About

The Department of Early Childhood, Multilingual, and Special Education is dedicated to preparing students to excel in Early Childhood Education by obtaining the knowledge and skills necessary to support the teaching and learning of young children. Students may select a B.S. in Early Childhood Education that will lead to licensure or non-licensure status.

Accreditation

For information regarding accreditation at UNLV, please head over to Academic Program Accreditations.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this program, graduates will be able to:

  • Demonstrate their understanding of young children’s characteristics and needs and of the interacting influences on children’s development and learning to create environments that are healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging for each child;
  • Know the importance of children’s families and communities and use this understanding to create respectful, reciprocal relationships that support and empower families while involving families in their children’s development and learning;
  • Recognize child observation, documentation, and other forms of assessment are central to the practice of all early childhood professionals;
  • Understand that instructional strategies used with young children involves considering children’s ages, characteristics, and the settings within which teaching and learning occur
  • Use their knowledge of academic disciplines to design, implement, and evaluate experiences that promote positive development and learning for each and every young child;
  • Identify and conduct themselves as members of the early childhood profession while using ethical guidelines and other professional standards related to early childhood practice.

Career Possibilities

Possible career options after receiving this degree:

  • Licensed teacher
  • Preschool provider
  • Preschool administrator
  • Childcare teacher
  • Childcare administrator
  • State education department director or employee

Requirements

Early Childhood Education (BS)

The Department of Educational & Clinical Studies is dedicated to preparing students to excel in Early Childhood Education by obtaining the knowledge and skills necessary to support the teaching and learning of young children. Students may select a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Early Childhood Education that will lead to licensure or non-licensure status.

Please see the UNLV College of Education, Department of Early Childhood, Multilingual, and Special Education web page for information about department programs, faculty and facilities. Degree worksheets and 4/5 year plan for the major are available on the UNLV Degrees Directory.

Learning Objectives

  1. The Early Childhood Education graduate is learning about the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) and is learning to create learning experiences that make these aspects of content meaningful.
  2. The Early Childhood Education graduate is learning about how individuals learn and how to develop and provide opportunities that support intellectual, career, social, and personal development.
  3. The Early Childhood Education graduate is learning about how individuals differ in their approaches to learning and how to create opportunities that are equitable and adaptable to the needs of diverse learners.
  4. The Early Childhood Education graduate is learning about planning processes based upon knowledge of content, learners characteristics, the community, and curriculum goals and standards.
  5. The Early Childhood Education graduate is learning about how to employ a variety of strategies and methods and encourages the development of critical thinking, problem solving, decision-making, and performance skills.
  6. The Early Childhood Education graduate is learning about individual and group motivation and behavior and how to create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.

Career Possibilities

Possible career options after receiving this degree:

  • Licensed teacher
  • Preschool provider
  • Preschool administrator
  • Day care teacher
  • Day care administrator
  • State education department director or employee

Advising

Please see advising information at the UNLV College of Education Student Services Center.

Accreditation

For information regarding accreditation at UNLV, please head over to Academic Program Accreditations.

University Graduation Requirements

Please see 

Graduation Policies
 for complete information.

Early Childhood Education (BS) Degree Requirements - Total: 120 Credits

General Education Requirements - Subtotal: 36-44 credits

First-Year Seminar - Credits: 2-3

English Composition - Credits: 6

Second-Year Seminar - Credits: 3

Constitutions - Credits: 3-6

Mathematics - Credits: 3

Distribution Requirement - Credits:19-20

Please see

Distribution Requirements
 for more information.

  • Humanities and Fine Arts: 9 Credits
    • Two courses 3 credits each from two different humanities areas - 6 credits
    • One course in fine arts- 3 credits
  • Social Science:
    • Automatically satisfied by Major requirements
  • Life and Physical Sciences and Analytical Thinking: 10 Credits
    • Two courses from life and physical sciences category; at least one must have a lab -7 credits
    • One course from Analytical Thinking -  3 credits

Multicultural and International - Credits: 0-3

Multicultural, one 3 credit course required -

EDU 280
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International, one 3 credit course required

These courses may overlap with general education and major requirements. A single course may not meet the multicultural and international requirements simultaneously. Visit the Provost webpage for the list of approved Multicultural and International courses​.

Major Requirements - BS in Early Childhood Education - Subtotal: 84

Education Core Requirements - Credits: 9

Licensure Track-Subtotal: 80-90

ECE Core - Credits: 75

 (see note 3 below)

Total Credits: 120

ECE Core (Administrative/Non-Licensure Track) - Credits: 75

 (see note 4 below)

Total Credits: 120

Notes

  1. A candidate for the Bachelor of Science degree in Education must earn a minimum of 120 semester hours with 40 credits in upper-division courses.
  2. A minimum GPA of 2.75 for all courses attempted must be maintained.
  3. A grade of B or higher in ECE 483 (Pre-student Teaching in Early Childhood Education) must be earned to register for student teaching (ECE 491 and ECE 492). Student must register for a minimum of 10 credits of ECE 491 (Student Teaching) to earn their degree.
  4. ECE 481
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     and
    ECE 482
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     can be repeated up to 12 credits.
  5. ECE 250
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     is a Milestone Experience course for Early Childhood Education B.S.
  6. ECE 491
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     is a Culminating Experience course for Early Childhood Education B.S.
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Contacts

Department of Early Childhood, Multilingual, and Special Education

We are dedicated to preparing professionals for specialized services in schools, community agencies, and higher education settings. In our bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree programs as well as two dual Ph.D./J.D. degrees and graduate certificates, we promote cultural diversity and affirm our commitment to the ethical standards of our respective disciplines.

Website
https://www.unlv.edu/ems
Email
Phone
702-895-3205
More

College of Education

The College of Education creates an intellectual environment that promotes quality instruction, significant research, and professional service. With four unique departments, graduates receive the necessary tools and experiences to make an impact on local, national, and global scales.

Website
https://www.unlv.edu/education
Email
education@unlv.edu
Phone
702-895-3375
More
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