The emphasis of this major is to prepare candidates with the coursework and clinical field experience required to earn an Illinois Professional Educator License to teach History and Government in grades 9-12.
Teaching:
A highly sophisticated intellectual activity that requires a centered presence in the classroom, good negotiation skills, understanding of pedagogy and psychology that inform one another, and sensitivity to sociological factors in learning. (Jackie Grennon Brooks)
Virtual Co-Teaching:
Teaching candidates participate in a “virtual co-teaching” field experience through Skype with classrooms located throughout the Midwest.
Clinical Experience:
Teacher candidates complete pre-student teaching clinical experiences the semester prior to student teaching at the same site as their semester of student teaching, thereby providing candidates one full academic year under the guidance of a mentor teacher in cooperating school districts.
Teacher candidates complete on average 200 hours of clinical field experience prior to their student teaching semester. Beginning their Freshman year at Blackburn College.
Career Placement Rates:
100% of the program completers across the entire Blackburn College Education Unit were hired in schools for the next academic year.
Learning Behavior Specialist:
A substantial majority of program completers across the entire Blackburn College Education Unit were hired in diverse schools for the next academic year.
Required Exams:
The 3 tests required for teacher candidates are:
- Test of Academic Proficiency
- Content Area Test
- edTPA
Requirements
Download a PDF version of this major’s requirements here or click on the course names below to view a description.
Secondary Social Science Education Track
World History Survey to 1500
Thematic and chronological introduction to events and changes of human civilizations before 1500 with study of increasing interactions among the world’s regions emphasizing trade, religious diffusions, war, and cultural exchange.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every fall.
Credits: 3.0
World History Survey Since 1500
Thematic and chronological introduction to events and changes in the world since 1500. Emphasis is on the global impact of colonialism, industrialization, revolution and war, and the creation of states and major world regions.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every spring.
Credits: 3.0
The History of Illinois
A survey of the historical development of Illinois from earliest times to the present. Topics covered will include the impact of geography on the historical development of Illinois, Native American cultures, the colonial period, and the rapid development of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every fall.
Credits: 3.0
American History, 1607-1877
Early settlement and emergence of an American identity in the colonial period; the Revolution; growth of national government and economics; political and social reform movements; the slavery dispute; the Civil War and Reconstruction.
Prerequisites: sophomore standing or consent of instructor.
Offered: every fall.
Credits: 3.0
History of the United States, 1877 to the Present
Emergence of the United States as a global power; the rise of Big Business and responses to it; the First World War; the Great Depression; the New Deal; the Second World War; the development of the Cold War; the Vietnam conflict; protest movements of the 1960s; America in the 1970’s and 1980’s.
Prerequisites: sophomore standing or consent of instructor.
Offered: every spring.
Credits: 3.0
Latin America Since 1810
This course will focus on the dramatic developments of the Latin American nations between the Wars for Independence in the early nineteenth century and the present. The course uses the histories of several countries to introduce students to the main themes and important issues that have confronted this region.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every spring.
Credits: 3.0
European History Since 1648
This course traces the political, cultural, intellectual, and socioeconomic development of Europe since 1648. Particular emphasis on the role and status of women, the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution, the revolutions of the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, and international relations and conflicts.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every spring.
Credits: 3.0
U.S. National Goverment
Analysis of the national political system, the Constitution and the effects of values, pressure groups, parties and voters on the organizations, behavior and decisions of Congress, the President and the courts.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every fall.
Credits: 3.0
Introduction to World Affairs
Current world affairs problems with emphasis on their background, causes and alternative solutions, with special attention to the role of the United States in world affairs.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every fall.
Credits: 3.0
Principles of Sociology
A survey of the fundamental principles of sociology, including basic sociological concepts, theoretical perspectives and research techniques.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every fall.
Credits: 3.0
One course from the following:
American Cultural and Social History to the Revolution
This course examines the major ideas and social experiences that shaped the colonial experience and contributed to the War for Independence. Topics included are Puritanism, the Enlightenment, the political ideology of the Revolution and the social consequences of encounters with Native Americans and African slaves.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every other fall.
Credits: 3.0
American Cultural and Social History Since the Revolution
This course examines the development of society and culture in the new American nation. Topics included are the commercial and industrial revolutions, the emergence of mass consumer culture, and consequences of increasing dependence on technology.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every other spring.
Credits: 3.0
The Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and World War II
American history from 1920 through World War II, concentrating on social and cultural responses to “modernization” and economic crisis, the possibilities for reform and radical change, the New Deal, World War II and the transformation of American foreign policy.
Prerequisites: HI 212.
Offered: every other fall.
Credits: 3.0
Contemporary America: US History Since 1945
An examination of the American experience since 1945. Emphasis on the Cold War at home and abroad, race and ethnicity, reform and radical movements, and modern American values.
Prerequisites: HI 212.
Offered: every other spring.
Credits: 3.0
Two courses from the following:
Imperialism and Colonialism in the Non-Western World
Study of the comparative impact of colonialism and imperialism on African, Asian, Latin American and Caribbean societies since the 18th century from a non-Western perspective. Topics include issues of local and regional responses to global change, cultural and political resistance to empire, economic exploitation, war, rise of nationalism and separatism, and effects of post-colonialism on Non-Western societies in the last century. This course is cross-listed as PS 320.
Prerequisites: none.
Offered: every other spring.
Credits: 3.0
Topics in World History
A detailed investigation of some significant theme or issue in World history. Topics will change on an annual basis. Course may be repeated for credit with the permission of the instructor.
Prerequisites: one course in world history.
Offered: every other fall.
Credits: 3.0
An additional 53 hours of Professional Education courses are required for certification.
Faculty Members
