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Founded in 1887, Teachers College (TC) is the largest graduate school of education, psychology, and health services for Columbia University. TC is the largest and most comprehensive graduate school of education in the United States, and has been consistently ranked among the top five graduate schools of education in America by U.S. News & World Report over the past decade.
While the name Teachers College reflects a dedication to producing quality teachers, just over one-third of TC students are enrolled in teacher preparation programs. With more than sixty programs of study, our graduates go on to pursue careers in organizational psychology, social and behavioral sciences, health and health promotion, educational policy, counseling, technology, international and comparative education, as well as education and educational leadership.
Over 5,000 graduate students representing all 50 states and 80 countries are enrolled in Master of Arts, Master of Science, Master of Education, Doctor of Education and Doctor of Philosophy degree programs.
Teachers College is organized into nine diverse departments, each consisting of a wide array of academic programs:
Here, then, in summary form, is a review of the scope and depth of the learning environment at Teachers College.
Department of Arts and Humanities
Teachers College is heavily invested in the intellectual interests and creative ideas that extend beyond the traditional concerns of schooling to engage human endeavors across the lifespan. Our concerns are the values and philosophies underpinning contemporary school reform. What that means in educational terms is an emphasis on inquiry to explore and analyze competing ideas; a focus on habits of mind to develop and sustain critical thinking; and the role of discovery in expanding our store of knowledge.
Crucial in establishing this foundation for lifelong learning are academic programs in the Department of Arts and Humanities. Concentrations in the Arts include Art and Art Education, Arts Administration, Dance and Dance Education, and Music and Music Education. Humanities houses concentrations in History and Education, Philosophy and Education, Religion and Education, and Social Studies. The concentrations in Languages and Literature are Applied Linguistics, Teaching of English and English Education, Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), and Teaching of Spanish.
Associated research and service forums include the Center for the Arts, Social Imagination, and Education, the Center for Arts Education Research, and the Center for the Study of the Spiritual Foundations of Education.
Department of Biobehavioral Studies
Biological deficits often profoundly limit the capacity of youngsters and adults alike to function and communicate fully in school and in the lifetime that follows.
To address such issues, the Department of Biobehavioral Studies includes such programs as Applied Psychology, exploring the physiological effects of exercise and training to improve health and physical fitness; Motor Learning, the development, acquisition, and control of motor skills; and Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, providing therapeutic approaches to minimize and correct speech, language, and hearing disorders.
In that regard, the Edward D. Mysak Speech-Language and Hearing Center offers evaluation and therapy services to individuals with speech, voice, language, or hearing problems.
Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology
The Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology focuses on the psychological and mental health concerns experienced by children, adolescents, and adults in family, school, community, and work situations.
The program in Clinical Psychology explores the etiology and treatment of such maladaptive behaviors as drug and alcohol abuse, violent and high-risk conduct, depression, schizophrenia, and child abuse. Counseling Psychology concentrates on less severe problems in living as well as on normal developmental patterns of identity formation (including racial and gender identity), and vocational choice.
The academic programs are reinforced by research, community interventions, and practica offered through the auspices of the Center for Education and Psychological Services.
Department of Curriculum and Teaching
Teachers College is a pioneering presence in restructuring and reforming our educational systems. The College engages in research and develops pilot projects to create model school environments where teaching standards are met and learning expectations are realized.
In the Department of Curriculum and Teaching and associated centers and institutes, Teachers College places a high priority on the initiatives that lead to reasserting leadership in education. Central among them are promoting an understanding of teaching and learning processes for learners from birth to adulthood; enhancing the reading and writing skills of youngsters; breaking down bureaucratic barriers to foster school-based reforms; giving administrators and teachers the backing and resources to develop creative learning concepts; helping educators meet the needs of exceptional children in inclusive settings; and instituting academic rigor and accountability to encourage high performance standards.
The departmental programs include Curriculum and Teaching, Early Childhood Education, Early Childhood/Special Education, Elementary/Childhood Education (Preservice), Gifted Education, Learning Disabilities and Reading and Learning Disabilities.
Research and service support for its academic programs come from the Hollingworth Center for Study and Education of the Gifted, National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching (NCREST), and the Reading and Writing Project.
Department of Health and Behavior Studies
Health and learning are inextricably intertwined. Optimal learning cannot take place in an atmosphere rife with physical, psychological, social, and health problems. On the other hand, optimal health cannot be achieved without learning skills and literacy.
The Department of Health and Behavior Studies seeks to enhance one's learning potential by overcoming health-related constraints and other barriers to literacy. Components of that approach include programs in Applied Educational Psychology, Health Studies, and Special Education.
Academic interests are complemented by the research and service of the Center for Health Promotion, Center for Education and Psychological Services, and Center for Opportunities and Outcomes for People with Disabilities.
Department of Human Development
Teachers College has been producing scholars in the social sciences for almost 100 years. Now, however, the challenge is greater than ever before to develop theories and methods of social science-particularly psychology and sociology- that can be used to promote the development and well-being of infants, children, and adults; help teachers understand their students' learning and intellectual abilities; develop and evaluate intellectually stimulating and effective programs of instruction, and assure that the benefits of education for all individuals, especially the disadvantaged, whose ability to gain from education may be at special risk.
The Department of Human Development is dedicated to meeting this challenge through the multi-disciplinary study of development and education across the lifespan and in the social contexts in which they occur.
That pursuit finds expression in such programs as Developmental Psychology; Cognitive Studies in Education; Measurement, Evaluation and Statistics; Psychology in Education; and Sociology and Education. A forum associated with human development issues is the Center for the Study of Young Children and Families.
Department of International and Transcultural Studies
What once stood as a world with well-defined jurisdictional borders now is unable to withstand the flow of populations, information, ideas, goods, and services across national boundaries. While geographic designations remain, the rush of technological advances has removed long-standing barriers to new forms of communication.
What has emerged is a diversification of people and resources that is transcultural in context and international in scope, operating across as well as within national boundaries. Increasingly, a global presence, transcultural and international forces are crucial in understanding education in every domain of human experience. Thus, the Department of International and Transcultural Studies is a pioneering force in this field with a program focus on Comparative and International Education/ International Education Development, Bilingual/Bicultural Education, and Economics and Education. Added institutional elements are the Elbenwood Center for the Study of Family as Educator, Institute on Education and the Economy, and Institute of International Studies.
Department of Mathematics, Science and Technology
Societies and cultures are settings within which science, mathematics, technology and communications media develop and the forces that frame the work they are to do. Technological developments, driven by science and mathematics, can advance and change cultures, but societal and cultural forces can also act to constrain or limit technological development.
Understanding the interrelationships among science (including mathematics), technology (including communication media) and society (including culture) as foundations upon which education and the work of educators is based is the central consideration of the Department.
These concerns are structured programmatically in Anthropology and Education and Applied Anthropology (for society and culture); Communications and Education, Computing and Education, and Instructional Technology and Media (for technology), and the College programs in Mathematics and Science Education. The Institute for Learning Technologies is a service and research forum promoting uses of digital communications technologies to advance innovation in education and society. Another venue, the Center for Technology and School Change helps schools plan for change brought about by the technology.
Department of Organization and Leadership
Beyond the campus, Teachers College is becoming more visible as a principal player in the formation of public policy and the policy discussions that govern the future course of education. We have constituted programs for educational professionals and practitioners and influential members of the public and private sectors to focus on the profound changes that have enveloped our entire educational system.
To achieve that goal, we are bringing together national leaders from business, the media, foundations, labor, government, and education to give priority attention to resolve the issues destined to return confidence, credibility, and distinction to environments wherever learning takes place.
In pursuit of that initiative, the Department of Organization and Leadership incorporates such programs as Educational Administration, Politics and Education, Higher and Adult Education, Nurse Executive/Health Administration, and Social-Organizational Psychology.
The research and service organizations associated with leadership initiative are the Klingenstein Center for Independent School Education, Institute of Higher Education, Institute of Research and Service in Nursing Education, and International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution.