Early Childhood Education and Family Studies Academic Certificate

The ECEFS Certificate consists of four courses: a required proseminar and three additional courses. Many Penn GSE programs offer a Planned Program of Study aligned with the ECEFS Certificate, allowing students to integrate the Academic Certificate into their curriculum in various ways.

Course offerings may change from year to year. Please search Path@Penn by term and course number to see what is offered each semester.

EDUC 6580 (required course) Proseminar- Early Childhood, Early Literacy, and Parent-Family-Community Engagement

Within and across national and international settings, there is no shortage of discussions about the issues facing early childhood as a critical area of inquiry or about the diversity of children and families served by early childhood programs. Developmental science’s increasing attention to early child development and its implications for learning and teaching point to the need and the potential to improve the education and well-being of all young children. Such attention is especially significant for children and families in marginalized and historically disenfranchised communities. In studying the broad dimensions of education and schooling, early childhood specialists draw from fields as different as neurobiology and housing to areas traditionally associated with young children’s learning and schooling, e.g., literacy and language. Despite the heightened awareness regarding the problems and incremental change in the circumstances of some children, our responses to the issues fall short of understanding the complexity of dilemmas or addressing the multiplicity and depth of need facing young children and the diversity of families and communities of care who support their education, health, safety, and well-being.

EDUC 5252 Language Diversity & Education

Exploration of issues affecting educational policy and classroom practice in multilingual, multicultural settings, with an emphasis on ethnographic research. Selected U.S. and international cases illustrate concerns relating to learners' bilingual/bicultural/biliterate development in formal educational settings. Topics include policy contexts, program structu res, teaching and learning in the multilingual classroom, discourses and identities in multilingual education policy and practice, and the role of teachers, researchers, and communities in implementing change in schools.

EDUC 5406 Migration, Displacement & Education (formerly listed as EDUC 5430)

This course examines the effects of migration (forced and voluntary) on education in a variety of contexts across the world (including the United States). The course reviews sociological and anthropological theories of immigrant incorporation and inclusion. Such frameworks are then applied to migration through case studies of im/migrants, refugees, and displaced persons in order to consider educational practices, programs and policies that address the effects of migration and displacement on education in diverse contexts.

EDUC 5480 Education & International Development

In recent years the construct of "global development" has come under increasing scrutiny, leading some scholars and practitioners to wonder whether development remains a useful concept. In this course, we will actively engage in this debate through a survey of the development literature in the field of education. We will examine theoretical frameworks and historical perspectives that will allow us to develop a better understanding of what is meant by "development" as well as recognize how these concepts relate to basic educational planning and practice in various international contexts. Prerequisite: Prior graduate work in related areas recommended. The course will work from primary and secondary materials on theories, research, and applications used to promote global development and basic education. Some programs are carried out by multinational/bilateral agencies such as World Bank, Unicef, UNESCO, and USAID, while others are undertaken by intermediary organizations (such as NGOs and universities) and local organizations or individual specialists. Issues include a range of social, economic and political obstacles to the provision of quality education. The goal of this course is to improve your understanding of how different theories of education and development influence educational policy, priorities, and programs of international, national, and local institutions. Prerequisite: Prior graduate work in related areas recommended.

EDUC 5560 Human Development

Provides an introduction to physical, social, cognitive, emotional and linguistic development from infancy to adulthood. Major theories related to human development will be discussed along with methods of intervention for individuals in various life stage.

EDUC 5562 Personality & Social Development

The effects of social processes on human development in the interlocking contexts of parents, family, peers, school, communities and culture are considered during the major developmental periods of infancy, childhood, adolescence and adulthood. The course examines what is unique about social developments, how social relationships can be defined, and what are the social precursors and consequences of specific developmental changes.

EDUC 5568 Cognitive Development

This course examines the cognitive development of the child from infancy to adolescence with an emphasis on cultural context. Topics include: origins of thinking, Piaget, Vygotsky, intelligence, development of learning and memory, language development, and moral development.

EDUC 5911 Artificial Intelligence for Children & Youth

In this seminar we will discuss how artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) approaches have been adopted for children, youth, and families to learn and make creative applications in K-12 education. Drawing on work from the history of AI, computing education, the learning sciences, child-computer interaction, and ethical issues around digital technologies; we examine how children, youth, and their families can make sense of AI/ML and create various AI/ML-powered applications. As part of the seminar, students will also complete a series of ML tool explorations, with the final class project focused on designing a AI/ML tool, lesson or activity for in or out-of-school learning.

EDUC 5912 Math Tutoring in Urban Elementary Schools

This course is an academically based community service (ABCS) course focused on supporting mathematics learning in ways that are responsive to student needs. Open to graduate and undergraduate students, it is ideal for prospective teachers, educational leaders, counselors, curriculum or instructional designers, or anyone interested in gaining service experience or experience with the education of children in local K-12 schools. The class will meet together twice a week on campus and at the Samuel Powel elementary school* (3610 Warren St), a 5-minute walk from campus. In the course, students will be introduced to current approaches to making mathematics education more equitable and inclusive, develop understanding of foundational mathematical concepts as well as research on how students develop number sense and computational fluency, and learn effective student-centered instructional approaches (e.g., how to ask questions, support productive struggle, use concrete and visual models). We will also unpack conceptions of teaching and learning, interrogate the "achievement gap" and racialized experiences with mathematics, and reflect on the longstanding, dynamic relationship between the university and the West Philadelphia community. Students will be paired with an elementary student for 12 weeks of one-on-one instructional sessions designed to increase math confidence, engagement, and number sense. The work with students will take place during the scheduled class time on Wednesday and Friday mornings. No specialized knowledge or experience with mathematics content is required. Information on obtaining the required clearances will be provided at the beginning of the semester. *Course sessions that meet at the Powel Elementary School will end at 11:30 to allow for travel time Instructors: • Dr. Joy Anderson Davis, Responsive Math Teaching Project, Penn GSE Educator of the Year • Dr. Caroline Ebby, Senior Researcher, CPRE.

EDUC 6101 Curriculum Design and Enactment

The purpose of this course is to advance students' understanding of curriculum as a phenomenon and artifact of educational practice. Students will explore curriculum as a social and cultural phenomenon, be introduced to an approach to developing curriculum, and examine factors that influence how curriculum is enacted.

EDUC 6139 Design of Learning Environments *Depending on advising from Ardath Weiss or your PM

This course is a survey of the kinds of theories, methods, design considerations, and applications through which educational researchers understand and design environments to improve learning. The course features the most recent trends in learning primarily through educational technologies. It includes perspectives that consider, who is learning, how it is being learned, what design characteristics are needed to ensure learning takes place in different learning environments, and societal and technological influences on learning. Four main learning goals underpin the course content: 1) Understanding learning needs of youth and adults as they interact in school and in society; 2) Investigating the main learning theories and methods influencing the field and how they are instantiated in practice; 3) Examining and reflecting on how technologically designed learning environments address important learning challenges; and 4) Evaluating how these learning environments and applications have helped learning, how they have not, and how they can be improved.

EDUC 6345 Issues in Education and Health

Drawing upon research and scholarship in health and education, this course aims to deepen our knowledge, understanding, and ability to effect positive change in the health and health practices of students and families in urban settings, using schools and community agencies as sites of engagement.

EDUC 6510 Cultural Perspectives on Human Development

This course focuses on children's and adolescents' development from cultural and cross-cultural perspectives. Topics include traditional and recent theories of cultural influence on development, research strategies, socialization values and practices, and socioemotional and cognitive functions such as aggression and conflict, shyness, and academic achievement in cultural context. Issues involving ethnicity and social and cultural changes are also discussed.

EDUC 6720 Methods of Economic Evaluation in Education

Methods of economic evaluation are a critical component of evidence for policymaking. Economic evaluations, mainly cost-effectiveness and benefit-cost analysis, contribute information about costs relative to impacts. Rigorous evidence on effects, and the resources used to produce them, aids in selecting between policy alternatives. This course is designed to provide a strong foundation to prepare researchers to apply the "ingredients method", a rigorous method of evaluating the costs of educational programs. The course is structured to build understanding of the concepts and methods of economic evaluation, the consumption and critique of economic evaluations, and the application of the ingredients method to conduct economic evaluations. More specifically, the goals of the course are: 1) development of a clear and strong understanding of economic evaluation in education; 2) ability to discuss and write about concepts of economic evaluation; 3) assess work for strengths and weaknesses of rigor; 4) design research on cost-effectiveness; 5) conduct research applying methods covered in class to contribute to the field. To achieve these goals, the course will focus on reading and discussion of the textbook and methodological papers on concepts and methods; reading, presenting, discussing, and critiquing published research articles and reports; applying methods and concepts in exercises, group projects, and independent research proposals. Prerequisites: Prior coursework in regression, causal analysis, and program evaluation are helpful but not required. Experience in economics or calculus is not required for this course.

EDUC 6739 Applied Policy Analysis

This course emphasizes meaningful and practical learning experiences that will prepare students to be informed about and reflective of empirical policy analyses. In addition, this course provides the foundations to develop/improve the ability to interpret and objectively evaluate studies and research in the field of education; know the fundamentals of policy analysis; demonstrate an understanding of the appropriate use of which method to select; and cultivate the skills to critically assess educational research. These aims are achieved through lecture, textbook and journal readings, powerpoint presentation, and grant proposal writing.

EDUC 7531 Risk, Resilience, and Prevention Science

Examines the definition and measurement of risk and resilience from the perspectives of developmental psychology and ecological theories of development; introduces students to the conceptual and practical integration of intervention and prevention sciences to address social, emotional, educational, and health problems across childhood.

EDUC 7539 Poverty and Child Development

The goal of this course is to help students develop a coherent understanding of the ways in which poverty affects families and children, the different needs of families and children across different developmental stages of childhood, and the intersection between poverty and education.

EDUC 7770 Education Policy Research Practicum

This course will partner students with educational leaders to conduct client-based, applied education research projects. Students will engage in original empirical analysis, learning how to use empirical evidence to support the work of policymakers and practitioners, and will complete written policy reports and present their findings to clients.

EDUC 9999 Independent Study

(An independent study can be completed under the supervision of the certificate director, Dr. Sharon Wolf)