The B.A. in Social Studies Education is a degree program which prepares students to meet South Carolina’s requirements for becoming licensed to teach social studies in grades 9-12 in the public schools. The program combines thorough preparation through coursework and direct classroom experience with a Christian perspective on history, the social sciences, and education. The objectives are for SWU graduates, in their positions as social studies teachers, to love and serve their students, to model excellence, and to work to redeem and transform our culture for Christ.
Students in the Social Studies Education program – in addition to the General Education core courses that all SWU students take – gain a rich preparation (27 hours) in history, which gives them a strong foundation for the study of the rest of the social sciences. Students also take 12 hours in the social sciences, choosing from courses in sociology, geography, political science, and economics. In addition, Social Studies Education majors take 39 hours of professional education courses, which prepare them for meeting South Carolina licensure requirements.
In addition to the time spent in the classroom, Social Studies Education majors have plenty of opportunities for hands-on, outside-the-classroom experiences. In their history courses, they can choose to do internships at local historical agencies and museums. There are also field trips to a number of the historical sites that South Carolina has in abundance, from colonial times through the Revolution and the Civil War, and up to the present day. In their education courses, students learn how to prepare lesson plans and how to teach a lesson. Then they get the opportunity to apply what they are learning through direct experience in public school classrooms via their observation visits, practicum, and, of course, their clinical experience (student teaching).
You might want to consider Social Studies Education if you have a passion for history and/or the social sciences and have an eagerness to pass on what you know to others and help them see its importance. Or perhaps your primary passion is teaching at the high school level, but you also enjoy history and/or the social sciences and can see yourself teaching in those areas. In either case, it is important to know at the start that teaching at the secondary level requires a certain degree of organization and the ability to manage a classroom full of high school students. It is also the case, however, that teaching is a calling, and the person who is genuinely called to teach can have an impact on his/her students that is powerful and far-reaching. For the Christian, the opportunity to have an impact as a teacher is even greater; it includes the chance to help redeem and transform both individuals and society as a whole for generations to come.
WHY Social Studies EDUCATION AT SWU?
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Passionate faculty with decades of education experience. |
Each year, SWU graduates are selected for Teacher of the Year awards. |
100% of our education program graduates who pass PRAXIS II are recommended for licensure in education. |
The education program at Southern Wesleyan University was the number one reason I have been successful in my profession. I cannot think of a single way Southern Wesleyan's education program could prepare future teachers any more than they already do.
Dawn Bright, Class of 2013
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Southern Wesleyan University graduates in Social Studies Education join a well-equipped and highly-skilled group of alumni who attain professional licensure at an impressively high rate and go on to become well-respected and influential members of the education community. Our graduates are highly sought-after, and SWU alumni hold teaching positions at schools across the state and throughout the region. In addition, SWU education graduates can be found in administrative positions as well at the school, district, and state levels all over the Southeast. Our graduates are often preferred over those from other colleges and universities – public or private – and are typically placed into positions quickly and readily. If you have a SWU education degree, you will be much in demand.