Bilingual Education

The Department of Education Studies offers the follow programs:

Degree(s)/Licensure(s) – Bilingual Education

Master of Science in Curriculum & Instruction in Bilingual Education (Non Licensure)

Please note: The Bilingual Elementary Education degrees (BS and MAT) have been transformed into the Elementary Education degree plus courses that lead to an endorsement in English as Second Language (ESL) or Bilingual Education (BIL) already embedded into the program. This was done to accommodate changes in ISBE licensing guidelines. Similarly, ESL/BIL endorsement courses are embedded into the Early Childhood and the Secondary, PreK-12 and K-12 Education programs as well. Please refer to the Elementary Education Program or the ESL/BIL Endorsement for more detail.

Master of Science in Curriculum & Instruction in Bilingual Education (Licensure / Non Licensure)

Completion of the Bilingual Elementary Education program qualifies candidates for the Illinois Professional Educator Licensure (PEL) in Elementary Education (Grades 1-6) with the ESL and/or Bilingual Endorsement. Licensure requires the successful completion of the Illinois Licensure Testing System content area test in Elementary Education.

Candidates for licensure must also successfully complete the Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA) professional portfolio by the National Board for Professional Teachers. (Please see the ISBE.NET website for additional details regarding edTPA requirements during a national health crisis).

General Requirements

Students are responsible for meeting the program and College requirements in effect at the time they officially register in a program leading to licensure at Chicago State University regardless of when they were admitted to the University.
Admission to the degree program is contingent upon good academic standing and acceptance by the department.
Formal admission to the College of Education as a degree-seeking student in a pre-professional program is based on current COE requirements.
Graduation requirements include a minimum of 33 credit hours of the student’s course work completed at the 5000-level; including courses identified to meet content area designation requirements, as approved by the program in consultation with the department for the specified content area designation.
No more than two grades of C may be applied toward the degree.
A full academic schedule of courses for graduate students is nine semester credit hours (6 hrs. during summer). Exceptions to this policy may be made only with the approval of the department.
Candidates must abide by all College policies stated in this catalog, unless exceptions are processed through established department, college and university procedures, documented in writing.
Completion of all master’s degree requirements, including the Candidate Work Sample Capstone Project, must be completed within six years.

Admission Requirements

Provide two transcript(s) as evidence of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university, and that the final 60 credit hours of undergraduate and/or graduate courses demonstrate a minimum GPA of 3.0.
Credit towards required courses in the program will only be awarded for grades of C or higher.
Submit proof that undergraduate coursework meets a minimum grade of C threshold in the following general education requirements:
- Three credit hours in each of Composition II, Speech, college-level Mathematics, Art Appreciation, Music Appreciation, Political Science, U.S. History, Geography, Biological science, Physical science, and Earth/Space science (at least one science course must include a laboratory). General Education course requirements for licensure are subject to change by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). Contact the Office of Teacher Licensure for more information.
- One course which incorporates multicultural or global perspectives

Program Completion and Graduation Requirements

General program completion and graduation requirements include completing an application for graduation with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 in all required and elective courses in professional education and the designated content area; as well as completion of the following addition licensure requirements:

Pre-clinical and clinical fieldwork forms documenting 100 clock hours are submitted to the Office of Field Placement. A summer practicum can be completed to make up missing field hours.
Field Practicum and Student Teaching Clinical Experiences successfully completed.
All College of Education and Program Assessments submitted in the LiveText by Watermark courseware domain; including the Candidate Work Sample (edTPA) Capstone Project and Professional Portfolio.

Illinois State Board of Education licensure examination / assessments, including the Content Area Test for the discipline. Proof of passing must be submitted to the academic program by announced due dates PRIOR to permission given to register for the final Student Teaching clinical experience course.

Spring Semester Student Teaching – October 15th in the prior Fall Semester as part of the Application for Student Teaching Process
Fall Semester Student Teaching – March 15th * in the prior Spring Semester as part of the Application for Student Teaching Process
* Extensions to June 30th can be granted with program approval.

All requirements are met for state licensure as mandated by the Illinois State Board of Education, in consultation with the Office of Teacher Licensure.

Additional Professional Education Courses Leading to Endorsements (Optional)

Candidates are encouraged to consider optional coursework, as appropriate, to have additional endorsement credits attached to your initial professional educator license (PEL) at the point of program completion. Options include English as Second Language (ESL), Bilingual Education (BIL), Middle Level Education (MIDL) and a whole range of PreK-12 concentrations / content area designations. Consult with the Office of Teacher Licensure for more information.