Childhood Education (QUEST) Grades 1-6 - BA

1000 Hunter West; (212) 772-4624

QUEST Six-Semester Sequence for Students Who Enter the Program with 30 - 40 credits
QUEST Four-Semester Sequence for Students Entering the Program with More than 40 credits

QUEST Program Overview

The Quality Urban Elementary School Teacher (QUEST) program is an undergraduate childhood teacher education program that prepares students to become New York State certified teachers of childhood education grades 1-6. QUEST is a 36-credit program completed over either four or six semesters that includes extensive field experiences attached to courses. The six-semester sequence is designed for students who enter Hunter College as freshmen. The four-semester sequence is designed for transfer students and other students who do not apply to QUEST until they have completed 40 or more credits.

QUEST is committed to the preparation of urban elementary school teachers who can deal effectively with the wide range of diverse learning needs found among the City’s students. QUEST collaborates closely with New York City public schools to provide outstanding field experiences for students.

The program of study for the BA degree at Hunter College consists of a minimum of 120 credits. All students must major in one of the following liberal arts or sciences subjects: English Language Arts , English , History , Geography , Social Studies (available as a major in the geography department), Mathematics , Biology or Chemistry . QUEST serves as a collateral major in addition to a student’s major in Hunter’s School of Arts and Sciences. Students must also complete the Hunter Core Requirement.

Courses required as part of the major or the New York State Liberal Arts Distribution Requirement may fulfill parts of the Hunter Core Requirement (CUNY Common Core [CCC], Hunter Focus, Concurrent Requirements). When selecting courses, it may be to a student’s advantage to choose courses that count toward the Hunter Core Requirement and also advance the student on the path to the major. Details on the Hunter Core Requirement can be found here: Hunter Core Requirement .

New York State Liberal Arts & Science Distribution Requirement

Teachers in Elementary Schools

Teachers in elementary schools are required to teach all subject areas in the curriculum and thus need a broad liberal arts background in addition to specialized knowledge of teaching. Therefore, students will be required to complete the following liberal arts and sciences courses, or their equivalent (most of these courses can be taken within the Hunter Core Requirement ). These courses require a grade of C or better.

ENGL 12000 - Expository Writing
ENGL 22000 - Introduction to Writing about Literature (W)
GEOG 10100 - People and Their Environment
HIST 15100 - The United States from the Colonial Era to the Civil War (W)
HIST 15200 - The United States from the Civil War Era to the Present (W)
MATH 10400 - Mathematics for Elementary Education I
MATH 10500 - Mathematics for Elementary Education II
Two semesters of science, at least one of which is a laboratory science,*
6 credits in the arts (courses in ARTCR, ARTH, FILM, MUSHL, THEA),**
At least 6 credits in the study of a language other than English (The Hunter College GER/foreign language requirement is 12 credits or the equivalent.)

Students in the Childhood Education Program

Two additional courses that are required for students in the childhood education program are

Note(s)

* Computer Science does not count as a science course in meeting this requirement.

** Courses in FILMP, MEDIA, and MEDP do not meet the arts requirements.

Students are required to complete the technology assessments prior to graduation.

School of Education Technology Competencies

The Technology Competencies are required for all School of Education students. The competencies include fifteen skills in five aspects of educational technology: productivity, research, communication, media, and presentation.

Admissions Requirements

For applicants applying to both six and four-semester sequence

30 credits in liberal arts and sciences***
Minimum GPA of 3.0
Prerequisite for MATH 10400 : either a score high enough on the CUNY COMPASS to be placed in MATH 10400 or completion of MATH 10100
ENGL 12000 (or a 200- or 300-level writing course), with a grade of B or better
Declaration of an appropriate liberal arts and sciences major: biology, chemistry, English, English language arts, geography, history, social studies (an option within the geography major), or mathematics
Transfer students may enter the program with 40 to 72 credits. (Students with more than 72 credits should complete their liberal arts and sciences major and apply to the master’s degree program in childhood education.)
Transfer students with 60 or more credits, a GPA of 3.3 or better and a grade of B or better in ENGL 12000 do not have to present Hunter College grades. Transfer students with GPAs between 2.75 and 3.29 will have to complete 12 credits of coursework at Hunter College with a GPA of at least 2.8 before a final decision will be made on their application to QUEST.

Note(s)

*** Students may apply to QUEST if the total of their completed credits plus credits in which they are currently enrolled is at least 30 credits.

Progress Standards

Students must receive grades of C or better in required coursework in liberal arts and sciences and in QUEST courses that do not include fieldwork. QUEST fieldwork courses require a grade of B or better. All QUEST courses are repeatable once by students who have received a grade of C-, D+ or D in a non-fieldwork course or a grade below B in a fieldwork course. Students must officially reregister for these courses. Students who receive an F in any course or a D+ or D in fieldwork may not continue in the program. Students must also maintain a GPA of at least 2.8 throughout the QUEST program.

In order to register for QSTA 40600 - Mathematics Teaching and Learning in Elementary School , students must have completed MATH 10400 and MATH 10500 . With the approval of the program coordinator, transfer students may be allowed to enroll in QSTA 40600 after completing MATH 10400 and registering for MATH 10500 if their progress through the QUEST program would be delayed by the requirement for MATH 105 as a prerequisite.

In order to register for QSTA 41400 - Teaching Science in Elementary Schools , students must have completed two courses in science, at least one of which must be a laboratory science.

In order to register for QSTA 41200 - Teaching Social Studies through Literature, the Arts, and Technology in Elementary Schools , students must have completed HIST 15100 and HIST 15200 , or one of these courses plus GEOG 10100 .