Elementary Education | BAS

Bachelor of Applied Science

Elementary Education BAS aligns with the Colorado Teacher Quality Standards and the Colorado Department of Education’s Educator Preparation Standards Matrices. This comprehensive preparation program equips future educators with the essential knowledge, skills, and tools to succeed in diverse classrooms. Field experience opportunities are embedded throughout the curriculum to ensure teacher candidates meet the 800 or more field hours required by the Colorado Department of Education. Before applying for admission to the BAS program, students must complete or be nearing completion of the Associate of Arts degree in Elementary Teacher Education. Look for this degree under Transfer Agreements. If a candidate is completing a different associate degree, they must meet with a faculty advisor from the Elementary Education Department, to develop a modified academic plan. In this case, a student may be required to complete additional lower division courses. Sixty credits from the associate degree are applied to the 120-credit requirement of the BAS degree.


Additional admissions requirements to the Elementary Education BAS include fingerprint-based criminal history check, a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher, and a grade of “C” in all general education courses.

Declaring the Elementary Education BAS as your major does not mean you’ve been officially admitted to the program yet. Admission to this program is selective and competitive. There are prerequisite classes and additional steps you’ll need to complete before you can apply for program entry to be considered for program acceptance.

Program Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the Elementary Education degree program, students should be able to:

  • Design interdisciplinary lessons that foster mastery of literacy, reading, math, science, and social studies knowledge, aligned with the Colorado Academic Standards
  • Design curriculum that integrates digital literacy and digital citizenship, preparing students to responsibly, ethically, and effectively navigate digital platforms
  • Create safe learning environments that respect and integrate students’ diverse backgrounds
  • Develop teaching strategies that foster critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity, and self-confidence in diverse educational settings
  • Build collaborative relationship skills to enhance the educational experience and to achieve common goals
  • Assess student outcomes with data analysis and self-reflection techniques
  • Adapt innovative methodologies and technologies to enhance student learning experiences

The BAS in Elementary Education is a comprehensive program that emphasizes Colorado Essential Skills for teaching, with a focus on twenty-first century skills, such as digital literacy, digital
citizenship, and social-emotional learning (SEL) techniques. Graduates of this program are prepared to sit for the Praxis examinations to achieve the Colorado Teacher licensure with an endorsement in Elementary Education (K-6). To obtain the Elementary Education endorsement, the teacher candidates must achieve passing scores on the following examinations:


Content PRAXIS Exams

  • PRAXIS 5205, Reading (159), or an Approved Multiple Measures Submission for Teaching Reading and
  • PRAXIS Mathematics 5903 (157) or an Approved Multiple Measures Submission for Elementary Math.