 2 in general, inclusion, and/or special education settings.
This program culminates in a Master of Science in Education and requires 50 credits.
Discover creative ways to help young children
learn and grow.
As a student in this program, you will become well-grounded in child development and its variations and develop the capacity to work in a range of settings and engage all children. This includes working with children from diverse racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and linguistic backgrounds and also includes children with a variety of social, emotional, behavioral, physical, and cognitive variations.
This program will support your understanding that learning develops through play, social interaction, and sensory experiences and will help you to implement strategies based in current research of inclusive practices.
You will learn to:
- Learn to carefully observe children and use that knowledge to guide and inform your teaching.
- Engage all young children in play, learning, and interaction.
- Develop a strong social justice focus in order to advocate for and with children and families.
- Plan for dynamic and collaborative partnerships with families and school professionals.
- Develop skill in engaging with young children of varying development in meaningful ways.
This program is for you if:
- You are seeking your first teaching certification.
- You want to work with children birth through grade 2 in general, inclusion, and/or special education settings.
This program culminates in a Master of Science in Education and requires 50 credits.
Become A
Bank Street Teacher
Your degree will provide you with a range of career opportunities
Required Courses for Dual Certification in Early Childhood Special Education & General Education
Supervised Fieldwork/Advisement
Central to a Bank Street education is the integration of coursework and field experiences as you engage and educate children based on a solid grounding in what makes children tick. Through sustained experiences in the field, supervision from core faculty, and close collaboration with peers, our graduate students develop the ability to connect theory to practice and to reflect deeply on their own growth as educators. In this program, you will:
- Participate in a weekly collaborative conference group with your advisor and 5 to 7 other graduate students. You will have an opportunity to engage in ongoing in-depth conversations about teaching and learning. This will take place synchronously on Zoom.
- Benefit from individual meetings with your advisor twice each month. These will take place synchronously on Zoom.
- Attend periodic conference meetings with your Bank Street advisor and with the cooperating teacher. These will take place synchronously on Zoom.
There are three ways students work in classroom settings: as a student teacher (3 days each week), as a full-time assistant, or as a head teacher. In our online programs, all advisement happens virtually by either Zooming your advisor into your classroom or recording your practice.
- Student-teachers complete three placements in pre-K, kindergarten, and grades 1 or 2, and across general education, inclusive, and special education settings.
- Working teachers and assistants (in approved settings) may use their own classrooms for their fieldwork setting. These students will gain additional experience through placement in a summer supervised fieldwork/ advisement during the summer term.
Additional Application Requirements
In addition to the main admissions criteria, there are additional requirements needed to apply for this program:
- You will need to have breadth and depth in the liberal arts and sciences as shown on our main site.
Certifications
When you complete the Early Childhood Special and General Education program you will be eligible for your:
- New York State initial certification in Early Childhood General Education: for those who meet experience requirements and pass state assessments.
- New York State initial certification Teaching Students with Disabilities, birth to grade 2: for those who meet experience requirements and pass state assessments.
After teaching for three years and provided that you meet experience requirements, you will be eligible for New York State professional certification.
Julie Lee ’12
Meet our alumni
“I chose Bank Street because I loved seeing all of the children’s work during the tour.The classrooms at the Bank Street School for Children was a game changer for me because I knew in my heart that student-driven work that’s organic and thoughtfully documented was at the heart of authentic teaching and learning. I graduated in 2012 from the Early Childhood Special Education program and was hired as a K-2 SETTS teacher at a charter school in Brooklyn.
Five years ago, I transitioned to New York City public schools right when they put in rigorous teacher evaluation systems and a Common Core–aligned Math and ELA curriculum. With these challenges and less time for play and student-driven work, I value what I learned at Bank Street more than ever. I learned to truly think outside of the box with best practices in mind and, above all, to be an advocate for children and families. Among other things, the advisory support you receive at Bank Street is what makes the school truly unique.” Now as a Learning Specialist for a private school in Brooklyn, I will be referring back to the amazing courses at Bank Street that challenged me to look deeper into how children learn and think.”
Frequently Asked Questions
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The per-credit cost for the 2021-2022 academic year is $1,710, starting with the Fall 2021 Term. There are scholarships and financial aid available to support your participation in the program. Please contact your Application Specialist at 646-837-7611 to find out more about tuition and financial aid at Bank Street.