4000 College of Education and Human Development

Undergraduate programs in the College of Education and Human Development are described in detail in this chapter. See subsections for specific program information as well as policies and procedures.

Additional Teacher Education information is found in 1600 Educator Preparation  of the catalog.

General Information

The information contained in this chapter applies to programs, course offerings, and requirements specific to the College of Education and Human Development. However, the information in this chapter is to be considered supplemental to the general university information found in the preceding chapters of this catalog. Therefore, students should familiarize themselves thoroughly with general information on registration, fees and refunds, academic regulations, student life, and campus services. All policies, regulations, and requirements explained in the preceding chapters of this catalog also apply to the College of Education and Human Development.

Accreditation

The Professional Education Faculty (PEF) governs all educator preparation programs leading to licensure by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. The GaPSC approval process covers all initial teacher preparation programs, programs leading to service and educational leadership certificates, and endorsements in teaching or service fields offered at Georgia State University.

The Professional Education Faculty offers undergraduate initial teacher preparation programs through the College of the Arts, College of Arts and Sciences, and the College of Education and Human Development.

The B.S. Exercise Science program is accredited by the Commission of Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP).

Degree Programs

Undergraduate degree programs are offered through the departments of Early Childhood and Elementary Education; Communication Sciences and Disorders; Kinesiology and Health; Learning Sciences; and Middle and Secondary Education.

Undergraduate degree programs for teachers of art and music are offered by the College of the Arts.

Undergraduate degree programs for teachers physics are offered by the College of Arts and Sciences.

College of Education and Human Development Undergraduate Degrees, Majors and Minors:

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

• Deaf Studies (Deaf Education and Sign Language Intepreting)

Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies

• Concentration in Human Learning and Development
• Concentration in Sport Administration
• Concentration in World Languages Teacher Education 

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

• Exercise Science

Bachelor of Science in Education (B.S.E.)

• Birth Through Five
• Elementary Education
• Health and Physical Education
• Middle Level Education
• Special Education

Certificate

• Audiology Assistant
• Sign Language Interpreting

Minors

• Deaf Studies
• Educational Psychology
• Special Education - High Incidence Disabilities
• Urban Education

Research and Outreach

Many of the college’s programs involve student and faculty participation and interaction with metropolitan Atlanta community schools and agencies. Atlanta offers an ideal laboratory for the development of our students. To view our list of opportunities, go to https://education.gsu.edu/research-outreach/.

 4010 Students’ Responsibilities

Knowledge of Regulations

Students must assume full responsibility for knowledge of the policies, rules, and regulations of the College of Education and Human Development and the university as well as the departmental requirements concerning their individual programs.

It is the responsibility of the students to become knowledgeable of and to observe all regulations and procedures required by the program being pursued. In no case will a regulation be waived or an exception granted because a student pleads ignorance of the regulation or asserts that an advisor or other university authority did not inform the individual of a specific requirement. Each student should become especially familiar with the chapters of this catalog that present the academic requirements for the degree being sought, the offerings and requirements of the students’ major department, and any changes published in the online Schedule of Classes each academic term.

While the provisions set forth in this catalog will ordinarily be applied as stated, Georgia State University and the College of Education and Human Development have the right to change any provision, including but not limited to academic requirements for graduation, without actual notice to individual students. Every effort will be made to keep students advised of any such changes. Information on changes will be available in the Office of the Dean and Office of Academic Assistance when changes are made by the College of Education and Human Development. It is especially important that each student note that it is the individual student’s responsibility to keep apprised of current graduation requirements for his or her particular degree program.

Criteria on Academic and Professional Integrity

The College of Education and Human Development is committed to upholding standards of academic and professional integrity. These standards require that students enrolled in undergraduate programs within the College of Education and Human Development adhere to both the University’s Student Code of Conduct as described online at codeofconduct.gsu.edu as well as their individual degree program’s Policy on Student Professionalism, Integrity and Retention. Students should contact their department for a copy of their degree program’s policy.

 4020 College Academic Advisement

Academic advisors in the Office of Academic Assistance advise undergraduate students in the College of Education and Human Development who have completed 90 credit hours or more and are admitted to or are pursuing admission to one of the college’s undergraduate degree programs. The college encourages students with questions about their degree requirements or the academic regulations of the college or university to contact their academic advisor.

Students with questions about course content, career plans, and expectations for their fields of preparation and interest may contact faculty members in the college. Students should contact the academic department in advance to arrange a conference with a faculty member.

For students considering a change of major related to career interest, professional assistance in selecting a career area is available through University Career Services (270 Student Center West). The services of the center are described in section 1536 of this catalog.

Office of Academic Assistance

300 College of Education and Human Development Building (30 Pryor Street, Ste. 300)
404-413-8000
education.gsu.edu/admissions/advising-services/

• Provides programs of study of each undergraduate major offered by the college;
• Evaluates previous coursework of undergraduate transfer students for specific course credits that can be applied toward the B.A., B.I.S., B.S. and B.S.E. degrees;
• Confirms eligibility for entry into teacher education and human development majors;
• Assists students in course selections and schedule revisions each term;
• Explains catalog regulations;
• Administers policies for the college and the university;
• Refers students to other sources of assistance in the university; and
• Receives and processes major admission applications for the college’s undergraduate programs.

Students are advised by appointment except during walk-in times that are provided for brief questions that can be resolved in 10 or fewer minutes. Students should schedule appointments at least one day in advance using the Navigate app so updated records can be provided. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. (Monday through Friday).

For academic advisement, teacher preparation students in the College of Arts and Sciences (Physics) should contact the Arts & Sciences Office of Academic Assistance (25 Park Place, Ste. 300, 404-413-5000) or those in the College of the Arts (Art and Music) should contact the College of the Arts Office of Academic Assistance (55 Park Place, Ste. 990, 404-413-5855).

 4030 College Academic Regulations

Exploratory Status

Students may select the College of Education and Human Development as an exploratory major at the point of application to the university or at any point thereafter. However, this selection represents only a pre-major status until the student applies for admission to a degree program through the college’s admissions process. Transfer students must comply with all academic regulations of the university and the college.

Entry into teacher education is a separate step and requires meeting specific criteria. Students must complete a separate application, show proof of tort liability insurance, and complete the Georgia Educator Ethics (360) Assessment. Students interested in teacher education programs should refer to 1600 Educator Preparation  or visit the College of Education and Human Development Office of Academic Assistance website, education.gsu.edu/admissions/undergraduate/, for more information.

Visiting Students

Students currently enrolled in a degree program at another institution who wish to take coursework from the College of Education and Human Development must follow the admissions requirements shown in the Undergraduate Admissions chapter of this catalog. Students from other institutions may be enrolled as visiting students at Georgia State University for no more than two academic terms.

Transient Credit

College of Education and Human Development students must have prior written approval from the college to earn transient credit from another institution if that credit is to be used in a degree program. Contact the Office of Academic Assistance for procedures.

Prerequisite Courses

The faculty have designated prerequisites for many College of Education and Human Development courses. Students are expected to have completed course prerequisites prior to the first day of class. If students have appropriate academic and professional experience, they may ask the instructor or department to allow them to register for a course without having completed the published prerequisites for a course; however, the instructor and department are under no obligation to allow the students to enroll without having completed the prerequisites. In some courses, the students may be administratively withdrawn from the course if the instructor or department discovers that they have not completed the course’s prerequisites.

Directed Reading Courses

Directed reading courses are designated with the prefix of the program area for which the content of the course is relevant and are numbered 4810. Such a course is for junior or senior level students of superior abilities and proven performance who wish to do independent study in a specific area. Applications for directed reading courses are available from the Office of Academic Assistance. These courses require consultation with the instructor of choice to develop the topic of study, approval of the student’s advisor, and approval of the department chair of the instructor’s department. Directed reading courses may not substitute for courses that are part of the regular course offerings of the college.

Separate Undergraduate and Graduate Programs

The undergraduate and graduate programs of the college are entirely separate and only those persons who have been admitted to a graduate program may enroll in courses numbered 6000 or higher.

Re-entry

An undergraduate re-entry student is one who has been enrolled at Georgia State University and who meets at least one of these criteria:

• has not registered for courses at Georgia State during any of the previous three semesters.
• has been on scholastic suspension after an absence of one calendar year.
• has been on scholastic exclusions after an absence of five or more years.
• has attended any semester as a transient and wishes to attend an additional term.

Application Procedures for Re-entry

The re-entry application is available online at admissions.gsu.edu/bachelors-degree/apply/other/. Students will need to submit a $25.00 application fee with their applications. Re-entry students who are accepted but do not attend the semester in which they were admitted must contact admissions@gsu.edu to attend the succeeding semester. If their academic program no longer exists at the time of re-entry, they may not re-enter but instead apply for a new degree program.

Student Complaints, Petitions for Policy Waivers and Variances, and Appeals

The appeals procedure for students in the College of Education and Human Development will follow different courses of action depending on the nature of the student’s appeal. Please refer to University Information in Policies and Disclosures  in this catalog or visit enrollment.gsu.edu/assistance/ for details.

Georgia State University seeks to maintain the highest standards of integrity and fairness in its relationships with students. The Undergraduate Catalog and the Student Code of Conduct set forth policies and requirements for Georgia State students. Students are expected to know and comply with these policies. Students may, however, seek relief or resolution when they believe that:

• The application of these policies and procedures will create undue hardship for them or will not recognize their extraordinary or extenuating circumstances; or
• Specific actions, practices, or decisions on academic or non-academic matters have been made or carried out in an arbitrary, discriminatory, or inequitable manner.

To adhere to University policy, the College of Education and Human Development has developed two forms: Student Petition for Waiver or Variance and Student Petition for Resolution. Students should complete these forms and submit to appropriate department for review.

Student Petition for Waiver or Variance

Any student in the College of Education and Human Development may petition for a waiver or variance of established policy, procedure, rule, or guideline governed by the college. This form should be used for requests of substitutions of required courses and/or waivers of college policies governing students. The Student Petition for Waiver or Variance must be submitted by the end of the term prior to the term in which the exception is needed. 

Student Petition for Resolution

Students are encouraged to discuss academic or non-academic problems or grade concerns with the instructor prior to filing a formal petition, in an effort to gain understanding about the basis of the treatment or grade. If the issue is not resolved informally, students should complete the Student Petition for Resolution process. 

College Degree Requirements

The College of Education and Human Development has no additional degree requirements beyond the university academic regulations.

4040 Program Degree Requirements

Undergraduate degrees offered by the College of Education and Human Development are listed in this section alphabetically by major and then by degree designation followed by minors and non-degree, certification only programs. Students enrolled in degree programs must complete all the requirements for the selected degree and must comply with the general academic regulations of the university. Each program of study listed in this section provides the minimum requirements for that specified program. Additional coursework and non-coursework activities may be required based on faculty evaluation of the students’ background preparations and demonstration of their skills and knowledge.

Course descriptions are listed alphabetically by prefix name then course number in the “Course Descriptions ” chapter of this catalog.

Undergraduate Core IMPACTS 

Georgia State University requires all students seeking a baccalaureate degree to satisfactorily complete a basic core of general education subjects called Core IMPACTS. All programs offered by the College of Education and Human Development are designed to comply with the University System of Georgia Core IMPACTS requirements. For a full description of the requirements for the undergraduate Core IMPACTS please see the “Core IMPACTS” chapter of this catalog. Requirements for completing Field of Study and Major Courses for each degree program are listed in this chapter.

Students who are completing the Core IMPACTS requirements at another unit of the University System of Georgia are encouraged to check the Georgia State catalog for specific required course prerequisites to maximize the transfer of Core IMPACTS credits to apply to the programs in which they plan to enroll.