The following pre-major is recommended for students who are considering completing a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education after transferring to a four-year institution. It is designed for students who have not decided upon a specific four-year college or university. Education pre-majors are strongly encouraged to choose a transfer school as soon as possible. Once a transfer school is selected, students are encouraged to follow the specific notes for that school, consult the Education Department Co-Chiar and the Office of Advising, Transitions, and Student Success at Oakton, as well as the College of Education at the desired transfer school.
A grade of “B” or better is required by Colleges of Education in EDN courses and PSY 201. An overall GPA of 2.75 or higher is required for admission to most Colleges of Education. Students are highly encouraged to ensure they have the required minimum ACT or SAT scores set by their transfer College of Education, prior to graduating from Oakton. Students complete at least 45 pre-clinical hours in local K-12 schools as part of their Education courses at Oakton. Students are encouraged to use summer/winterim/interim sessions in order to spread out the work load. Maintaining the sequence of courses is recommended.
For more information on course selection or program-specific advising, contact the department co-chair. Part time students should also consult the Office of Advising, Transitions, and Student Success for part-time pre-major recommendations. General Education courses should be selected from the list of IAI General Education Courses.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Semester One (Fall) | Hours | |
| EGL 101 | Composition I | 3 |
| EDN 101 | Introduction to Education | 3 |
| MAT 128 | Foundations of Mathematics for Elementary Teachers I | 3 |
| PSY 101 | Introduction to Psychology | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Ethics | ||
| World Religions 1 | ||
| Ancient and Medieval Philosophy | ||
| Modern and Contemporary Philosophy | ||
| Hours | 15 | |
| Semester Two (Spring) | ||
| EGL 102 | Composition II | 3 |
| EDN 180 | Diversity in School and Society | 3 |
| MAT 129 | Foundations of Mathematics for Elementary Teachers II | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology 1 | ||
| World Regional Geography 1 | ||
| Cultural Geography 1 | ||
| History of Contemporary Non-Western Civilizations 1 | ||
| Select one of the following: | 2-4 | |
| United States History to 1877 | ||
| United States History from 1877 | ||
| Elementary Statistics | ||
| First Aid | ||
| American Government | ||
| Family Systems and the Addictive Process | ||
Modern Language Course (2021 or higher) 3 | ||
| Hours | 14-16 | |
| Semester Three (Summer) | ||
| SPE 103 | Effective Speech | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Social Problems 4 | ||
| Sociology of Sex and Gender 2 | ||
| Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 2 | ||
| Hours | 6 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Semester One (Fall) | ||
| BIO 101 | Introduction to Life Science | 4 |
| EDN/PSY 201 | Educational Psychology | 3 |
| SPE 125 | Basic Sign Language | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 2-4 | |
| Technology in Education | ||
| United States History to 1877 | ||
| United States History from 1877 | ||
| Elementary Statistics | ||
| First Aid | ||
| American Government | ||
| Family Systems and the Addictive Process | ||
Modern Language Course (2021 or higher) 3 | ||
| Hours | 12-14 | |
| Semester Two (Spring) | ||
| EAS 100 | Introduction to Earth Science | 4 |
| EDN 280 | Educating Exceptional Learners | 3 |
| SPE 126 | Basic Sign Language II | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Global Literature 1 | ||
| Multicultural Literature in the U.S. 2 | ||
| LGBTQ+ Literature 2 | ||
| Women and Literature 2 | ||
| Introduction to African-American Literature 2 | ||
| Introduction to Native American Literature 4 | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Art History: Art of the Non-Western World 1 | ||
| Introduction to Art | ||
| Introduction To Music | ||
| Introduction to Theater | ||
| Women and Creativity 2 | ||
| Introduction to Film | ||
| Global Cinema 1 | ||
| Introduction to World Music 1 | ||
| Music Literature and History | ||
| Hours | 16 | |
| Total Hours | 63-67 | |
- 1
Course fulfills the Global Studies requirement. At least one Global Studies course is required for degree completion.
- 2
Course fulfills the U.S. Diversity Studies requirement. At least one U.S. Diversity Studies course is required for degree completion.
- 3
Transfer institutions may have a language requirement. Any Modern Language Intermediate II course can meet the Humanities and Global Studies requirements.
- 4
Course fulfills both the Global Studies and U.S. Diversity Studies requirements.
Note: Pre-major is a recommended sequence and selection of courses. See Associate in Arts (A.A.) page for degree requirements.