Certificate of Graduate Studies in Christian Education

Candidates who possess an undergraduate degree may pursue a Christian Educator Program (CEP) Certificate to prepare them for the pedagogy, content, and cultural facets of teaching in a Christian school setting. The program will provide the course work and skill development that new educators in Christian schools need to be successful with their students and the Christian school learning environment. CEP coursework will include field experiences in Christian school environments. CEP students may also complete additional courses and licensure exams to complete a Tennessee teacher license and/or Masters/EdS degree.

The program adheres to similar admission standards and procedures and academic policies of the Graduate Studies in Education department. CEP participants will receive a Certificate in Christian Education upon completion of the following requirements.

All candidates seeking CEP will take the following required 12 credit hours of coursework:

12 credit hours of coursework:

• EG 5053 - Planning, Instruction & Assessment (3)
• EG 5063 - Building Classroom Communities (3)
• EG 5463- Integrating Faith in Academic Disciplines (3)

 

 

 

CEP Candidates will choose ONE of the following methods courses depending on subject area taught:

• EG 5143 - Methods in STEM K-5 (3)
• EG 5153 - Methods for Adolescent Learners (3)
• EG 5163 - Early Childhood Methods (3)
• EG 5173 - Methods in Art Education (3)
• EG 5183 - Teaching of English Language Arts (3)
• EG 5193 - Teaching of History/Social Sciences (3)
• EG 5423 - Methods in STEM Content Areas (3)
• CEP candidates also complete mentoring with an approved supervisor for a total of two hours minimum during program or at least one hour per semester while they are completing coursework. This mentoring provides a formal mentoring relationship with an established Christian educator for each teacher enrolled in CEP. This relationship generally takes the form of a mentor-mentee connection. The contracted Christian school to employ the CEP candidate will identify a qualified educator at their school to serve as a mentor. Contracted Christian schools will share identified mentors with Lipscomb for communication and training. 

• CEP candidates will have a contract arrangement with course instructors in order to develop an assessment of meaningful connections to Christian Education. The CEP course contract seeks to foster creativity and independence of scholarship as well as to develop a mentoring relationship with the faculty member and mentor. The contract assignment or module should add to the academic dimension of the course by introducing new material or by allowing the student to pursue in greater depth one of the topics on the syllabus that specifically relates to fundamentals of Christian education. Topics will be evaluated by the candidate’s mentor, instructor, and Program Director if necessary. The project should be of sufficient scope for the student to present as professional development. Potential assignments include a research paper, presentation, or action research. The proposed contract must be approved by the candidate’s mentor, instructor, and Program Director by the end of the third week of the semester. 

Optional: To earn a Tennessee Teaching License, CEP candidates must also complete EG 5793 - Integrated Literacy (3) and EG 5023 - Principles of Learning (3) or EG 5803 - Literacy Foundations and Standards (3)(selection dependent on subject to be taught). CEP candidates must also complete a non-credit edTPA course in order to complete licensure requirements unless they are in a job-embedded clinical placement.

 

Candidates with an existing teaching license may pursue the following course combination for the CEP certificate with director approval (instead of the aforementioned list, which includes EG 5053 and a Methods course):

• EG 5063 - Building Classroom Communities (3)
• EG 5463- Integrating Faith in Academic Disciplines (3)
• EG 5843 - The Virtuous Leader (3)
• EG 5263 - School Community Relations (3)