The School of Education’s 18-credit-hour undergraduate minor in education is designed for students interested in education and education policy issues but not necessarily interested in pursuing teaching licensure. The program incorporates a set of courses in social foundations of education and an engaged learning field experience to provide students with a sophisticated understanding of the historical, cultural and social contexts of education both domestically and internationally.
The purpose of the education minor is to provide undergraduates of any major the opportunity to develop their understanding of current educational practices and the complex interactions among the legal, social, political, and economic forces that influence and shape educational policies in America, to consider options for a career in education, and to become better consumers of educational services as parents, taxpayers, and citizens.
All students completing the minor will meet a set of learning outcomes relevant to the knowledge, skills, values and dispositions that emanate from the Dominican University Vision for Undergraduate Learning Statement. In addition, the course work is aligned with the School of Education’s Conceptual Framework, which addresses the ethical behaviors required to demonstrate how teachers as scholars, leaders, and moral agents interact with their constituents in the role of educator.
Goals and Learning Outcomes
Students from any major are invited to pursue a minor in education (18 credit hours), which is created with a sequence of coursework that includes foundational courses as well as elective courses, including opportunities for hands-on learning experiences in educational settings. Students pursuing the minor will learn about current educational systems today (accountability, choice, charters, high-stakes testing, educational disparities, etc.) and their relationships to other social systems. Through this education minor, students will gain a broad and comprehensive understanding of the educational world around them.
Students pursuing the education minor may select from a variety of courses that may focus on a particular interest or may sample across aspects of the curriculum. Specific areas of interest that are reflected in the course offerings include, but are not limited to: special education, literacy and language, curriculum and teaching strategies, educational research, and educational topics.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing the minor, students will be able to:
- examine the historical and philosophical origins of educational policies and practices and articulate how history and philosophy shape current and future educational policies and practices
- analyze issues and practices in today’s educational systems and understand their relationships to other social systems
- demonstrate knowledge of major global issues and intercultural understanding related to education
- understand and analyze how race, class, ethnicity, ability, religion, and culture intersect with educational issues, in order to use this understanding in dialogue with others
- plan learning experiences to accommodate student diversity (e.g., cultural, racial, and social diversity) in and outside of classrooms
Course Offerings
All education minors complete one of two introductory courses and then choose five additional courses. There are courses that focus primarily on the social foundations of education, some of which include a “promising practices” component, which affords students the opportunity to experience hands-on learning opportunities in partnering schools and other educational settings. There are also courses that focus primarily on understanding educational practice. The common theme of learning about educational systems today is embedded in all of the coursework and woven throughout the menu of electives.
