History, Secondary Education, with Initial Teacher Licensure, B.S.

History

Objectives for the Program in History

The History program offers a variety of courses to all students.  It provides a strong foundation in European, World and United States history.

The program offers a major and minor in history, as well as provisional certification for teaching history.

Student Learning Outcomes

Historical Knowledge

Graduates with a baccalaureate in history understand the diversity of human experience in the past, as well as the nature of the historical enterprise. They acquire the ability to explain developments in U.S. and world history and their significance; become familiar with the different approaches to and methods of historical study; and understand the challenge of weighing multiple perspectives and evaluating the merits of competing interpretations. 

Historical Reasoning and Research

Graduates with a baccalaureate in history understand the nature of historical interpretation, the variety of historical sources, and the structure of historical arguments. They are able to pose a significant research question about the past; locate, explain, evaluate, and utilize information from and about the past to answer a research question; and utilize primary and secondary source evidence to support a historical argument. 

Communication

Graduates with a baccalaureate in history develop diverse communication skills, including reading to extract and construct meaning from text and non-textual sources; writing persuasive and evidence-based arguments; and creating oral, multimedia, and digital presentations.

Summary Statement

Through each of these three areas, students taking history courses obtain training in problem solving through the analysis of data and literary and artistic evidence to put forth and evaluate arguments, practice effective skills of communication in expressing ideas, obtain knowledge of citizenship at the local, national and global levels, confront ethical issues in historical reasoning and research, and understand context that produces artistic works.

Requirements for the Major in History

The Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts in History require 36 hours of course work. BA and BS candidates in History must have a minor in another discipline. BA and BS candidates for History with Initial Teacher Licensure are not required to have a minor in another discipline.

Required Courses

Bachelor of Science in History with Initial Teacher Licensure

Students within our History major can pursue initial licensure as high school History teachers. This program provides students with both a broad introduction to high school teaching and specific instruction in the theory, research and practice of secondary History teaching. Students engage in field-based experiences in the school setting supervised by our faculty through on-site pre-practicum experiences coupled with each teaching course and a formal teaching practicum as the capstone experience. This program is nationally accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and boasts graduates working in high schools throughout the region.

Students interested in pursuing Initial Teacher Licensure must apply for formal admission to the program.

For information about undergraduate requirements in teacher preparation, see the section titled: Teacher Preparation Programs  (Undergraduate).