Elementary Education Endorsement Options
Undergraduate and post-baccalaureate teacher certification candidates have the option of adding an additional endorsement to their initial teaching certificate. The Early Childhood Endorsement (ZA) is often required to teach Kindergarten, first or second grade, and is required to teach in Michigan's four-year old Readiness Program. Interested candidates must be accepted into the College of Education Elementary Teacher Education Program before they can begin to take courses for the endorsement. In relation to the two content area minors and planned program minor for the elementary education program, this endorsement would be considered a third minor and would require successful completion of twenty credit hours and the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification in Early Childhood Education.
A third option is the Special Education (Emotionally Impaired or Cognitive Impairment) K-12 Endorsement. These endorsement program require successful completion of one content area minor and a planned program minor in the elementary education program. It also includes successful completion of twenty-two credit hours of foundation courses and sixteen credits of Special Education core coursework, as well as an additional semester of student teaching in a Special Education classroom. Interested candidates must be accepted into the College of Education Elementary Teacher Education Program prior to taking courses for the endorsement with the exception given to the psychology courses required.
Teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL/ESL) is one of the fastest growing areas in the fields of English and education. The English as a Second Language Endorsement will qualify candidates to be certified as ESL instructors at the elementary level. With the increasing population of English language learners and the importance of language learning as a dimension of the multi-cultural classroom, this endorsement is relevant to those teaching mainstreamed ESL students as well as those in ESL sheltered programs. Candidates seeking initial certification may obtain this endorsement by completing the requirements of the elementary education program, as well as the requirements for this endorsement. Candidates must be accepted into the Elementary Teacher Education Program, complete eighteen hours of coursework and a six-hour practicum, and pass the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification in English as a Second Language.