Deciding to teach is only the beginning of your decision process...you will still need to determine whether or not you want to be certified to teach at the childhood level (Grades 1 to 6, Major Code CED), to teach at the early childhood level including kindergarten (Birth to Grade 2, Major Code ECE), or both (Birth to Grade 6, Major Code ECC). With some concentrations, you may also seek "extended" certification so you can build on the Grades 1 to 6 certification and also be able teach middle school.
Your bachelor's degree allows you to be recommended to the state of New York for initial certification. All bachelor's degrees at Buffalo State College require a minimum of 120 credit hours; however, you should be aware that a B.S. (bachelor of science degree) in Elementary Education may result in more than 120 credits.
The faculty here and the state of New York require that you must not only know how to teach, but that you must know what to teach. In other words, to teach in elementary schools you need a broad-based content education and an in-depth study of a given discipline (your concentration), as well as a professional sequence of courses on how to teach (pedagogy).
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