LMU's Liberal Studies (Elementary Education) major prepares students for successful careers as elementary educators, specifically in grades K-5. The major enables students to earn a bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies together with a California preliminary multiple subjects teaching credential within four years. The Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts (BCLA) works closely with LMU's School of Education to offer students a program that meets both LMU degree requirements and the credential requirements established by the state of California, while promoting the LMU mission of the encouragement of learning, the education of men and women for and with others, the service of faith, and the promotion of justice. The program is approved by and meets all the standards of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.
What do Liberal Studies (Elementary Education) majors do?
Majors learn to synthesize subject content in the liberal arts, apply professional content to classroom teaching, and review and analyze educational policies. They learn to apply reading, writing, and research skills, develop pedagogical skills, analyze academic theories, and apply theory to practice. Students also learn to understand and reflect on the complex, rich, and diverse needs of students. Liberal Studies majors develop dispositions for sustained success in teaching and learning across diverse contexts.
Is this major right for you?
You might be a Liberal Studies (Elementary Education) major if you:
- Want to be an elementary grades educator
- Are passionate about helping children to learn
- Want to play a vital role in shaping society
- Have diverse intellectual interests
About our Faculty & Staff
Liberal Studies students take courses across various disciplines and colleges within the university including Education, Math, Science, English, History, Psychology and the Arts. All courses are taught by accomplished faculty who are experts in their fields. Students are encouraged, when planning their program of study, to meet with their Liberal Studies advisor for assistance and expert advice regarding completing the Liberal Studies program requirements.
Representative courses
Liberal Studies students take specific courses to fulfill requirements for their core curriculum, their major, their teaching credential and their area of concentration. Majors take rigorous courses in a variety of academic disciplines to prepare them for teaching multiple subjects to their elementary grades students.
Courses include but are not limited to:
- Music & Dance: Multiple Ways of Knowing and Showing
- World Geography
- Children's Literature
- Art in the Elementary Classroom
- World Civilizations
- U.S. History
- History of California
- Mathematics for Elementary Teachers
- Experimenting in Science
- Teaching Reading in Today's Elementary Classrooms
- Sociocultural Analysis of Education
- Educational Psychology for the Childhood and Adolescent Years
- Elementary Curriculum and Methods
- Second Language Acquisition
- Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Student with Exceptional Needs
- Liberal Studies Capstone: Education & Global Issues
- Elementary Directed Teaching (student teaching)
Honor Society
Each year many LMU Liberal Studies students are inducted into the International Honor Society in Education, Kappa Delta Pi.