College	Education
Academic Award	Bachelor of Arts
Credits Required	125 semester credits
Faculty Lead	Paul Kress
CIP Code	13.1205

The major in Secondary Education prepares students to become professional teachers for both public and private schools in specific subject areas covering 5th through 12th grades. Aspiring teachers study the liberal arts, Bible and theology, educational foundations, psychology, assessment, learning theory and pedagogy, and instructional methods for various subjects—social studies, English/language arts, ESL, health and fitness, biology, mathematics, theatre arts, or music. During one semester, students demonstrate their teaching skills in public or private school classrooms, leading to formal certification by the State of Washington.

Teaching Certificate Endorsements

Secondary education majors earn endorsements in specific subjects: biology, physics, English/Language Arts, ELL, health and fitness [physical education], mathematics, social studies, or theatre arts. Choral music, general music, and instrumental music endorsements are available through the Bachelor of Music in Music Education degree.

Professional Standards and Performance Assessment

Within the context of educational restructuring and accountability for learning results, the performance of each candidate is evaluated in multiple ways over time. Assessment of candidate performance focuses on demon­strated competency in both knowledge and teaching skill, which employs varied strategies to measure professional knowledge, subject matter mastery, and teaching effec­tiveness. Measures include written examination, oral communication, classroom management, curricular and instructional design, practice teaching, projects and portfolios, written expression, visual and musical arts, and the success of children in field settings.

College of Education Outcomes

The College of Education, directed by broad research and theory, and in accordance with state standards, prepares teachers in five specific proficiencies. These outcomes guide our candidates’ experience throughout all of our COE programs. Specifically, in our Bachelors’s degrees in Elementary and Secondary Education we aim toward the following outcomes:

Holistic Teachers,

1. Candidates demonstrate culturally responsive pedagogy aimed at the holistic learning of all students;

Adaptive Teachers,

2. Candidates demonstrate differentiated teaching, adapting instruction where appropriate to meet student needs while remaining aligned with learning standards; 

Learner-Focused Teachers,

3. Candidates demonstrate reflective instruction, analyzing student work in order to further develop their own pedagogical practices;
4. Candidates pass their state-required WEST-E/NES content assessments necessary for certification (content areas: Elementary Education, Middle Level (ML) Humanities, ML Mathematics, and ML Science; 
5. Candidates pass their state-required edTPA pedagogy assessment necessary for certification (pedagogy areas: Elementary Education).