College Life

Private Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• Vanderbilt University
• Stanford University
• Boston College
• Connecticut College
• Furman University

State Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• Michigan State University
• Pennsylvania State University
• Ohio State University
• University of Georgia
• University of Washington

Classes in the Major

Curriculum Planning. Teachers can't just show up to class and wing it—there are actually lesson plans and state standards to think about when you're trying to teach students new stuff. Part of what makes a good teacher is how they plan out the curriculum. Education majors take courses about the pedagogical theories behind learning and how the brain absorbs all that tasty info. They also spend a lot of their time making mock lesson plans with set objectives before seeing how the pros handle it.

Education Foundation and Principles. In order to understand an educator's life after college, you've got to know the system, inside and out. In an education foundation and principles course, you'll learn about the history of the education system in the U.S., along with trends in education. Studies are done each year about the best way to teach new concepts to students, and education majors study these in their courses. Even if you end up as an administrator or with a job outside of the classroom, it's important to know the triumphs and failures of the system as a whole.

Human Growth and Development. You've got to be teaching the right stuff to the right students. Imagine teaching an essay-writing class to a group of kids still learning how to read. Sounds frightening, exhausting, and a waste of time for both parties involved. This is why education majors spend a lot of time going over the development of the human brain to figure out the best way to teach. These courses will not only prepare you for whatever level you go into, but it'll also help set your expectations for what's ahead.

Teaching English. There's a reason why you unpack your adjectives and get your adverbs from Lolly. School House Rock set English grammar rules to music to make them easy to remember and use in real life—and this technique is proven to work. We'll admit, we still find ourselves singing, "Conjunction junction, what's your function?" We see no shame in that whatsoever. While we can't promise some good, old-fashioned School House Rock in your college classes, we can promise that you'll go over different styles and ways to teach English. These courses will cover everything from grammar to literature, and everything in between.

Teaching Math. Two plus two always equals four, but how do you explain that to someone who has no idea what numbers even are? Math is a pretty abstract concept, yet children have to learn it pretty early on. The most complex math equations rely on the fact that the number three represents, say, three apples or three fingers. These courses discuss ways to ensure that students actually understand what you're saying and not just nodding along without a clue. Also, you'll go over math theories and concepts before talking about tricks of the trade to get them into your students' brains. (BTW, costumes, food, and music always help.)