advertisers

Ivy Tech’s Elementary Education TSAP degree offers a smooth transition to bachelor’s degree

Last Updated on June 21, 2016 by cassnetwork

KOKOMO, Ind. — Students who want to become elementary school teachers can complete the first two years of their college work at Ivy Tech Community College’s Kokomo Region and then transfer smoothly into four-year institutions as juniors on their way to a bachelor’s degree.

Under Ivy Tech’s TSAP (Transfer Single Articulation Pathway) program, students completing the College’s associate degree in Elementary Education can apply to any state-supported four-year institution with the understanding that they will be treated exactly like continuing students entering their junior year.

“We are pleased to have this agreement in place under the plan approved last year by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education,” said Steve Whikehart, assistant professor of Education and chair of the Elementary Education program at Ivy Tech’s Kokomo Region. “Students can, without question, take the first two years of an Elementary Education major at Ivy Tech and then transfer all 60 hours to a participating state university.”

Whikehart said the Elementary Education TSAP degree meets the expectations of the four-year university programs with a pathway of required courses that focus on the specific proficiencies needed in the teaching profession and equip the students with what they need to complete before applying to a university teaching program.

“We’ve added several more program-specific courses designed to give students a more well-rounded understanding of what education is in the 21st Century,” Whikehart said. These include such courses as “Health and Nutrition for Elementary Education Majors,” aimed at helping the aspiring teachers understand the diverse needs of their students.

The Kokomo Region is encouraging students to move through the program as part of a “cohort,” a group of students taking the same courses together to complete the degree. “This approach has been shown to build camaraderie, to develop a feeling of community that supports student success,” Whikehart said. The TSAP program also encourages students to complete their degrees because the credits are accepted by four-year schools as a package, instead of having to worry about course-by-course transfer agreements.

The program has identified courses that can be successfully taught online, offering experiences in distance education and how to integrate the use of technology into the classroom.

Ivy Tech’s Kokomo Region also offers TSAP degree programs in Business Administration, Computer Science, Criminal Justice, Early Childhood Education, Human Services, Informatics, and Nursing. All have been developed to pursue a single, common curriculum in particular programmatic areas that will articulate, without alteration, with related baccalaureate degrees at all four-year state education institutions that offer the equivalent baccalaureate degree.

Students who are unsure about their specific educational path, but intend to transfer to a four-year college, are also currently able to enroll directly into the general education core transfer certificate program or a transfer-oriented associate degree program.

To learn more about Ivy Tech’s Elementary Education program, contact Whikehart at swhikehart@ivytech.edu or 765-252-5519.

SOURCE: News release from Ivy Tech Community College

Cass County Online