Elementary Education major

Elementary Education: courses, careers, and where to study

Elementary Education prepares you to teach all core subjects to children in the elementary grades, building skills in reading, math, science, and child development.

An Elementary Education major prepares you to teach across all core subjects to children in the elementary grades, which, depending on the state and school system, can span the early years through the upper-elementary or early-middle grades. Rather than specializing in one subject the way a secondary education candidate would, you learn how to teach reading and writing, mathematics, science, and social studies to the same group of students, and how children develop cognitively, socially, and emotionally as they learn. Coursework blends child development and learning theory with hands-on methods classes that show you how to plan lessons, assess progress, manage a classroom, and adapt instruction for English learners and students with disabilities. This focus on younger learners and on teaching every subject is what separates Elementary Education from secondary education, from special education, and from a general child-development or early-childhood major.

The standard credential is a bachelor's degree, and most programs are built around supervised fieldwork that culminates in a full-time student-teaching placement, often a semester long, where you lead a real classroom under a mentor teacher. To teach in a public school you must earn a state teaching license or certification, which typically requires completing an approved preparation program, passing subject-matter and pedagogy exams, and clearing a background check; programmatic accreditation and the exact licensure steps vary by state and should be verified directly with the state education agency. Graduates most often work as classroom teachers in public and private elementary schools, and with added experience or graduate study can move into roles such as reading specialist, instructional coach, curriculum coordinator, or grade-level lead.

In federal data for the closely related occupation of elementary school teachers, except special education, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a 2024 median wage of $62,340 and projects employment to decline about 2% from 2024 to 2034; a bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education for that occupation. National figures are occupation-wide medians across all experience levels, not starting wages or graduate outcomes.