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Science Education B.S.

Information and Policies

Introduction

Twenty-first century science educators must be able to help their students develop and apply a scientific perspective to a wide range of information. The science education major is designed to prepare future secondary science teachers in California with a broad background across the sciences—the physical sciences, life sciences, Earth sciences, and space sciences—with advanced specialization in two fields of science (chosen from physics, chemistry, biology, and Earth sciences). The major integrates education coursework and middle and high school classroom internships designed to develop skills and knowledge relevant to teaching K-12 students in the state of California. The major is mainly intended to prepare students for teacher certification programs and the California Subject Examinations for Teachers (CSET), so that they can teach science in California high schools. 

Cal Teach is one home base for all students in this major, no matter the choices for specialization. Cal Teach (CaT) provides the required sequence of middle and high school-based internships and associated courses in partnership with schools throughout Santa Cruz County. Each internship placement depends on school schedules and the intern’s schedule, interests, and academic preparation. The CaT seminar courses provide the framework for science education majors to develop classroom-management strategies, practice communicating scientific concepts for non-specialists (children), and design lessons to teach the science standards currently used in K-12 education. Departmental advising is provided by the Physics Department and the program faculty.

The program is designed to prepare outstanding candidates to enter teaching credential programs after completion. Students earn a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree. They do not earn a teaching credential. Most students elect to complete this after graduation. Details of how to prepare for admission to a teaching credential program are available on the Education Department's Careers in K-12 School Teaching page.

Academic Advising for the Program

Academic advising for the major is provided by the Physics Department undergraduate advisor, physicsadvising@ucsc.edu. Transfer students should also consult the Transfer Information and Policy section of this program statement. Students should contact calteach@ucsc.edu as early as possible to be set up to enroll in the Cal Teach internship courses, which are required for the major.

Getting Started in the Major

Because of the broad based nature of the major, with introductory courses in physics, chemistry and mathematics, there is considerable flexibility in what courses are taken in the first two years, as long as enough courses required for the major are completed. However, it is simplest to follow the appropriate major planner given below; students should consult with the physics undergraduate advisor if they want to do something different.

Students should complete at least two courses in the calculus sequence (MATH 11A and MATH 11B or MATH 19A and MATH 19B) in the first year; MATH 19A and MATH 19B are required for students who choose physics as one of their specializations.

Program Learning Outcomes

Learning outcomes summarize the most important knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes that students are expected to develop over the course of their studies. The program learning outcomes communicate the faculty’s expectations to students, provide a framework for faculty evaluation of the curriculum based on empirical data, and help improve and measure the impact of implemented changes:

  • Students will demonstrate knowledge and an understanding of scientific connections across the broad spectrum of the sciences.
  • Students will demonstrate advanced knowledge in two areas of specialization.
  • Students will show that they have learned laboratory skills in multiple scientific fields, enabling them to take measurements in a laboratory and in the field and analyze the measurements to draw valid conclusions.
  • Students will communicate scientific concepts effectively and accurately, both orally and in writing, for both college-level and secondary audiences
  • Students will apply strategies to address a diversity of K-12 learners’ needs.

Major Qualification Policy and Declaration Process

Major Qualification

Students must complete at least six courses from the lower-division course requirements before they can declare the major. (Lecture/lab combinations count as one course.)

Appeal Process

Students who are informed that they are not eligible to declare the major may appeal this decision by submitting a letter to the program director through physicsadvising@ucsc.edu  by the later date of either 15 days from the date the notification was sent, or one week after the start of instruction during the quarter after the final relevant grade was received. Within 15 days of receipt of the appeal, the program director will either finalize the denial of admission or specify further conditions for admission, and will notify the student and their college of the decision.

How to Declare a Major

Students should submit  a petition to declare as soon as they complete the major qualification requirements or reach their declaration deadline quarter (whichever comes first).

Students petitioning when the campus declaration deadline is imminent (i.e., in their sixth quarter, for students admitted as frosh), will either be approved, denied, or provided with conditions (e.g., completion of some courses with certain grades) that will be resolved within at most one more enrolled quarter, even if they have not completed major qualification courses.

Students should meet with the Physics Department undergraduate advisor and prepare an academic plan when they declare the major.

Transfer Information and Policy

Transfer Admission Screening Policy

Note: This major is intended for students who are interested in teaching science in high schools in the state of California. For more information, please see the program statement for this major in the UCSC General Catalog.

Six of the following courses or their equivalents are required prior to transfer, by the end of the spring term for students planning to enter in the fall.

BIOE 20BDevelopment and Physiology

5

BIOE 20CEcology and Evolution

5

BIOL 20ACell and Molecular Biology

5

CHEM 1AGeneral Chemistry

5

CHEM 1BGeneral Chemistry

5

CHEM 1CGeneral Chemistry

5

MATH 11ACalculus with Applications

5

MATH 11BCalculus with Applications

5

PHYS 6AIntroductory Physics I

5

PHYS 6BIntroductory Physics II

5

PHYS 6CIntroductory Physics III

5

STAT 5Statistics

5

In addition, students are recommended to complete three more courses from the above course list prior to transfer to ensure timely graduation.

Prospective students are encouraged to prioritize required and recommended major preparation, and may additionally complete courses that articulate to UC Santa Cruz general education requirements as time allows.

Getting Started at UCSC as a Transfer Student

Transfer students admitted to UC Santa Cruz in this major may declare the major at any time after coming to UC Santa Cruz. Contact physadvn@ucsc.edu for details. Also contact the faculty program director for the Science Education program at sci-ed@ucsc.edu immediately after coming to UC Santa Cruz, with the two fields out of physics, chemistry, biology and Earth sciences which you wish to specialize in, to prepare an academic plan. Students should also contact calteach@ucsc.edu as soon as possible after coming to UC Santa Cruz to be set up to enroll in the Cal Teach internship courses, which are required for the major.

Students who are proposed in a different major and have advanced standing when they come to UC Santa Cruz require permission from the Science Education faculty program director to change into the major.

Letter Grade Policy

All courses used to satisfy any of the major requirements must be taken for a letter grade.

Honors

Honors in the major are awarded to graduating students whose academic performance demonstrates excellence at a grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or above in the courses used to satisfy major requirements. Highest honors are awarded to those students whose performance demonstrates the highest level of excellence and results in a GPA of 3.8 or above in the courses used to satisfy major requirements. The program faculty reserve the right to withhold honors and highest honors based on other criteria such as an incident of academic dishonesty.

Requirements and Planners

Course Requirements

Lower-Division Courses

Choose one of the following courses:
MATH 19ACalculus for Science, Engineering, and Mathematics

5

MATH 11ACalculus with Applications

5

Plus one of the following courses:
MATH 19BCalculus for Science, Engineering, and Mathematics

5

MATH 11BCalculus with Applications

5

Plus the following course:
MATH 22Introduction to Calculus of Several Variables

5

MATH 22 is waived for a student who chooses their electives from chemistry and biology or from Earth sciences and biology.

Plus one of the following options:
Either these courses

PHYS 5AIntroduction to Physics I

5

PHYS 5LIntroduction to Physics I Laboratory

1

PHYS 5BIntroduction to Physics II

5

PHYS 5MIntroduction to Physics II Laboratory

1

PHYS 5CIntroduction to Physics III

5

PHYS 5NIntroduction to Physics Laboratory III

1

or these courses

PHYS 6AIntroductory Physics I

5

PHYS 6LIntroductory Physics I Laboratory

1

PHYS 6BIntroductory Physics II

5

PHYS 6MIntroductory Physics II Laboratory

1

PHYS 6CIntroductory Physics III

5

PHYS 6NIntroductory Physics III Laboratory

1

Plus all of the following courses:
CHEM 1AGeneral Chemistry

5

CHEM 1BGeneral Chemistry

5

CHEM 1MGeneral Chemistry Laboratory

2

CHEM 1CGeneral Chemistry

5

CHEM 1NGeneral Chemistry Laboratory

2

Plus one of the following options:
Either these courses

EART 5California Geology

5

EART 5LCalifornia Geology Laboratory

1

or these courses

EART 10Geologic Principles

5

EART 10LGeologic Principles Laboratory

1

or these courses

EART 20Environmental Geology

5

EART 20LEnvironmental Geology Laboratory

1

Plus all of the following courses:
BIOL 20ACell and Molecular Biology

5

BIOE 20BDevelopment and Physiology

5

BIOE 20CEcology and Evolution

5

ASTR 2Overview of the Universe

5

Plus one of the following options:
Either this course

STAT 5Statistics

5

or these courses

STAT 7Statistical Methods for the Biological, Environmental, and Health Sciences

5

STAT 7LStatistical Methods for the Biological, Environmental, and Health Sciences Laboratory

2

Plus the following course:
EDUC 50CCAL Teach 1: Science

2

EDUC 50C, EDUC 100A, EDUC 100C and EDUC 185L are Cal Teach internship courses (see "Program Description"). The first course in this sequence is offered in the fall and winter terms. Students must apply to enroll in these courses before the priority application deadlines in early May (for fall) and early November (for winter). See the application website for details, or contact calteach@ucsc.edu

A student who has passed the California Subject Examinations for Teachers (CSET) General Science Examination will have the lower-division courses in the two fields that they are not specializing in (see the sections on “Electives” below) waived.

Upper-Division Courses

All of the following courses:
EART 110AEvolution of the Earth

5

EART 110LEvolution of the Earth Laboratory

2

Plus one of the following courses:
EDUC 100ACal Teach 2: Science and Mathematics

2

EDUC 100CCal Teach 2: Science

2

Plus all of the following courses:
EDUC 185LIntroduction to Teaching: Cal Teach 3

3

EDUC 185CIntroduction to Teaching Science

5

Plus one of the following courses:
EDUC 177Teaching Linguistically Diverse Students

5

EDUC 128Immigrants and Education

5

EDUC 140Language, Diversity, and Learning

5

EDUC 181Race, Class, and Culture in Education

5

Electives

All the courses from any two of the following fields must be completed:

Field 1: Physics
PHYS 5DIntroduction to Physics IV

5

PHYS 102Modern Physics

5

PHYS 133Intermediate Laboratory

5

Field 2: Chemistry
CHEM 8AOrganic Chemistry

5

CHEM 8LOrganic Chemistry Laboratory

2

CHEM 8BOrganic Chemistry

5

CHEM 8MOrganic Chemistry Laboratory

2

And one additional 5-credit, upper-division chemistry course (CHEM 163B is strongly recommended for students in chemistry/physics; CHEM 103 for students in chemistry/biology; CHEM 163A for students in chemistry/Earth sciences)

Field 3: Biology
BIOL 105Genetics

5

BIOE 107Ecology

5

BIOE 109Evolution

5

Field 4: Earth Sciences
EART 110BEarth as a Chemical System

5

OCEA 90Fundamentals of Climate

5

And one additional 5-credit, upper-division EART course

Disciplinary Communication (DC) Requirement

The disciplinary communication requirement for this major is fulfilled by completing:

Choose one of the following courses:
EDUC 100ACal Teach 2: Science and Mathematics

2

EDUC 100CCal Teach 2: Science

2

Plus the following course:
EDUC 185LIntroduction to Teaching: Cal Teach 3

3

Comprehensive Requirement

The senior capstone requirement for this major is fulfilled by completing:

EDUC 185CIntroduction to Teaching Science

5

Planners

Four-Year Planner

There are several alternatives to this planner. However, changes to an individual plan must take into account various prerequisites, both within the sequence of courses in a single discipline and between disciplines. Consult with an advisor before attempting an alternative path.

  Fall Winter Spring
1st (frosh) MATH 11A# MATH 11B STAT 5
 CHEM 1A CHEM 1B & CHEM 1M CHEM 1C & CHEM 1N
     
2nd (soph) PHYS 6A & PHYS 6L# PHYS 6B & PHYS 6M PHYS 6C & PHYS 6N
BIOL 20A BIOE 20B
BIOE 20C
EART 5 & EART 5L EDUC 50C** EDUC 100C
3rd (junior) ASTR 2 MATH 22* EDUC 185C
EART 110A & EART 110L EDUC diversity course Field A course
Field A course Field A course  
4th (senior) Field B course Field B course Field B course
    EDUC 185L
     

In addition to the specific courses shown in these planners, a student must complete courses satisfying the CC, IM and TA general education requirements.

#Students choosing physics as one of their fields of specialization must take MATH 19A and 19B instead of MATH 11A and MATH 11B, and the PHYS 5 series of courses instead of PHYS 6.

*MATH 22 is a prerequisite for CHEM 163A (recommended for chemistry + Earth sciences) and CHEM 163B (recommended for chemistry + physics). MATH 22 is required for this major only if a student chooses physics as one of their fields or chooses the combination chemistry + Earth sciences. Consult your advisor with questions.

**See advance enrollment requirements and process in the Lower-Division Courses section above.

Field A and B refer to the two subject areas a student chooses for specialization. Courses in each field are:

  1. Physics: PHYS 5D (fall), PHYS 102 (winter), PHYS 133 (spring)
  2. Earth sciences: OCEA 90 (fall), EART 110B & EART 110M (winter), Earth science upper-division elective (spring).
  3. Biology: BIOL 105 (fall), BIOE 107 (winter), BIOE 109 (spring)
  4. Chemistry (three options):
    1. CHEM 163A (fall), CHEM 8A & CHEM 8L (winter), CHEM 8B & CHEM 8M (spring) for chemistry with Earth sciences
    2. CHEM 8A & CHEM 8L (fall), CHEM 163B (winter), CHEM 8B & CHEM 8M (spring) for chemistry with physics
    3. CHEM 8A & CHEM 8L (fall), CHEM 8B & CHEM 8M (winter), CHEM 103 (spring) for chemistry with biology

Transfer Planner

  Fall Winter Spring
1st (junior) EART 5 & EART 5L EDUC 50C** EDUC 100C
ASTR 2 MATH 22 Field A course
Field A course Field A course EDUC 185C
2nd (senior) Breadth course 1 Breadth course 2 Breadth course 3
EART 110A & EART 110L EDUC diversity course EDUC 185L
Field B course Field B course Field B course

*MATH 22 is a prerequisite for CHEM 163A (recommended for chemistry + Earth sciences) and CHEM 163B (recommended for chemistry + physics). A student who has completed the equivalent at their community college will not need to complete this course at UCSC. MATH 22 is required for this major only if a student chooses physics as one of their fields or chooses the combination chemistry + Earth sciences. Consult your advisor with questions.

**See advance enrollment requirements and process in the Lower-Division Courses section above.

This planner assumes that the student has completed all general education requirements, and nine courses out of the 12 breadth requirements in physics, chemistry, biology and mathematics & statistics. The remaining three “breadth courses” can be taken in the three slots shown.

Elective courses for each field are described below the four-year planner. If courses in Field A cannot be taken in the junior year, they can be exchanged with the breadth courses shown in the senior year.