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The Educational Studies Minor/Special Concentration

The Minor (BC)/Special Concentration (CC/GS) in Educational Studies is ideal for students who are considering:

  • Teaching, but not seeking certification as an undergraduate

  • Graduate studies in education or the social sciences

  • Careers in public policy or law

  • Careers in educational non-profits or other out-of-school spaces 

  • Other areas where K-12 education is a focus

The Minor/Special Concentration in Educational Studies does not lead to teacher certification but coursework includes field experiences in K-12 urban classrooms.

To participate in the Educational Studies track, students must submit an Educational Studies Declaration Form by the fall of their junior year. Please visit to learn more about the declaration process. Coursework includes Education courses, Educational Foundations courses, and relevant courses in other departments that address educational issues. 

The Educational Studies minor/special concentration requires field placements. As a result, it is important for the Barnard Education Program faculty to know who is planning to move forward with a minor or special concentration.
 

To minor/concentrate in Educational Studies:

  1. Attend an Open House;
    Please visit News and Events to view our next Open House date(s).

  2. Submit an Education Studies Declaration Form (required);
    Please submit a completed Educational Studies Declaration Form to the Barnard Education Program. Once the form is submitted, we will connect you with your faculty adviser in order to schedule a program planning meeting.

  3. Meet with Your Faculty Adviser for Program Plan Approval (required);
    You will meet with your faculty adviser, who will learn more about your goals and expectations, as well as review your Educational Studies program plan. At the end of the meeting, your faculty adviser will approve your program plan. You MUST meet with a faculty adviser and have your program plan approved and signed to be considered "declared" for the minor in our program.

  4. Declare the Minor to the Barnard or Columbia Registrars (required).
    In order to have the Educational Studies Minor/Special Concentration designation appear on your transcript, you must submit either:

Please note that all forms listed above will require approval from the Education Program chair. Please submit forms requiring the chair’s approval to the Barnard Education Program.

Petitioning a Non-Minor Course for an Education Studies Requirement

If you wish to fulfill a requirement with a course not listed in Requirements for the Education Studies Minor/Special Concentration, you must fill out the Petition to Count a Course for an Education Requirement before enrolling in the course. Your faculty adviser will review your petition and inform you of a decision.

Making Changes to Your Educational Studies Program Plan

Once your Educational Studies program plan is approved, we advise that you follow the initial plan. However, if you decide to make changes to your program plan (e.g., take a course not listed in your program plan to fulfill a requirement), we ask that you submit an updated Educational Studies Program Planner to your faculty adviser for approval.

For Students Declaring the Educational Studies Minor/Special Concentration in Spring 2021 and Beyond

To complete the Minor (BC) or Special Concentration (CC/GS) in Educational Studies, students must complete 20-24 points of coursework, listed below.

EDUCATION STUDIES TRACK REQUIREMENTS
(For students in Spring 2021 and beyond)

A

Educational Foundations
(1 course)

EDUC BC 1510 FA/SP                                    

Educational Foundations (required)
B

Educational Electives
(3 courses; 1 course must be an EDUC course)

EDUC BC 3030

Critical Pedagogies*

EDUC BC 3032

Investigating the Purposes and Aims of Education Policy

EDUC BC 3034

Families, Communities, and Schools

EDUC BC 3040

Migration, Globalization, and Education

EDUC BC 3042

Gender, Sexuality, and Schooling

EDUC BC 3044 FA

Education and Social Change in Comparative Global Contexts

EDUC BC 3045 FA

Complicating Class: Education and the Limits of Equity

EDUC BC 3250

Education in a Polarized and Unequal Society

URBS UN 3310 

Race, Space, and Urban Schools

AMST UN 3930 (Sec. 002)

Topics in American Studies: Race, Poverty, and American Criminal Justice

AMST UN 3930 (Sec. 003)

Topics in American Studies: Equity in American Higher Education

CSER UN 3928

Colonization/Decolonization

ECON BC 3012

Economics of Education

PHIL UN 2100

Philosophy of Education

PSYC BC 2134

Educational Psychology

PSYC BC 3363

Pedagogy for Higher Education in Psychology

PSYC BC 3382

Adolescent Psychology

SOCI UN 3225

Sociology of Education

SOCI W 3923

Adolescent Society

SOCI UN 3974

Sociology of Schools

C

Pedagogical Elective
(1 course, including 35 fieldwork hours)

EDUC BC 3030

Critical Pedagogies*

EDUC BC 3052

Inclusive Approaches to Teaching Literacy: Theory and Practice

EDUC BC 3050

Science in the City I

EDUC BC 3052     

Math and the City

EDUC BC 3055

Arts & Humanities in the City

EDUC BC 3058

Science in the City II

D

Capstone
(1 course with fieldwork placement) 

EDUC BC 3051 FA/SP

Seminar in Urban Education (taken in the fall or spring semester of your junior or senior year)

NOTE: Courses taken for the Education Studies minor/special concentration may not be counted for the major or another minor/special concentration. For example, a student majoring in Sociology and including Sociology of Education for the major would enroll in another Educational Foundations course to complete the Education Studies requirement. 

* EDUC BC 3030 Critical Pedagogies can count towards the Education Electives or the Pedagogical Elective requirement.

Students are required to complete two field-based experiences in connection with pedagogical core courses.

Students are required to be fingerprinted through the NYC Department of Education prior to enrolling in these courses. Students who have not yet been fingerprinted must meet with the Certification Officer during the advanced program filing period in the semester before taking the course.

 

EDUC BC 3050 Science in the City, EDUC BC 3058 Science in the City II, EDUC BC 3052 Math and the City, OR EDUC BC 3055 Arts & Humanities in the City

These courses pair students with public school teachers who also take the course. Students are expected to work with their partner teachers in their classrooms for a minimum of 3.5 hours a week for 10 weeks, or a minimum total of 35 hours. Students will observe, plan and co-teach with their partner teachers.

 

EDUC BC 3051 Seminar in Urban Education

This course assigns students to sites where they will complete fieldwork in conjunction with coursework. Sites may include classrooms, after school programs, or community-based programs.