Child Development Option
Family Studies Option
Requirements for Child Development Option
Requirements for Family Studies Option
Courses
Professors Aquilino, Bogenschneider, Marks, Riley, Roberts, Small; Associate Professors Poehlmann, Uttal, Zeldin; Assistant Professors Bolger, Dilworth-Bart, Lewis, Papp
The goal is to have students understand individual development within a broad family, community, and societal context. One major, Human Development and Family Studies, is offered. Within this major are two options: (1) Child Development, and (2) Family Studies.
The child development option provides flexible course work and an internship that prepares students to enter into a growing range of careers involving work with young children and their families. Several major assumptions underlie the child development option:
Students entering this option will develop competencies in six core areas: (1) human development from infancy to old age in diverse family contexts; (2) diverse ecological contexts in which children and their families develop; (3) prevention, intervention and assessment for infants, children and their families; (4) social policy and advocacy for children and their families; (5) research and statistical methods for the study of young children and their families; (6) application of knowledge in child development and ethical issues in professional settings.
All courses in core area 1 are required, but the other five areas permit considerable flexibility. Students, in close collaboration with their advisor, are therefore able to design a program of course work and internship tailored to their specific interests and career goals.
A minimum of 124 credits is required for graduation.
The family studies option of the human development and family studies major provides opportunities to study family systems and human development across the lifespan. The major assumptions underlying the family studies option are:
In line with these assumptions, students learn about human development from infancy to old age, study different family relationships and family structures, and discover how families meet everyday and more serious challenges.
Aside from a series of required core courses, students have considerable flexibility in pursuing programs of study and internships that are tailored to their career aspirations (e.g., gerontology, social work, family/parenting education, family policy, counseling, student services, education, law, human resources, and public health). Many of these career options require additional graduate education, but entry level positions in several of these fields are available. Students are strongly encouraged to plan their course choices in collaboration with their advisor.
The core course work in the family studies option and one additional course (Inter-HE 427 or Inter-HE 428) qualify graduating students for the Provisional Family Life Educator Certificate awarded by the National Council on Family Relations. Other certificates that are highly compatible with the family studies option are the Women's Studies Certificate (Women Studies Program), the Criminal Justice Certificate (Department of Sociology), and the Gerontology Certificate (Institute on Aging). In addition, the family studies option can be combined with a major in psychology, social work, or sociology. A minimum of 124 credits is required for graduation.
Math 101 (unless exempt)
Speech Communication, 2-3 credits
Com Arts 100, 105 or 181
One course with P designation; One course with B designation; One course designated B, P, N, X, or Y in the Timetable.
Literature, 3 cr*
Humanities, 6 cr**
*Choose any course with L designation; Comp Lit 201, 202; English 167-177; any Lit Trans course.
**Choose from any humanities course coded H, L or Z in the Timetable, or literature, foreign language, art, music, or art history.
Anthropology 100, 104, or 300; Psychology 201 or 202; Sociology 120, 125, 130, 138, 210 or 211.
Choose one from the following:
Inter-HE 350 Community Issues and Service Learning
Cnsr Sci 275 Consumer Finance
Cnsr Sci 475 Family Economics
Cnsr Sci 575 Family Economics and Social Policy
Cnsr Sci 532 Health Care Issues for Individuals, Families, and Society
HDFS 362 Development of the Young Child
HDFS 363 Development from Adolescence to Old Age
HDFS 471 Parent-Child Relations
HDFS 662 Advanced Study of the Young Child
Choose one from the following:
HDFS 474 Racial Ethnic Families in the U.S.
HDFS 478 Development of Black Children and Their Families
HDFS 521 African American Families
Select three additional courses from the list below. At least one of these must be an HDFS course not taken to meet another requirement.
460 Intellectual Development in Early Childhood and Relation to Preschool Education
461 Social and Emotional Development of Young Child in ECE
464 Children's Play—Development and Role
467 Cultural Differences in the U.S.: Implications for Early Childhood Education
468 Implications of Poverty for Early Childhood Education
470 Development of Infants and Toddlers in Multiple Care Settings
474 Racial Ethnic Families in the U.S.
478 Development of Black Children and Their Families
521 African American Families
210 Speech and Language Functions of the Brain
240 Language Development in Children and Adolescents
301 Human Abilities and Learning
662 Children's Literature
624 Story Telling and Oral Literature
629 Multicultural Literature for Children and Young Adults
HDFS 663 Developmental and Family Assessment, 3 cr
Choose 9 additional credits from the list below. At least one course must be an HDFS course.
479 Administration and Organization of Child Care and Early Childhood Education Programs
516 Family Stress and Coping
517 Couple Relationships
647 Interdisciplinary Issues in Early Childhood Intervention
650 Parenting Education and Support Programs
266 Theory and Practice of Group Discussion
272 Intro to Interpersonal Communication
440 Child Language Disorders, Assessment and Intervention
640 Language and Learning Disorders of Children
424 Manually Coded English (Sign Language)
434 Manually Coded English (Sign Language)
105 Human Resources Development: Awareness Perspectives—Counseling and Guidance Perspective
115 Human Resources Development: Educational Effectiveness
650 Theory and Practice of Interviewing
617 Health Communication in the Information Age
427 Methods of Teaching Family and Consumer Education
428 Program Planning in Family and Consumer Education
300 Individuals with Disabilities
330 Behavior Analysis: Application to Persons with Disabilities
450 Collaborating with Families of Individuals with Disabilities
470 Individuals with Learning and Behavioral Disabilities
506 Strategies for Inclusive Schooling
205 Introduction to the Field of Social Work
Choose two courses from the list below. At least one must be an HDFS course.
535 Family Perspective on Policy-Making
469 Family and Comm Influence on the Young Child
575 Family Economics and Public Policy
460 Cultural Pluralism and Educational Policy
219 Introduction to Public Policy
230 Politics in Multicultural Societies
440 Health Policy and Health Politics
206 Introduction to Social Policy
275 Contemporary Issues in Social Welfare
Choose one statistics course from:
Psych 210 Psychometric Methods
Soc 360 Statistics for Sociologists
Soc 359 Statistical Analysis of Research (co-reg for 358)
Stat 201 Principles of Statistics
Stat 301 Introduction to Statistical Methods
Choose one research design course from:
HDFS 425 Research Methods in HDFS
Psych 225 Experimental Psychology
Soc 357 Methods of Sociological Inquiry
Soc 358 Design and Analysis of Social Research (co-reg for 359)
HDFS 601 Internship
Other Professional Skills credits may be earned by taking the Interdisciplinary Training Course (Waisman Center, HDFS 501), another professional skills course (a course listed in Core Area 3 and approved by the advisor), or an approved Independent Study or Internship emphasizing research, approved by the advisor (HDFS 299, 601, 699).
Select one:
Philos 341 Contemporary Moral Issues
Poli Sci 530 Ethics and Values in Policymaking
Ed Pol 548 Educational Ethics
Math 101 (unless exempt)
Com Arts 100, 105 or 181
One course with P designation; One course with B designation; one course designated B, P, N, X, or Y in the Timetable.
Literature, 3 cr*
Humanities, 6 cr**
*Choose any course with L designation; one from Comp Lit 201, 202; English 167-177; any Lit Trans course
**Choose from any humanities course coded H, L or Z in the Timetable, or foreign language, art, music, art history to bring humanities credits to 9.
Cnsr Sci 275 or 475
Anthropology 100, 104, or 300; Psychology 201 or 202;
Sociology 120, 125, 130, 138, 210 or 211
HDFS 362 Development of Young Child
HDFS 363 Development from Adolescence to Old Age
HDFS 471 Parent-Child Relations
HDFS 474 Racial Ethnic Families in the U.S. or HDFS 478 Development of Black Children and their Families or HDFS 521 African American Families
HDFS 516 Family Stress and Coping
HDFS 517 Couple Relationships
HDFS 535 Family Perspective in Policymaking
HDFS 601 Internship
Psych/Soc 160 Human Sexuality or Women St 103 Women and Their Bodies in Health and Disease
Com Arts 266 Theory and Practice of Group Discussion
Philos 241 Introductory Ethics or Philos 341 Contemporary Moral Issues
A. Statistics: Choose one from:
Psych 210, Soc 360, Soc 358 (must be taken concurrent w/Soc 359), Stat 201, Stat 301
B. Research Methods: Choose one from:
HDFS 425 Research Methods in HDFS, Psych 225, Soc 357, Soc 359 (must be taken concurrent w/Soc 358)
Students are strongly encouraged to consult their advisor before making content and professional skills course decisions.
Choose at least five courses from the content areas. Courses can be focused in one area or distributed across both.
Choose at least 12 credits from professional skills areas, with at least three courses from the same area.
Choose 15 credits from content areas 1 and 2. No more than two courses should be at the 100 and 200 levels across content area and professional skills classes.
231 Intro to Afro-American History
300 Cultural Anthropology: Theory and Ethnography
345 Family, Kin and Community in Anthropological Perspective
353 Indians of the Western Great Lakes
360 Women, Work and Social Change
428 Gender and Expressive Culture
429 Language and Society
450 Illness and Healing in Anthropology
456 Symbolic Anthropology
475 Family Economics
532 Health Care Issues for Individuals, Families, and Society
665 Household Risk Management
675 Family Financial Counseling
474 Racial Ethnic Families in the U.S.
478 Development of Black Children and Their Families: Research and Policy
515 Gender Roles and Society
521 African American Families
650 Parenting Education Support Programs
681 Senior Honors Thesis
691 Senior Thesis
134 Problems of Racial and Ethnic Minorities
138 Sociology of Gender
578 Rural Minority Groups and Poverty
640 Sociology of the Family
646 Race and Ethnic Relations
102 Women, Social Institutions and Social Change
103 Women and Their Bodies in Health and Disease
320 Special Topics in Women and Society: The Law and Female Sexuality
323 Gender, Race and Class: Women in U.S.History
420 Women in Cross-Cultural Perspective
531 Women, Health in American History
533 Special Topics in Women and Health
110 Introduction to Communicative Disorders
242 Language Development and Disorders in Preschool Children
341 Language Development and Disorders in School Age Children/Adolescents
301 Human Abilities and Learning
321 Human Development in Adolescence
560 Gender and Education
460 Intellectual Development in Early Childhood and Relation to Practice in Preschool Education
461 Social and Emotional Development in Early Childhood Education
469 Family and Community Influences on the Young Child
662 Advanced Study of the Young Child
663 Developmental and Family Assessment
681 Senior Honors Thesis
691 Senior Thesis
622 Children's Literature
624 Story Telling and Oral Literature
631 Young Adult Literature
408 Psychology of Human Emotion
409 Psychology of Motivation
411 Current Topics
507 Psychology of Personality
517 Introduction to Clinical Psychology
530 Introduction to Social Psychology
575 Sociological Perspectives on the Life Course and Aging
Choose 12 credits from Professional Skill Areas 1-4, no more than two courses should be at the 100 and 200 levels across content area and professional skill classes. At least three professional skills classes must be in one professional skill area.
260 Communication and Human Behavior
730 Program Development in Continuing Education
743 The Adult Distance Learner
746 The Adult Learner: Implications for Curriculum and Instruction
665 Career Development Throughout the Lifespan
460 Cultural Pluralism and Education Policy
130 Family and Consumer News Writing
330 Family and Consumer Feature Writing
360 Information Radio
505 Publications Editing
650 Parenting Education and Support Programs
340 Technology-based Family and Consumer Education Programs for Adults
360 Leadership Dynamics in Community Building
427 Methods of Teaching Family and Consumer Education
428 Program Planning in Family and Consumer Education
550 Advanced Methods in Teaching Family and Consumer Education
201 Introduction to Mass Communication
561 Mass Communications and Society
562 Mass Media and Minorities
565 The Effects of Mass Communication
616 Mass Media and Youth
111 Science and Technology Newswriting (crosslisted with 464-130)
510 Introduction to University Extension
575 Family Economics and Public Policy
460 Cultural Pluralism and Education Policy
601 Internship
650 Parenting Education and Support Programs
350 Community Issues and Service Learning
300 Organizational Behavior
305 Human Resource Management
420 Organization and Management Processes
219 Introduction to Public Policy
530 Ethics and Values in Policy Making
205 Intro to Field of Soc Work
206 Introduction to Social Policy
453 Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse
531 Sociology of Medicine
537 Social Behavior Dynamics
578 Rural Minority Groups and Poverty in the United States
260 Communication and Human Behavior
650 Theory and Practice in Interviewing
665 Career Development throughout the Lifespan
312 Organization and Operation of Programs for at Risk Pupils
542 Assessment and Treatment of Children
461 Social and Emotional Development of the Young Child
470 Infants and Toddlers in Various Care Settings
501 Special Topics; cons inst (Parent Education and Family Support Programs)
601 Internship
662 Advanced Child Development
663 Developmental and Family Assessment
699 Independent Study
225 Experimental Psychology
509 Abnormal Psychology
511 Behavioral Pathology: Neuroses
512 Behavioral Pathology: Psychoses
300 Individuals with Disabilities
205 Introduction to the Field of Social Work
535 Language and Social Interaction
601 Additional internship hours, but focused on research
699 Independent Study (involved in research)
225 Experimental Psychology
410 Psychometric Methods II
357 Methods of Sociological Inquiry
358 Design and Analysis of Social Research
359 Statistical Analysis of Social Research
360 Statistics for Sociologists I
361 Statistics for Sociologists II
544 Introduction to Survey Research
545 Ethnomethodology
201 Principles of Statistics
301 Introduction to Statistical Methods
302 Introduction to Statistical Methods II
371 Introductory Applied Statistics for the Life Sciences
362 Development of the Young Child. I, II, SS; 3 cr (S-E). Principles and research findings on normative development with implications for the guidance of young children in the home and in preschool groups; observation at the Preschool Lab. P: So st.
363 Development from Adolescence to Old Age. I, II, SS; 3 cr (S-I). A survey: developmental principles, methodology, and recent theoretical and empirical findings; observations. P: So st.
425 Research Methods in Human Development and Family Studies. I, II; 3 cr. Basics of research design used in studying family studies and individual development over the life course. Quantitative and qualitative research designs, participatory action research, and evaluation research, how research informs intervention and prevention programs. P: HDFS 362 & HDFS 363 or equiv.
460 Intellectual Development in Early Childhood and Relation to Pract Preschool Ed. Irr.; 3 cr. Observation, discussion, and evaluation of methods and procedures for teachers; correlated reading in professional literature. P: HDFS 362.
461 Social & Emotional Development of Young Child in Early Childhood Education. Irr.; 3 cr. Important teacher, parent, child interactions in various environments and their influence on social and emotional development. P: HDFS 362.
464 Children's Play—Development and Role. Irr.; 3 cr. The role of play and related instructional practices in promoting psychomotor, social, and cognitive development of young children; materials used for play in group settings. P: Jr st & Chld & Fam 362 or equiv.
469 Family and Community Influences on the Young Child. I or II; 3 cr. Interaction of child in socialization settings, especially the family; socialization processes in the social system of child-family-community. P: HDFS 362.
470 Infants and Toddlers: Development in Various Care Settings. Irr.; 3 cr. Review of cognitive, social, motor and language development of infants and toddlers. Applied aspects of interacting with infants and toddlers and their families. P: HDFS 362 or equiv.
471 Parent- Child Relations. I, II; 3 cr. Parents' interaction with their children, programs for parents, and parents' interactions with other institutions. P: HDFS 362 or 363.
473 The History of Motherhood in America. (Crosslisted with Cnsr Sci, Inter-HE) II; 3 cr (Z-I). A survey of the biological, social and cultural aspects of motherhood and mothering from the colonial period to the late twentieth century. P: Jr st.
474 Racial Ethnic Families in the U.S. I, II; 3 cr (e-S-D). The diversity of family life across and within ethnic groups in the United States— African-American, Latino, Asian-American, and American Indian families. The course also covers the wider social context of minority family life, including historical, economic, socio-political, and cultural conditions. P: Jr st.
478 Development of Black Children and Their Families: Research and Policy. Irr.; 3 cr (e-S-D). Developmental and social change issues related to Black American children and their families. Race-related socialization of children, early development in rural and urban Black families, exploration of theoretical paradigms, as well as the impact of social change on empirical research and theoretical perspectives. P: An intro psych, child development, or human development crse.
501 Special Topics. I, II; 1-3 cr. See Timetable for topics. P: Prerequisites vary by topic.
515 Gender Roles and Society. (Crosslisted with Soc, Rur Soc) Irr.; 3 cr (S-I). An investigation into the social, historical, psychological, and biological context of the construction of gender in families and other social institutions. P: Jr st or cons inst; intro course in psych or sociol.
516 Family Stress and Coping. I, II; 3 cr (S-D). Theories of stress and coping from sociological, psychological, and biosocial perspectives. Family functioning and child development issues in relation to normative and nonnormative stresses (e.g., divorce, bereavement, work, chronic illness). P: 2 crses from any of the following disciplines: soc, psych, women's health.
517 Couple Relationships. I, II; 3 cr (S-D). Examines the formation, maintenance and dissolution of premarital and marital relationships focusing on relationship processes including attraction, love, intimacy, power, and commitment. Students will become familiar with theories, research, and methodologies used to study features of and changes in intimate relationships. P: HDFS 363.
521 African American Families. (Crosslisted with Afroamer, Soc Work) I or II; 3 cr (e-S-A). Historical background; variations in contemporary family patterns; courtship and marriage, reproduction, and socialization stresses; "culture of poverty" theories; sources of stability and change. P: Jr st or cons inst.
535 A Family Perspective in Policymaking. I, II; 3 cr. Students will explore the relationship between family functioning and public/private policies at the local, state and federal levels; analyze the consequences of issues, policies or programs on family well-being; and, examine roles for professionals in influencing policy development. P: Jr st.
601 Internship. I, II, SS; 1-8 cr. Supervised internship in early childhood education programs. P: Cons of supervising inst, advisor & internship program coordinator; for Jr, Sr, and Grad stdts.
650 Parent Education and Support Programs. (Crosslisted with Inter-HE) I or II; 3 cr. The purposes, contexts, and implementation of parenting support and education programs are studied. Some sections may include a service learning component. P: HDFS 362 & HDFS 363 or equiv.
662 Advanced Study of the Young Child. I, II; 2-3 cr. Research literature and current theories; topics of individual interest. P: HDFS 362 or equiv.
663 Developmental and Family Assessment. I, II; 3 cr (S-I). Introduces students to the process of family-focused developmental assessment with infants and young children, including family interviewing, taking developmental histories, observing children, and developmental screening. P: HDFS 362 & HDFS 662 or cons inst.
681 Senior Honors Thesis. I, II; 2-4 cr. P: Cons inst.
691 Senior Thesis. I, II; 2 cr. P: Cons inst.
699 Independent Study. I, II, SS; 1-6 cr (A). Research literature and current theories; topics of individual interest. P: Cons inst.