Liberal Studies - Teacher Preparation - A.A. Degree

The A.A. in Liberal Studies - Teacher Preparation is designed to prepare students to transfer to education programs at four-year institutions.  Additionally, this program prepares students to qualify for California's Associate Teacher permits.

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This program addresses the need for strong elementary school teachers in California.  It is designed to prepare students to transfer to education programs at four-year institutions.  Additionally, this program prepares students to qualify for California's Associate Teacher permits. This permit allows them to work in after-school programs and Head Start programs and to work as para-educators.

I.              ProgramGoals and Objectives

 

Berkeley City College's A.A. in Liberal Studies - Teacher Preparation addresses the need for strong elementary school and pre-K teachers in California. The program provides students the coursework they need for certification to teach in publicly funded school readiness programs, including transitional kindergarten programs funded by the California Department of Education.  This degree will also allow students to continue their studies at a four-year college if they wish.

 

Students who complete requirements for the Associate of Arts Degree will be able to do the following:

1. analyze models and methods of effective teaching, especially in relation to the needs of a diverse student body
2. describe and apply effective strategies for teaching
3. write strong essays which demonstrate an understanding of children's literature
4. describe basic concepts in number systems
5. describe and demonstrate key concepts in biology
6. describe and demonstrate key concepts in history and sociology

 

II.            CatalogDescription

 

The A.A. in Liberal Studies -Teacher Preparation is designed to prepare students to transfer to education programs at four-year institutions.  Additionally, this program prepares students to qualify for California's Associate Teacher permits.

  

III.          Program Requirements

 

Dept./Number	Name	Units	PCCD G.E. Area
	Required Courses
BIOL 010	Introduction to Biology	4	1
CHDEV 051	Child Growth and Development	3	2
EDUC 001	Introduction to the Field of Education	3	2
EDUC 097	Field Studies in Education	2-4	-
EDUC 098	Pedagogy of Reading	3	-
EDUC 099	Introduction to Special Needs Pedagogy	3	-
ENGL 047	Children’s Literature	3	3
HIST 007B	History of the United States Since 1865	3	2
MATH 018	Mathematical Concepts for Teachers	3	4b
SOC 013	Sociology of the Family	3	2
	Total	30
	General Education and Electives	30

 

            Total UnitsRequired for the Program:  60

 

IV.          Master Planning

 

The development of this program came about through the work of the Berkeley City College Education Programs Advisory Board and Berkeley City College’s participation in the Bay Area California Community College Consortium/Regional Joint Venture/Teacher Preparation Pipeline(BACCCC/RJV/TPP).

 

At the meeting of the Advisory Board that occurred on November 16, 2015, the board recommended that BCC "develop[]... clearly articulated pathways for internships, job placement, and transition to B.A.programs" to ensure eligibility for the Child Development Permit.  At the Board meeting on March 16, 2017, the BCC Coordinator of the Degree and Certificate Programs in Education "discussed the partnership the education program developed with the YMCA Head Start Apprenticeship program... The Board approved of this partnership."  Since that time, BCC's Education Program has worked with the Head Start program to map out the best approach for students to be able to enter into "articulated pathways for internships, job placement, and transition to B.A. programs" to ensure eligibility for the Child Development Permit.  Joya Chavarin, Director of the Head Start Apprenticeship Program and a member of the Board, has been instrumental in this work.  Through this collaboration and bearing in mind changes in state certification guidelines and employment needs, BCC determined that revising its existing A.A. in Liberal Studies - Elementary Teaching Preparation (changing the name to "A.A. in Liberal Studies - Teacher Preparation") would be the best approach to preparing students for both current job opportunities and future transfer to B.A. programs, which ensures eligibility for the Child Development Permit.  This teacher preparation pipeline is also a result of Berkeley City College’s work with the BACCCC/RJV/TPP.

 

V.            Enrollment and Completer Projections

 

Berkeley City College anticipates the need to advertise this program, as well as the current need for elementary school and pre-K teachers in California once it is launched. Education 001 generally enrolls 60 students per year, and many of these students plan to work in the field of early education.   We expect that there will be 20-30 students per year completing this program.

 

VI.          Place of Program in Curriculum/SimilarPrograms

 

Berkeley City College currently offers a Certificate of Proficiency in Education: School Readiness, which consists of four of the courses in the A.A. program; thus, the Certificate of Proficiency and A.A. in Liberal Studies –Teacher Preparation are stackable.   Berkeley City College also offers an Associate Degree for Transfer in Education, but the A.A. in Liberal Studies –Teacher Preparation is designed to address recent changes in state certification, address multiple student goals, including immediate job placement and future transfer, and provide a robust introduction to the field of education.

 

VII.        Similar Programs at Other Colleges in ServiceArea

 

Merritt College, which is also part of the Peralta Community College District, has a similar program in the immediate service area to address the teacher shortage.  Specifically, Merritt College offers Child Development (i.e., CHDEV) courses, and Berkeley City College offers education (i.e., EDUC) courses with joint efforts to expand and diversify the teacher workforce and respond to the severe teacher shortage regionally.  Both Merritt and Berkeley City College are part of The Bay Area California Community College Consortium/Regional Joint Venture/Teacher Preparation Pipeline (BACCC/RJV/TPP), which encourages community colleges across the Bay Area to create teacher preparation pipelines.  All of the participating colleges have some kind of child development and/or education program, which includes courses that meet Chancellor's Office approval.

Course	Title	Units	Year/Semester (Y1 or S1)
Biology 10	Intro. to Biology	4	Y2
CHDEV 51	Child Development	3	Y1
Education 1	Intro. to... Education	3	Y1
Education 97	Field Stud... Educ.	3	Y2
Education 98	Pedagogy... Reading	3	Y1

English 47            Children's Lit.               3                                    Y1

Education 99       ... Special Needs Pedagogy .       3                   Y2

History 7B           History of US since 1865             3                    Y2

Sociology 13 .      Sociology of the Family                3                    Y1

Math 18               Math. Concepts for Teachers .    3                    Y2

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Merritt College, which is also part of the Peralta Community College District, has a similar program in the immediate service area to address the teacher shortage. Specifically, Merritt College offers Child Development (i.e., CHDEV) courses, and Berkeley City College offers education (i.e., EDUC) courses with joint efforts to expand and diversify the teacher workforce and respond to the severe teacher shortage regionally. On December 12, 2019, David Johnson, Acting President at Merritt College confirmed consultation with Child Development faculty leads Christine Olson and Jennifer Btriffa and their approval of this submission with its current TOP code. Both Merritt and Berkeley City College are part of The Bay Area California Community College Consortium/Regional Joint Venture/Teacher Preparation Pipeline (BACCC/RJV/TPP), which encourages community colleges across the Bay Area to create teacher preparation pipelines. All of the participating colleges have some kind of child development and/or education program, which includes courses that meet Chancellor's Office approval. Moreover,, there are similar programs at Diablo Valley College, City College of San Francisco, Contra Costa and Chabot College, among others. The Bay Area California Community College Consortium/Regional Joint Venture/Teacher Preparation Pipeline (BACCC/RJV/TPP) encourages community colleges across the Bay Area to create teacher preparation pipelines. All of the participating colleges have some kind of education program, though they may be different in a variety of ways.