1. (1) Before approval by the Board, a preparation program for early childhood education or elementary education shall demonstrate how the program requires candidate competency in:

   1. (a) the areas outlined in Section R277-304-3;
   2. (b) early childhood development and learning;
   3. (c) the Educator Preparation Program Competencies for Elementary Literacy;

   4. (d) the appropriate content knowledge needed to teach:

      1. (i) the science of literacy instruction including:

         1. (A) phonemic awareness;
         2. (B) phonics;
         3. (C) fluency;
         4. (D) vocabulary;
         5. (E) comprehension; and

      2. (ii) the science of mathematics instruction, including:

         1. (A) quantitative reasoning;
         2. (B) problem solving;
         3. (C) representation;
         4. (D) numeracy; and
         5. (E) a balance of procedural and conceptual understanding;
      3. (iii) physical and life science;
      4. (iv) health and physical education;
      5. (v) social studies; and
      6. (vi) fine arts; or

2. (2) For a program candidate accepted after January 1, 2020, a preparation program for early childhood or elementary education shall provide multiple opportunities for a program candidate to successfully demonstrate application of knowledge and skills gained through the program in a school-based setting in each of the following:

   1. (a) all requirements outlined in Subsections R277-304-4(4) through (7);
   2. (b) demonstrating content-specific pedagogy in each of the areas outlined in Subsection R277-304-5(1);
   3. (c) diagnosing students struggling with reading and planning and implementing remediation for those students; and
   4. (d) diagnosing students struggling with mathematics and planning and implementing remediation for those students.

3. (3) An educator preparation program shall apply the standards in this Section R277-304-4 to the specific age group or grade level for which the preparation program is designed.

   1. (a) An early childhood education program shall focus primarily on early childhood development and learning in preschool through grade 3.
   2. (b) An elementary program shall include both early childhood development and learning and elementary content and pedagogy in kindergarten through grade 6.

KEY: teacher preparation, programs, educators

Date of Last Change: March 10, 2026

Notice of Continuation: March 15, 2024

Authorizing, and Implemented or Interpreted Law: Art X Sec 3; 53E-3-401; 53E-6-201