The program focuses on combining science content and the teaching methods appropriate for elementary level school children along with educational theory and research. Teachers gain enhanced skills on the instruction of complex scientific concepts to young students and help instill a life-long interest in science.

Careers

Graduates with a master’s in elementary science education find rewarding careers as science and general education teachers in formal elementary classroom settings. Graduates also become principals of charter schools, science lab program coordinators or subject matter experts that provide expertise for teacher professional development programs. Science educators are found in science institutions that serve elementary teachers and students, such as museums, zoos, aquariums, national parks and reserves.

The education faculty has a wide range of elementary, middle, secondary and post-secondary experience in a variety of educational subject areas. Students earning a master’s in elementary science education experience a small student-to-teacher ratio where professors mentor them to succeed. Faculty members are active in educational research, consistently publish in top-tier journals and encourage students to do the same. With hundreds of published research papers, books and 10,000 citations, the faculty is nationally recognized researchers providing major contributions to their field.