The Early Childhood specialization prepares students for assuming leadership roles in curriculum, practice, research, and policy. Core courses will familiarize students with child development, particularly language acquisition, early literacy theory and practice, and state and federal policies that influence young children in the wide diversity of early childhood arrangements and programs. Through its cognates, students have opportunities to take courses in other key departments across the university, developing a deeper understanding of early childhood.
What does it mean to become a student in the Early Childhood specialization?
It means commitment to the understanding and fostering of successful development for young children from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, and ability levels. Our work takes place in homes, schools and community settings; and it is motivated by a commitment to understanding the dynamics of how families, cultures, and institutions can best foster children's early learning and development. We ask such key questions as:
Faculty and students in the Early Childhood (EC) specialization within the University of Michigan's School of Education are exploring questions like these in their efforts to improve the development and learning of young children, at home, at school, and in the community.
What is the nature of children's development from birth through the early school years? How do young children make sense of the learning contexts they encounter at home and in early childhood settings such as day care, preschool, kindergarten and the early school grades? How do home, national, and community practices foster children's learning and success, and how do nations and cultures differ with respect to these practices? What happens when these processes do not work smoothly? What federal policies support early childhood education for low-income children? How do nations and cultures differ in their fostering of development in early childhood? This degree specialization is housed within the Educational Studies program, which fosters links among students and faculty in a number of specializations sharing a commitment to the integration of theory and research on teaching, learning, and educational access in P-12 settings.
Faculty and students in Early Childhood (EC) at the University of Michigan's School of Education are exploring questions like these in their efforts to improve the development and learning of young children, at home, at school, and in the community. Our work takes place in both school and community settings; and it is motivated by a range of theoretical, methodological, and practical perspectives. What binds it together is the commitment to understanding the dynamics of how families, cultures, and institutions can best foster early development.
Examples of current projects include:
The School of Education offers Early Childhood Education degrees at both the Master's and Doctoral levels.
Students interested in Early Childhood specialization at the PhD level should apply to the Language, Literacy, and Culture doctoral specialization. The faculty in Early Childhood are all affiliates of LLC. General information about the Literacy, Language, and Culture degree programs can be found at the following web address: http://www.soe.umich.edu/literacy/index.html.
It is also worth noting that, as a unit within Michigan's Educational Studies Program, the Early Childhood Education PhD program is a national partner in the Carnegie Initiative on the Doctorate, sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of teaching.
The MA specialization in Early Childhood seeks to engage students in a focus on language and early literacy development that can be applied to a wide variety of early care and educational settings. The program is targeted to developmental, environmental and instructional factors that contribute to young children’s cognitive and social-emotional skills related to school readiness. This specialization may lead students in a number of career paths after the completion of the MA. One path might be the role of an administrator, or curriculum developer who is particularly fluent in early language and literacy theory and practice and its relation to school success. A second path might be related to advocacy, helping to make the case for the importance of the early years on later development. And a third might be policy, establishing and promoting policy research, that supports early learning and development. Students should note, however, that the program does not lead to the Michigan endorsement in early childhood (ZA) at the present time.
Core courses will familiarize students with language development, foundations of early literacy, cultural and linguistic diversity, curriculum and assessment, research and theory and contemporary policy issues across the age spans of 0-8, with a focus on the years from 0-5. Although most students in the MA program are full-time, the program is also open to full-time teachers who want to pursue the degree on a part-time basis.
I would like to see a list of faculty and their research interests.
What kind of work can I do in this program.
I would like to see a list of Master's degree course requirements.
I have questions about the Master's program which still need answering.
I would like to talk to an Master's student about the program.
To assist those interested in the various concentrations, here are the names of faculty members, and student ambassadors involved with the Special Education specialization. If you have a general question about the program, or would like to talk to a current student about the program, please visit the Early Childhood Education Contacts page.
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Faculty: To view a faculty member's research interests, click on their name (links open up a new window).
Affiliated Faculty
Ambassadors are students who have agreed to answer your questions about the program. We know there are times when you really want to hear about the program from a student's perspective, and these students have agreed to share their experiences. If you have general Early Childhood Education questions, please contact the program directly here. Remember: To help us alert you to recruitment events and the latest admissions updates, be sure to also fill out a graduate program inquiry form
Ambassadors:.
Susanna Hapgood hapgood@umich.edu
Pat Jessup pjessup@umich.edu
David Shilt dshilt@hotmail.com
Ambassadors are students who have agreed to answer your questions about the program. We know there are times when you really want to hear about the program from a student's perspective, and these students have agreed to share their experiences. If you have general Early Childhood Education questions, please contact the program directly here. Remember: To help us alert you to recruitment events and the latest admissions updates, be sure to also fill out a graduate program inquiry form
Ambassadors:Lindsay Przeslawski - lprzes@umich.edu
Shalini Abraham - shalze@umich.edu
Majoring in Early Childhood Education at the University of Michigan gives you many opportunities to work with faculty members who are leaders in Early Childhood Education.
Here is a list of some of the projects that Early Childhood Education faculty and students are working on now, or have been involved with in the past.
Below is a list of the course offerings tailored to the M.A. and/or Ph.D. degrees in Early Childhood. In conjunction with their advisors, students select a subset of these courses, as well as electives from offerings elsewhere in the School of Education and in cognate disciplines (e.g., Linguistics, Psychology, Social Work).
501. Literacy Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment: Primary/Elementary
516. Theory and Practice in Early Childhood Education
517. Early Childhood Education: Policy Issues
614. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood Education
615. Early Childhood Education Curriculum
616. History of Early Childhood Education
617. Qualitative Research in Early Childhood Education
618. Early Childhood Assessment
We are accepting students into the Master's degree program. Students interested in Early Childhood specialization at the Ph.D. level should apply to the Language, Literacy, and Culture doctoral specialization. The faculty in Early Childhood are all affiliates of LLC.
1. Do you have any questions you would like answered before you
apply? If so, view the School
of Education Frequently Asked Questions or contact the Early
Childhood Education program here.
2. Fill out a Rackham program inquiry form to get you into our
system, so we can inform you of the latest recruiting events and other admissions
updates. You can fill
out a program
inquiry form by clicking here (be sure to close the new window to return
to this page).
3. Application Process: You will need to complete an application
to the Horace H. Rackham Graduate School,
which is the overall administrative unit for graduate programs. It is mandatory
that you use the Rackham Web application to apply to our programs.
You also need to send us a statement of purpose, official transcripts from every institution you have attended, three letters of recommendation, and your GRE scores. International students should also send in their TOEFL scores.
We created an application checklist for your use in keeping track of where and when you sent application materials. We recommend that you download and print up an application checklist.
Application Checklist
Fee waivers are available through the Rackham Graduate School for prospective students who qualify for Specialized Fee Waiver Groups. Please check Rackham's fee waiver Web page to see if you are eligible for one of these groups.
Note: The Office of Student Services matches documents to an application using the name appearing on the Rackham application. If the name on your documents, i.e., transcript, letter of recommendation, etc., is different from the name appearing on your application, please be sure to indicate all former last names or other first names on the Rackham application. Contact the Office of Student Services if you have information about your name that you did not include on the Rackham application.
For the latest deadline, please see our deadlines page
5. We hope you will get acquainted with us through our web materials,
e-mail correspondence, and when possible, a personal
visit. Be sure to
check out the University of
Michigan Web site, the Rackham
Graduate School Web site, and the rest of the resources in this program
site along with the School of Education Web site. In addition, you may want
to view the SOE
Bulletin.
There are opportunities through both the School of Education and the Rackham
Graduate School for merit and need based fellowships. To find out more, we
encourage you to review the
Graduate Financial Aid Resource Guide.
The Office
of Fellowships and Recruitment
is the contact for the Rackham Graduate School (734-764-8119).
We are delighted to learn of your interest in the University
of Michigan and this program. We encourage you to visit the campus to
discuss your interests with faculty and students. Visits are most helpful if
made prior to or during the application process. In addition to arranging individual
campus visits, you are encouraged to attend the annual Graduate Information Day. This is a great opportunity
for you to meet with School of Education faculty and staff, some of our current
students, and other prospective students. We wish you the best of luck in pursuing your
graduate studies and encourage you to contact us (above) if you have any questions
about the University of Michigan or your program.
Still have questions? If so, please visit the School
of Education Frequently Asked Questions, or contact the Office
of Student Services.
Questions about the status of your application? Check your application data and status online, via Wolverine Access. Please allow 7 days after submitting your application before checking your web application status on Wolverine Access. To do this you will need to use a login ID and password, and confirm some personal data before viewing your application:
For applicants who are current students or employees
1. Log into Wolverine Access using your existing UMICH uniqname login and click "New and Prospective Student Business."
"For applicants who are new to the University you will
need to create a secure login using a UM Friend Account and then log into Wolverine
Access at https://friend.weblogin.umich.edu/
1. Create a Friend Account by clicking on the following link: Create a Friend Account.
NOTE: If you have questions about creating a UM Friend Account you may go to http://www.itd.umich.edu/itcsdocs/s4316
2. Log into Wolverine Access at https://wolverineaccess.umich.edu/ and click "New and Prospective Student Business."
If you have any further questions, contact the Office
of Student Services at
(734) 764-7563 or
ed.grad.appl@umich.edu.
If you are interested in other School of Education programs, return to the "Academic Programs" home by clicking on the tab above or by clicking here.
