Urban Teaching Programs
Our mission is to prepare skilled and reflective teachers who:
- Commit to fairness and justice in their classrooms and schools
- Recognize and act on patterns of inequality in access and opportunity to learn
- Provide high quality, engaging curriculum for all learners
- Care about their students and convey through their actions their belief that all students can learn
- Inspire in their students a passion for learning and a capacity to act in the world
We offer two programs in Urban Teaching that prepare students for NYS Teacher Certification:
- Elementary/Childhood Education (Grades 1-6)
- Secondary/Adolescent Education (Grades 7-12)
For BC students, the program is a minor in Urban Teaching. For CC and GS students, the program is a Special Program in Urban Teaching (formerly a Special Concentration).
Students must apply to the program and be accepted to be eligible for certification.
To apply to the Urban Teaching Program in either Secondary/Adolescent Education or Elementary/Childhood Education, you must:
- Attend an Open House and a Program Planning meeting in your first or second year.
- Meet with a faculty member to complete an Urban Teaching program plan and a content core worksheet.
- Complete the Urban Teaching Application (see below).
- Complete an Interview for the program.
Criteria for Acceptance
There are 3 main criteria for acceptance into the program.
- GPA of 3.0 or higher, demonstrated by a review of your transcript.
- Your ability to complete the program, demonstrated by your program plan, other application materials, and letters of recommendation.
- Your desire to pursue a career in education, demonstrated by the essay and interview.
Open Houses and Program Planning
Open Houses and Program Planning events take place in the fall and spring semesters. All students are welcome. Please find our upcoming Open House and Program Planning dates in the News and Events page.
The Application
Please prepare and complete all parts of the application:
- Urban Teaching Application: This portion of the application provides general background information. Please complete the linked form and attach all the required documents [essay, resume, and transcript(s].
- Program Plan and Content Core Worksheet: Be sure you have met with a faculty member to complete a program plan and content core worksheet for your certification area/grade level. We will review these documents to evaluate how you intend to complete the required coursework.
- Essay: We are interested in how your interests and experiences relate to our commitment to serving urban youth since the Barnard Education Program is situated in an urban center, and you will be interning in urban classrooms. Discuss briefly (500-1000) your interests in the field of education and the special interests or skills you feel you bring to it. Some autobiographical material would be helpful. Please include experiences you have had with children or adolescents. You should complete this essay as a Word document and submit it with your application.
- Resume: Please attach a current resume to your application.
- Transcript: Please attach a copy of your most recent transcript. Please include any transcripts from other schools if you are a transfer student.
- Recommendation Forms: You will be asked to provide the names of two people who will complete your recommendation forms on the General Information portion of your application. You will also be asked to waive or not waive your right to see the recommendation form. The first recommendation form should be from a faculty member from your major field of study. The second recommendation form may be from another faculty member or a current or previous employer. At least one recommendation form should be from a Barnard or Columbia faculty member. Recommendations should not come from Teaching Assistants. We will send the request for the recommendation directly to the people you indicate in your application.
Interview
After reviewing applications, program faculty will meet with all qualified candidates individually. Candidates will be contacted by the program’s administrative assistant to schedule the interview.
This program prepares students for a New York State Initial Certificate in Childhood Education (Grades 1-6).
Urban Teaching - Elementary/Childhood Track Requirements |
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A |
Education Foundations |
EDUC BC 1510 FA/SP |
Foundations of Education |
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B |
Psychology Not including Introduction to Psychology |
PSYC BC 2129 |
Developmental Psychology |
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PSYC BC 2134 |
Educational Psychology |
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PSYC UN 2280 |
Developmental Psychology |
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C |
Pedagogical Elective |
EDUC BC 3050 |
Science in the City |
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EDUC BC 3052 |
Math and the City |
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EDUC BC 3058 |
Science and Engineering in the City |
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D |
Pedagogical Core |
EDUC BC 3053 |
Multicultural Elementary Pedagogy |
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EDUC BC 3025 | Inclusive Approaches to Teaching Literacy: Theory and Practice | ||||
EDUC BC 3064 |
Critical Inquiry in Urban Teaching |
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EDUC BC 3063 |
Elementary Student Teaching in Urban Schools |
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E |
Content Core |
History
Science
Mathematics
Note: Other NYS content core requirements are satisfied by the Barnard General Education Requirements or the Columbia/General Studies Core Curriculum. |
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F |
Clinical Experiences |
See Clinical Experiences for Urban Teaching Students below for more information. |
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NOTE: Excluding the content core courses, required courses taken for the Urban Teaching minor/special program may not be counted for the major or another minor/special program. |
This program prepares students for a New York State Initial Certificate in Adolescent Education (Grades 7-12) in the fields of English, Foreign and Ancient Languages, Mathematics, the Sciences, and Social Studies.
Urban Teaching - Secondary/Adolescent Track Requirements |
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A |
Education Foundations |
EDUC BC 1510 FA/SP |
Foundations of Education |
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B |
Psychology Not including Introduction to Psychology |
PSYC BC 2129 |
Developmental Psychology |
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PSYC BC 2134 |
Educational Psychology |
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PSYC BC 3382 |
Adolescent Psychology |
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PSYC UN 2280 |
Developmental Psychology |
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C |
Pedagogical Elective Must be related to your certification subject area |
EDUC BC 3050 |
Science in the City |
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EDUC BC 3052 |
Math and the City |
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EDUC BC 3055 |
Arts and Humanities in the City |
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EDUC BC 3058 |
Science and Engineering in the City |
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D |
Pedagogical Core |
EDUC BC 3054 |
Multicultural Secondary Pedagogy |
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EDUC BC 3025 |
Inclusive Approaches to Teaching Literacy: Theory and Practice |
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EDUC BC 3064 |
Critical Inquiry in Urban Teaching |
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EDUC BC 3065 |
Secondary Student Teaching in Urban Schools |
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E |
Content Core |
See below. |
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F |
Clinical Experiences |
See Clinical Experiences for Urban Teaching Students below for more information. |
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NOTE: Excluding courses taken the content core, required courses taken for the Urban Teaching minor/special program may not be counted for the major or another minor/special concentration. |
ADOLESCENT/SECONDARY CONTENT CORE |
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Adolescent Education students must also complete 36 credits in the content area (major or concentration) for which they seek certification. Students must earn a grade of C or better for each course taken in the content core. |
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English |
36 credits in English. |
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Foreign Language |
36 credits in French, German, Greek, Italian, Latin, or Spanish. |
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Mathematics |
36 credits in Mathematics. |
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Science |
36 credits in science, including 18 credits in the science (or each science) for which certification is sought: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Earth Science only. |
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Social Studies |
36 credits, including 6 credits of American History, 6 credits of European or World History, 3 credits of non-Western study, and an additional 21 credits, chosen from History, Political Science, Anthropology, Sociology, and Economics. |
The Barnard Education Program requires three levels of clinical experiences for Urban Teaching candidates prior to student teaching. These experiences provide rich opportunities for prospective teachers to connect theory to practice and build a reflective practice as they apply their developing skills in informal and formal, school and community educational settings. Urban Teaching candidates must map out a plan to complete each level of clinical experience prior to the subsequent one. All experiences must be completed with children and youth in the age group for which you are seeking certification. For childhood certification, you should work with children in grades 1-6. For adolescent certification, you should work with youth in grades 7-12. Placements for Urban School Practicum and Student Teaching will be made so that by the time students complete the program, Childhood Education candidates have experience in grades 1-3 and 4-6 and Adolescent Education candidates have experience in grades 7-9 and 10-12.
As part of the NYS Certification process, students are required to complete a minimum of 520 hours of supervised education-based clinical experiences. Students spend 100+ hours in NYC public school classrooms as part of pre-student teaching pedagogical courses, and 70+ days in Student Teaching. Additionally, as part of the Barnard Education Program, students are required to complete a 40-hour minimum foundational fieldwork experience prior to the start of student teaching. These clinical experiences are described below.
Foundational Clinical Experiences: Exploring Educational Settings (40 hours)
All Urban Teaching candidates must complete 40 hours of independent fieldwork prior to or during the first year of admission to the Education Program. This fieldwork may be completed during the summer or during the academic year and should be documented using the Fieldwork in Education Packet. Students must keep a journal during their fieldwork experience and write a reflective essay that is submitted with the completed packet.
Intermediate Clinical Experiences I: Course-Related Fieldwork in Education (35 hours)
For the Pedagogical Elective requirement for Urban Teaching, students enroll in one of the courses listed below and complete 35 hours of fieldwork connected to their coursework. This fieldwork is documented using the Fieldwork Record Sheets which must be signed by the candidate, the cooperating teacher, and the instructor for the course and forwarded to the Education Program Office. All Urban Teaching candidates should complete one of the courses listed below prior to taking the courses EDUC BC 3025 Inclusive Approaches to Teaching Literacy and EDUC BC 3053 or 3054 Multicultural Elementary or Secondary Pedagogy in the Junior year.
- EDUC BC 3050 Science in the City
- EDUC BC 3058 Science and Engineering in the City
- EDUC BC 3052 Math and the City
- EDUC BC 3055 Arts & Humanities in the City
Intermediate Clinical Experiences II: Multicultural Pedagogy (40+ hours)
EDUC BC 3053/3054 Multicultural Elementary/Secondary Pedagogy is usually taken in the fall semester of the junior year. Students who plan to study abroad must take it in their sophomore year since there is a year-long field placement attached to this course and the Literacy course. Students are placed in a public school to observe and work alongside an experienced teacher. Students complete a minimum of 40 fieldwork hours in the fall semester.
Intermediate Clinical Experiences III: Inclusive Approaches to Teaching Literacy (60+ hours)
EDUC BC 3025 Inclusive Approaches to Teaching Literacy is usually taken in the spring of the junior year. Students who plan to study abroad must take it in their sophomore year. These two courses are the first of two supervised fieldwork experiences. Student continue their fall field fieldwork placement and complete a minimum of 60 fieldwork hours in the spring semester. By the end of the year, students must have completed at least 100 hours to go on to Student Teaching.
Student Teaching (70+ days)
Student Teaching is the capstone experience of the Urban Teaching Program. Students are placed in New York City public school classrooms for the duration of their senior year. In the fall, while taking Critical Inquiry in Urban Teaching, students are engaged in fieldwork 1-2 days a week. Students must complete a minimum of 10 days during the fall semester. In the spring semester, they attend student teaching five days a week, full-time. This full-time teaching experience allows students to put theory into practice with the guidance of an experienced cooperating teacher. During the student teaching semester, students can only take two additional classes. The classes must meet after regular school hours. Some majors have requirements or opportunities for seniors that conflict with student teaching; therefore, it is important for students to plan their programs carefully.
The Urban Teaching program is a member of the Association for Advancing Quality in Education Preparation (AAQEP) and approved by the New York State Education Department to recommend students who complete the program for Initial Certification in either Childhood Education (grades 1-6) or Adolescent Education (grades 7-12).
Certification is based on demonstrated competency in both academic and field settings. Students are required to complete a minimum of 520 hours of education-based field experiences. Students must pass the New York State Teacher Certification Examinations. Also required are workshops in Child Abuse Identification; School Violence Intervention and Prevention; and the Dignity for All Students Act (DASA), offered at Teachers College.
Note: For certification in New York State, undergraduates must pass all courses counting toward certification with a letter grade of C or better. Pass/D/Fail grading is not an option.
Fingerprinting Forms
Certification
Links
We are proud of the accomplishments of our students and alumni, and the data support our claims that program students are skilled and reflective teachers who can effectively respond to the learning needs of diverse learners, and create supportive and intellectually stimulating classroom communities.
The Barnard College Education Program is registered with the New York State Department of Education and is accredited by the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP). The 2023 accreditation report can be found here.
1. Indicators of program effectiveness & satisfaction of employers
Employer and Alumni Surveys conducted in 2022 as part of the accreditation process were designed to investigate program effectiveness, one item stands out as emblematic of the feedback we have received about the effectiveness of our program. This question on the Employer Survey asked, “How well do you believe your teacher was prepared to teach through the Barnard Education Program in comparison to other new teachers in your school?” Seven of the eleven employers surveyed had hired one of our completers during their 1st-3rd year of teaching. Of these, five (71.4%) said that our teacher was more prepared to teach than most other new teachers. The other two employers (28.5%) thought our teacher was as prepared as other new teachers, with a mean response of 2.7/3.0 (n=7, SD±0.0.49). None of the employers thought our completers were less prepared than other new teachers in their school. See Figure 18.
Figure 18. Employer Survey: Preparation in the Barnard Education Program
2. Indicators of program effectiveness & satisfaction of completers
While the Alumni Survey was designed to investigate program effectiveness, one item stands out as emblematic of the feedback we have received about the overall effectiveness of our program. This question asked, “How well do you believe your experience in the Barnard Education Program prepared you in comparison to other new teachers in your school?” The majority of respondents thought they were more prepared, and 30 % (n=30) thought they were as prepared as other new teachers in their school, with a mean response of (67%, n=67) response of 2.7/3.0 (n=7, SD±0.0.49).
3. Graduation and completion rates
SENIOR URBAN TEACHING MINORS/SPECIAL CONCENTRATORS - GRADUATION & CERTIFICATION RATES |
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Spring Semester |
# of Student Teachers in Senior Cohort |
# of Graduating Students |
# Completing Urban Teaching Track Requirements |
# Completing NYS Initial Teaching Certification |
# Completing Out of State Teacher Certification |
2024 |
6* |
5* |
6* |
5* |
1* |
2023 |
6 |
6 |
5 |
4* |
1 |
2022 |
6 |
5 |
5 |
4 |
0 |
2021 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
2 |
2 |
2020 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
1* |
*Anticipated
4. Ability of completers to meet licensing requirements and additional state requirements
SUMMARY OF TITLE II PASSING RATES FOR NYSTCE* |
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Cohort Year |
#Program Completers |
# Taking Tests |
# Passing Tests |
Pass Rate % |
2023 |
6 |
3 |
3 |
100 |
2022 |
5 |
4 |
4 |
100 |
2021 |
5 |
4 |
4 |
100 |
2020 |
8 |
7 |
7 |
100 |
*This table does not account for completers taking certification exams in other states.
5. Ability of completers to be hired in education positions for which they have prepared
URBAN TEACHING COMPLETERS - EMPLOYMENT RATES 2023-2024 |
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Cohort Year |
# of Urban Teaching Completers |
# and % Employed in Teaching Positions |
# and % Enrolled in a Master's Degree* |
# and % Employed in a Different Field |
2023 |
6 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
2022 |
4 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
2021 |
5 |
4 |
3 |
0 |
2020 |
8 |
6 |
1 |
1** |
Total |
18 |
17 |
7 |
1** |
*Please note that teaching and enrollment in graduate school are not mutually exclusive.
** Currently working in an education-adjacent field.
6. Consumer information
Cost of Attendance
Below are Barnard College's tuition and fees for the following academic years. The expected length of time to complete the teacher education program is three years.
Academic Year |
Tuition & Fees |
On Campus Room & Board, Other Expenses |
2023-2024 |
$66,246 |
$21,651 |
2022-2023 |
$62,525 |
$20,734 |
2021-2022 |
$59,867 |
$19,856 |
Student Loan Default Rates
Student loan default rates for Barnard College can be found on the Federal Student Aid (FSA) site.
Teacher Salaries
The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) provides teaching salary and benefit information for New York City.
Course and credit requirements for pursuing the Urban Teaching Program differ, depending on whether you are interested in the Elementary program or the Adolescent program. The Childhood Education Program (Grades 1-6)works with any major. The Adolescent Education Program (Grades 7-12) closely aligns with the content area majors below.
Childhood Education (Grades 1-6) |
Most students who do this track major in psychology or sociology, but we have had students major in dance, theater, history, English, math, computer science, urban studies, and many others. |
Please note - all Childhood Education candidates are required to take courses in the following:
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Adolescent Education (Grades 7-12) |
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English |
English Language Arts (ELA) only works with the English major. Students can have any focus within the major, but need to have at least one writing course and one literature course. 30 of the 36 credits required must have the course code of ENGL. 36 credits are required. |
Foreign Language |
Foreign Language certification requires a major in the language that the student is seeking certification for (French, German, Italian, or Spanish) or in Classics for Latin or Greek. Culture and literature courses count, but the courses must be taught in the language, not in translation. Courses should have the code for the department of the language. 36 credits are required. |
Mathematics |
Mathematics requires a major in Mathematics or Mathematical Sciences. Students majoring in Applied Mathematics should plan to take more than 50% or more of their courses with the code MATH. 36 credits are required. |
Science |
30 credits in the science of choice below, plus 6 credits, which may be in another science.
|
Social Studies |
Social Studies works with a variety of majors including: History, American Studies, Economics and Social History, Sociology, Socio-Cultural Anthropology or Political Science. Please note, regardless of the major, the student will need 6 credits in U.S. History, 6 credits in European or World History, and 3 credits in non-Western History, as well as a course in Economics and U.S. Government. The remainder of the 36 credits required can be from any of the social sciences. 36 credits are required. |
When planning for their major, all students should plan to student teach in their final (spring) semester. Student teaching requires that students be in schools Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. - 3:15 p.m.