Admission Criteria

Applications for admission to the Bilingual Education Certificate Program in the Department of Curriculum and Teaching are made to the Graduate Admissions Office. Students who do not fully meet admission requirements may be required to complete prerequisite courses concurrently with the completion of the Certificate Program requirements. Admission is based on a comprehensive review of multiple criteria, including the following:

1. Possession of a master’s or higher degree in education.
2. New York State Certificate (initial or professional) for teaching early childhood education, childhood education, middle childhood education, adolescence education, a special subject, literacy education, career and technical education, or students with disabilities in early childhood, or childhood, or middle childhood, or adolescence.
3. Two letters of reference addressing the applicant’s potential to succeed in the teaching profession and in the Bilingual Education Certificate Program course work.
4. Interview with the Program Director.
5. Demonstration of proficiency in English and the other language or an examination satisfactory to the department and consistent with the New York state certification guidelines. Students who fail to achieve a satisfactory score on the language proficiency examination are retested after the remediation and are required to achieve a satisfactory score prior to completion of the program.

The department understands that any single criterion may not reliably predict a student’s potential for success in the program. Candidates may wish to apply even if they do not meet one of the criteria but feel that other aspects of their experience might compensate.

Program Requirements - Semester Hours: 15

• CT 226 - Linguistics for Teachers of English Language Learners Semester Hours: 3

• or LYST 208

• CT 260 - Foundations, Theory and Practice of Bilingual Education Semester Hours: 3
• CT 265 - Methods and Materials in Bicultural Education Semester Hours: 3
• LYST 208 - Language, Culture and Identity: Literacy Issues for Teachers and Children Semester Hours: 3

• or CT 226

• LYST 213 - Introduction to Bilingual and Biliteracy Instruction for Children and Adolescents Semester Hours: 3

Field Experiences*

• CT 260 - Foundations, Theory and Practice of Bilingual Education Semester Hours: 3

• 10 clock hours

• CT 265 - Methods and Materials in Bicultural Education Semester Hours: 3

• 10 clock hours

• LYST 213 - Introduction to Bilingual and Biliteracy Instruction for Children and Adolescents Semester Hours: 3

• 30 clock hours

Graduation Requirements

1. Completion of all course work for the Bilingual Certificate Program with an overall GPA of 3.0.
2. No grades below B in required courses.
3. Completion of the 15 s.h. course work requirements with no fewer than 12 s.h. in residence.
4. Completion of a portfolio illustrating the student’s education course work and professional accomplishments.
5. All course work taken in satisfaction of the certificate requirements must have been completed within a three-year period.

Teacher Certification Requirements

Please contact the Office of Certification and Educational Support Services for information regarding the fingerprinting requirement and any other specific certification requirements.

Footnotes

* A minimum of 50 clock hours of college-supervised field experience is required in this cognate area. Students are placed in the settings specific to the foci of their base teaching certificates. All field experiences are incorporated into the course curricula. Placements are arranged by the Office of Field Placement. Department policy is to place prospective teachers in districts other than those in which they currently reside or in schools that they attended.