Liberal Studies
The major for future elementary school teachers.
Information for Specific Classes
Some Liberal Studies course requirements have specific requirements that students need to be aware of. Please see the links below for more information about specific course requirements.
Math Education 212
Math Education is a half semester length course that investigates children's mathematical thinking. It includes observations of students working with elementary math concepts. Ideally, students should take this class concurrently with Math 210, as the concepts covered in Math 210 are the ones students are applying during the Math Ed 212 observations. Note, however, that this is a recommendation, not a requiement.
Students who plan on volunteering in a San Diego Unified School District school should dowload this copy of that district's guidelines and read them carefeully.
Meeting dates/times for the Fall 2009 semester are listed below.
- Section 1 - Tuesdays, 0800-1030, second half of semester. Class will meet for seven sessions on Oct 27, Nov 3, 10, 17, 24, Dec. 1, 8. Watch for a reminder e-mail about two weeks before the class starts. (The class will NOT start on Oct. 20 as originally posted.) (7/19/09)
- Section 2 - Thursdays, 1600-1840, first half of semester. Class will meet for seven sessions on Sept. 3, 10, 17, 24, Oct. 1, 8, 15.
- The class often meets at a school site for the second meeting. The schedule for the semester will be announced on the first day of class. Try to avoid missing the first day or you may not be able to find the class for the second meeting.
Music 102
The Music 102 course involves learning how to read music and play a simple instrument. In the past, students have been able to satisfy the requirement that Music 102 fulfills (VPA-1) through a Challenge Examination. The exam is designed for students who play an instrument and/or sing and would like to attempt to earn course credit by examination rather than by participating in the course for the entire semester. Students must register for the course and take the exam in the same semester. The challenge exam is offered only once per year on the first Saturday of the Fall semester. Students who earn a score of 75% or better on both sections of the exam will receive 3 units of Credit by Examination for Music 102. The exam maybe taken only once and is held once a year. There is no fee for the exam. Reservations must be made in the Music & Dance Office by noon on the Friday immediately preceding the examination.
UPDATE: because nothing is certain in these difficult budgetary times, we can't be sure that the challenge exam will be offered in Fall 2010. Check back for updates. In the meantime, interested students can download a copy of the informational flyer to learn more about the exam.
HUM 1
The HUM-1 requirement in Liberal Studies can be satisfied in three different ways, depending on a student’s background in foreign language and individual preferences. To see some of the options available, students should consult their Degree Evaluation through the web portal. HOWEVER, due to programming limitations, the degree evaluation can’t list all of the possibilities. For more detail, students should either see a Liberal Studies adviser or use the How to Satisfy the HUM-1 Requirement handout. Note the additional foreign language option here but not reflected in the degree evaluation.
Education 200
Introduction
When you take the Education 200 course, you will complete 30 hours of field experience, which, for the purposes of this course, is defined as observation and participation in an elementary school classroom using the handouts below as your guide. The handouts provide directions for a set of experiences designed to help you learn more about the functions and activities in California public schools. It is expected that this experience will occur in grades K - 8 because these are the levels at which you are most likely to teach after you earn your Multiple Subject Credential. This Multiple Subject Early Field Experience will help you understand the dynamics of teaching in a public school setting and provide you with enough information to make a decision about whether a career in teaching is suitable for you
Understanding What You Need to Do
- In SDSU’s ED 200 or its equivalent course at a community college, you will be completing
Experience A: 15 hours of activities assigned by your ED 200 instructor and
Experience B: 15 hours of field experience in one K-8 classroom with cooperating teacher B.
Later, in SDSU’s LIB S 300, you will complete an additional 30 hours. This website contains a list of San Diego County elementary schools by district. - Materials for Experience A and for Experience B are available as separate files on the Liberal Studies web. When you enroll in ED 200, you should carefully read the complete Early Field Experience B Guide. Become familiar with all the parts and their purpose.
- Listen carefully to the advice your ED 200 professor gives. He/she will help you understand the expectations for your field experiences and give you advice on how to contact a school or specific teachers. Professors will guide student reflections and discussions regarding observations and experiences. The goal is to help students determine what they need to become effective teachers.
Instructors of ED 200 classes will establish contracts with each student regarding the observation/participation schedule, location of experiences, and due dates for Experience A assignments and Experience B Early Field Experience write-ups. Instructors will also monitor fulfillment of this contract.
Students who plan on volunteering in a San Diego Unified School District school should dowload this copy of that district's guidelines and read them carefeully.
Liberal Studies 300
LS 300 requires an additional 30 hours of field experience in a different elementary school classroom from ED 200 as part of the course requirements. You can find a detailed set of instructions for the field experience on this website and a list of San Diego County elementary schools by district. Students who plan on volunteering in a San Diego Unified School District school should dowload this copy of that district's guidelines and read them carefeully.
During the semester in which students are enrolled in LS 300, there will be workshops in wihch students will learn about the CSET, the Liberal Studies 498 assessment, what a typical week in a credential program is like, prerequisites for the SDSU credential programs (general, bilingual, and special education), the certificate of clearance, the APLE financial aid program, and future educator organizations.
Workshop dates and times for the Fall semester are listed below:
- Workshop 1: 1300-1600, Friday Sept. 25 in SS 1500.
Workshop 2: 1230-1530, Saturday Oct. 3 in SS 1500. CANCELED
Liberal Studies 498
LS 498 is the class that all Liberal Studies students take as their Senior Assessment (note that a portfolio is no longer required of Liberal Studies majors).
Currently, LS 498 requires:
- a three-part capstone project on the nature of one or two of the disciplines,
- a reflection connected to a specific artifact (sample from a course) on one of two possible subject areas OR a test on one subject area, and
- an in-class essay (a reflection on some aspect of the student's experience in the major or specialization).
These projects deal with at least two of the subject areas that graduates will eventually teach. The capstone project tells the program faculty how well Liberal Studies seniors have mastered their ability to do focused research, to support or refute--or modify--a proposed thesis, and to write clearly and effectively with minimal distracting grammar and punctuation errors.
Freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are strongly encouraged to save artifacts from courses, such as tests, homework, lab write-ups, and projects. In addition to the samples already mentioned, students are encouraged to save their syllabi (with the instructor's name), lecture notes, course readers, and as many textbooks as possible. These items will form the foundation for students' future teaching. They also serve as samples and background materials for Liberal Studies 498 and as resources when studying for CSET.
A passing grade in this 0.5 unit class is a graduation requirement, so students should plan ahead for LS 498 and take care to dedicate sufficient time to the required activities in order to pass. It is highly recommended that students enroll in LS 498 in their second to last semester and that they reduce their overall unit load in that semester. For example, if a student normally takes 15 units per semester, adding the .5 unit for LS 498 will amount to much more work than a 15.5 unit load would suggest. Instead, students should consider dropping their load to 12.5. It they don’t, they won’t have enough time to complete the required LS 498 assignments satisfactorily and won't, as a result, be able to graduate.
LS 498 class meeting dates and times for the Fall 2009 semester are listed below. Please note that the first meeting is Labor Day weekend and the third meeting is Halloween. The timing for the semester does not allow us to change these dates. While make up-sessions are available the following Friday for students who have a serious or compelling reason, students who wait to take the make-up session are at a significant disadvantage due to the short time allowed to complete key projects. We strongly encourage you to complete LIB S 498 the semester before your final semester; however, doing so requires that you be able to participate in all the scheduled activities.
- Fall Section 1: 1500-1700, Fridays: Sept. 4, Oct. 2, and Oct. 30 in SS 1500.
- Fall Section 2: 0930-1130, Saturdays: Sept. 5, Oct. 3, and Oct. 31 in SS 1500.
- Students who choose to do the CSET-like Science Test rather than that Math Reflection for Project II will also need to meet Friday Oct. 23 from 1400-1600, location to be determined.