Elementary Education

A degree in Elementary Education offers you the chance to teach, tutor, and mentor children in grades K–6 in ways that will help shape the rest of their lives. The program’s central components are knowledge, purpose, engagement, experience, and leadership.

The Department of Education believes the education of teacher candidates must be built on a strong base of professional knowledge, theories of teaching and learning, and a keen awareness of local, state, and national educational policies. The department embraces a progressive philosophy of education that, while forward thinking, is firm in its commitment to the dispositions it has identified as fundamental for the development of a highly qualified professional educator.

• Over the next several years, more than 3 million new teachers will be needed to meet rising enrollment demands and to replace retirees.
• One of Wake Forest’s most important contributions to the Winston-Salem community is Freedom School, a six-week summer academic program hosted by the Department of Education that enhances literacy skills for dozens of local children.
• Each year, approximately 15 different courses use transportation services provided by the Department of Education to support experiential learning in local schools and community locations.

The Elementary Education degree is offered as a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.).

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Our model and curriculum educate the whole person and often help students discover interests they had never previously discovered. Students generally take core and elective courses during their first year of college, while registering for higher level courses as upperclassmen.

Sample courses^* that you may take as a Elementary Education student include:

* Course availability and offerings can change at any time. Refer to the Academic Bulletin to view all major requirements.

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The Elementary Education major offers two unique pathways: a professional licensure pathway that includes a full-semester student teaching internship and a non-licensure pathway where students substitute fewer elective courses in lieu of the student teaching internship.

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Joining a club or organization is a great way to get involved and do more with your major. Our Elementary Education students participate in the following programs:

• Best Buddies
• Project Launch
• STEM Academy
• Freedom School
• Discovering Education Through Student Knowledge
• Skip Prosser Literacy Program

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Careers that often interest Elementary Education majors, and fields our graduates work in, include:

• Academic Teacher
• Athletic Coach
• Instructional Facilitator
• Literacy Coach
• Social Worker
• School Counselor
• Principal
• Professor
• School Administrator
• School Media Specialist

Recent graduates are teaching in more than 25 states and six foreign countries.