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Graduate Early Childhood Education Programs

Program Description

Our graduate Early Childhood Education programs prepare reflective teachers of children from birth through grade 2 with optional extensions in EC Special Education and EC Bilingual Education. Fundamental to our program's philosophy is a commitment to high quality, developmentally effective and evidence- and relationship-based practices. Within a holistic framework, students are immersed in the study of families and communities where children learn and develop. Graduates are keen observers of young children who document, successfully teach and build on children’s strengths. We believe children learn through their engagement in play and emphasize the development of anti-bias curriculum that is linguistically and culturally inclusive. With an emphasis on careful curriculum and environmental design, students develop curricula that ensures an equitable education and positive outcomes for all young children with and without disabilities and emergent bilingual/multilingual learners. Students are prepared to teach in communities with high needs through strong relationships with neighborhood early childhood programs and schools.

Our Advanced Certificate in Early Intervention and Parenting (ACEIP; the only one in NYS) prepares the Early Intervention workforce across disciplines in a specialization in infant and toddler development, emphasizing family-centered, culturally-responsive and evidence-based practices, infant mental health, caregiver-infant dyads, reflective practice and supervision and a transdisciplinary approach to working in partnership with diverse families with children with disabilities.

Courses

Based on the continual expansion of knowledge, our curriculum is vibrant and addresses emerging issues in the field—integrates the latest research in infancy and parenting, neuropsychology, social and emotional development, infant mental health and trauma-informed care, curriculum design, authentic assessment, emergent bilingual language development, reading science, number development, science inquiry, and technology. Two of the many exciting classes our students take include “Play in Cross-Cultural Contexts” and “Supporting Diverse Families and Parent-Child Relationships.”

Career Outcomes

Our alumni work in early care and education programs, Early Head Start/Head Start, UPK Centers, Private and Public schools, Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education programs as:

• Infant and Early Childhood Educators
• Early Childhood Special Educators, Early Interventionists and SEITs
• Early Childhood Bilingual Educators and Leaders
• Early Childhood Leaders/Directors and Assistant Principal
• Education Directors, EC Instructional Coaches and Early Literacy Coaches
• Doctoral Candidates, Researchers, Adjunct Faculty and Professors

Application Deadlines

• Flexible start dates (Rolling admissions Fall and Spring semesters)

Admissions Requirements

• Expedited admission process
• Bachelor’s degree in any field (GPA 3.0)
• Two letters of recommendation, resume, brief essay statement, GRE, and interview
• Finger printing clearance

Basic Program Details

Early Childhood/Early Intervention Program Options

• 30 credits (Students with NYS initial/professional EC certification) with optional extensions in EC Special Ed. or EC Bilingual Ed. (601 program)
• 45 credits (Students with no prior NYS certification) (603 program) with optional extensions in EC Special Ed. or EC Bilingual Ed. (51-57 credits)
• 18 credits, Advanced Certificate in Early Intervention and Parenting program (668 program)

Instructional Formats

• In-person, on campus and off-site; Hybrid and full-online (synchronous and asynchronous)
• Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer course offerings

Clinically rich fieldwork across developmental ages in various early childhood settings (e.g., UPK, Early Head Start/Head Start, Department of Education (DOE), Early Intervention/Early Learn and/or hospital settings)

• Bridge students' fieldwork and clinical experiences with current theories and research in early childhood education, child development, and infant mental health. o Emphasis on reflective supervision within field sites
• Students may request their employment in EC setting for supervised field and student-teaching

Early Childhood Education Faculty

The Early Childhood department is proud to focus on applied research, at the local, national, and international level. We are actively engaged in designing and implementing research that supports communities of high needs to address inequities in ways that translate into better academic, social-emotional, and physical outcomes for all children and families. EC faculty collaborate with various EC and EI providers throughout NYC including the NYC Department of Education (DOE)’s Division of Early Childhood Education and NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Bureau of Early Intervention and Childcare.

EC students have opportunities to work closely with faculty on these projects. In doing so, students develop lasting relationships with their professors and develop invaluable research-to-practice skills that often translate into meaningful career opportunities as top early childhood educators, leaders and advocates.

A few highlighted projects of our Early Childhood faculty:

• Mary DeBey’s scholarship focuses on high-quality early childhood education internationally, currently working closely with Shaheen Usmani in India.
• Beth Ferholt, a Fulbright scholar recipient, focuses on development, learning and imagination. She leads the Brooklyn College-Jönköping University Student Exchange, mentoring Brooklyn College and Swedish teachers.
• Mark Lauterbach established a close partnership with the New York Foundling education division to design a reading intervention for young children in foster care to improve children’s reading and social-emotional skills.
• Xia Li is an active researcher in the field of early childhood math education, with a focus on promoting the preparation of high-quality EC teachers support of young children’s mathematic development both nationally and internationally.
• Karen McFadden and Jacqueline Shannon are Co-PIs on Inclusive and Family-Centered Infant-Toddler Care research project, working in partnership with NYC DOHMH and DOE’s Division of Early Childhood, to examine Infant-Toddler educators’ knowledge and experience with Early Intervention related to child development, families and inclusive EI services.
• Katie Miles’s scholarship supports the DOE’s Universal Literacy Initiative, and she is the Academic Advisor to Reading Rescue, a one-on-one research- and evidence-based intervention, provided to first graders from high need communities throughout NYC.
• Lulu Song’s scholarship exams dual and multilingual learners, and she is the recipient of a Spencer Foundation grant to examine how EC Teachers’ support Chinese dual language learners. She closely collaborates with DOE’s Division of Early Childhood ensuring students effectively support our city’s emergent multilingual learners.

Testimonial

Shawna Cornett, M.S.Ed. Educational Director, Infant and Child Learning Center (ICLC) at SUNY Downstate, Current EC Adjunct 

• 2018 MSEd in EC; 2020 Advanced Certificate in Early Intervention and Parenting (ACEIP)

“Brooklyn College Early Childhood graduate program has been both challenging and rewarding. Over the course of the program I have learned many techniques and strategies that guide my career within the fields of Early Childhood Education and Early Intervention. The EC/EI professors, especially Professors Ntalla and Malyukova, have been a compass of guidance, a voice of counsel, a sense of encouragement, and a source of motivation to deepen my work with children and families and progress in my career. Thank you for the knowledge to sharpen my purpose in this lifetime.”