Child Development
Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development

Professor Fred Rothbaum, Chair; Parent-child relationships, family and culture, child-clinical psychology, research dissemination
Professor M. Ann Easterbrooks, Director of Graduate Studies; Family development, social and emotional development, infancy
Professor David Elkind, Cognitive development, perceptual development, Piaget
Professor David Henry Feldman, Cognitive development, developmental and educational theory, creativity
Professor Richard M. Lerner, Bergstrom Chair in Applied Research in Youth Development; Application of developmental science across the life span, personality and social development in adolescence, university-community collaboration and outreach scholarship
Professor Donald Wertlieb, Clinical aspects of family and child development, pediatric and health psychology, stress and coping
Professor Maryanne Wolf, Director, Center for Reading and Language Research; Dyslexia, cognitive neurosciences, cognition, developmental psycholinguistics, reading development and intervention
Emerita Professor Sylvia G. Feinburg, Teacher education, early childhood education, child art
Associate Professor Kathleen A. Camara, Family relationships, social development, research methodology
Associate Professor Calvin Gidney III, Linguistics, literacy, sociolinguistic development, language of African-American children, language in children's television, development of children's language attitudes
Associate Professor Francine Jacobs, Child and family policy, program evaluation
Associate Professor Jayanthi J. Mistry, Sociocultural perspectives on development, cultural issues in educational practice
Associate Professor Ellen E. Pinderhughes, Family development, parenting adoptive and foster families, culture
Associate Professor Rebecca Staples New, Early childhood education, teacher education, sociocultural perspectives on child development, teaching and learning process
Assistant Professor Marina Bers, Science and technology in education, children's understanding of technology
Assistant Professor W. George Scarlett, Deputy chair; Children's play, spiritual development across the life span, developmental psychopathology
Assistant Professor (part-time) Martha Julia Garcia-Sellers, Cross-cultural studies, parent-child interaction, preventive intervention, school adaptation
Lecturer Betty Allen, Coordinator of Field Placement and Student Teacher Placement; Inclusion in regular education classrooms, antibias education, teacher training
Lecturer Mary Anton-Oldenberg, Early childhood education, literacy
Lecturer Terrell Clark, Sign language, deaf studies
Lecturer Margery Davies, Child and family policy
Lecturer Julie Dobrow, Coordinator of Family and Media Initiative; Effects of media on children, ethnic and gender representations in media
Lecturer Heidi Given, Head teacher, Eliot-Pearson Children's School; Multicultural issues in education, teacher training
Lecturer Deborah Lee-Keenan, Director, Eliot-Pearson Children's School; Multicultural and antibias education, curriculum development and implementation, special needs
Lecturer Jim Lipsky, Sign language
Lecturer Janette McMenamy, Pediatric psychology, developmental psychopathology
Lecturer Beth O'Brien, Neuropsychological assessment, learning and behavioral disorders
Lecturer Roberta Pasternack, Creative movement
Lecturer Erin Phelps, Quantitative and qualitative methods for developmental research, longitudinal analysis, social responsibility and civic engagement, positive youth development in diverse contexts.
Lecturer Martha Pott, Coordinator of Capstone Internships for M.A. Applied Program; education, personal-social development 
Lecturer Marion Reynolds, Children's literature, elementary curriculum development and teacher education, professional development of elementary teachers, children's understanding of the content and concepts of elementary subject matter
Lecturer Jenny Weisz,  Government and family, public policy supporting the well-being of children and their families, especially those living in poverty
Lecturer Janet Zeller, Director, Tufts Educational Day Care Center; Teacher education, special education, school-home community relations
Adjunct Associate Professor Lynn Meltzer, Learning disabilities and assessment

The Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development provides students with a solid grounding in research and theory about the intellectual, emotional, social, linguistic, and physical development of children. Course material is complemented with observations and work with children in a wide range of applied settings. These settings include schools, hospitals, clinics, day care centers, educational television studios, museums, and juvenile courts. These practicum experiences are an essential part of a concentration in child development, where the integration of theory, research, and practice is an abiding goal.

Undergraduates who major in child development may choose to follow any of several programs of study. One major orientation is the field of child development as a behavioral science. Students who choose this orientation generally view their study of child development as a natural forerunner to graduate work in child developmental psychology, child clinical psychology, pediatric psychology, law, public policy, and other disciplines that have the health, education, and welfare of children as a primary goal. In addition, Eliot-Pearson offers students a foundation in applied developmental science, an emerging interdisciplinary field that generates and uses theory and research about human development to improve the lives of children, youth, and families around the world.

A second program of study within the department is that of child development as a preparation for careers in education. This program places dual emphasis on contemporary child development theory and research, as well as the role of collaborative inquiry in early childhood teacher education. Embedded throughout coursework and practical experiences is a commitment to preparing teachers to work with all young children and their families, including those with special needs. Students who choose this program may seek Massachusetts licensure as an early childhood teacher (Pre-K to grade 2). This program has been approved by the Massachusetts Department of Education, and the certificate is reciprocated in the majority of states. In collaboration with Tufts Department of Education, undergraduate and graduate students may choose to enroll in a program that leads to licensure in Massachusetts as an elementary teacher of grades 1 through 6. 

A third orientation takes child development as a starting point for a career in human services or work with children in clinical, pediatric, or other community settings, including educational practice with children with special needs. A particular emphasis of the department is the promotion of positive child development.

Department Facilities

Eliot-Pearson Children's School
Architecturally attached to the Department of Child Development, the Eliot-Pearson Children's School is a laboratory school serving eighty children ages 2.9 to 8 (preschool through second grade). Classrooms are fully integrated, including children with special needs and children and families from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds. The school is an exemplary early-childhood program, modeling innovative developmental education and curricula. Observation facilities and practicum sites provide exceptional training and research opportunities for Tufts undergraduate and graduate students and early-childhood professionals from across New England. The children's school also offers a range of programming for parents and families. For more information, visit http://ase.tufts.edu/epcs/.

Tufts Educational Day Care Center
The center is an associated facility that offers an innovative, year-round, full-day educational preschool and kindergarten program for approximately eighty-five children from within the Tufts community and its surrounding cities. The center is a direct service and laboratory school housing four classrooms. It serves an ethnically diverse, international population of youngsters and eagerly seeks to serve children with a wide variety of special needs. Tufts students and faculty, particularly within the Department of Child Development, can observe, conduct research, and participate in a variety of practice teaching experiences. The Special Friends Program, jointly sponsored and supervised by the center and the university's Leonard Carmichael Society, offers an opportunity for any interested undergraduate to form a close one-to-one relationship with a preschool or kindergarten child. Parents are encouraged to participate in a program tailored to the needs of working families. For more information, visit http://ase.tufts.edu/tedcc. 

Evelyn G. Pitcher Curriculum Resource Laboratory
Adjoining the department and the children's school is the Evelyn G. Pitcher Curriculum Resource Laboratory, with studio, shop, and audiovisual spaces. The laboratory allows space for the department's multidisciplinary work with mathematics, science, and technology education--a new initiative that involves the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development as well as computer science, engineering, and education departments. Within the curriculum laboratory, child development majors can study and develop materials that are then used with young children in a wide range of settings, including classrooms, museums, libraries, clinics, and others. For more information visit http://ase.tufts.edu/clab. 

Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development
The institute creates programs and projects that use the framework of applied developmental science to promote healthy, positive development among diverse children, adolescents, families, and communities. For more information, visit http://ase.tufts.edu/adsi.  

Center for Applied Child Development (CACD)  
The center provides an extensive array of resources and services as well as educational opportunities to the larger community. For more information, visit http://ase.tufts.edu/cacd_outreach. 

Center for Reading and Language Research 
The center offers a variety of research, teaching, and internship opportunities to students and faculty and a range of services to the surrounding communities. For more information, visit http://ase.tufts.edu/crlr. 

Tufts University Center for Children (TUCC)
The center catalyzes and facilitates interdisciplinary research, service, education, training, and social action to advance the well-being of children, their families, and their communities. For more information, visit http://www.tucc.tufts.edu. 

Undergraduate Concentration Requirements

Major in Child Development
Ten courses, including Child Development 1, and two of the following: Child Development 51 or 151, 61 or 161, and 155. Two courses can be from outside the department, either from the approved list of related fields courses, or with departmental approval.  Introductory courses in other departments may not substitute for Child Development 1. Please see Child Development Handbook/website for complete information on requirements.

Early Childhood Teacher (Pre-K to Grade 2)
This program, designed for students who plan to teach in public and private early childhood settings, is approved by the Massachusetts State Department of Education and leads to teacher licensure that is reciprocal in the majority of states. A specific course of study is required for completion of the program. The program is also beneficial to those who anticipate entering such fields as guidance counseling, school psychology, technology, museum education, school administration, mental health, social welfare, and child advocacy.

Students interested in becoming licensed as teachers in Massachusetts are required to complete a two-stage licensure process. The requirements for completing the first stage, leading to initial licensure, may be satisfied by completing an undergraduate degree with a major in child development and by completing all teacher licensure program requirements. Initial licensure allows the recipient to be employed by the public schools as an early childhood teacher, pre-K to grade 2.

Elementary Teacher (Grades 1 to 6)
Through a joint program offered with the Department of Education at Tufts, students may also complete a program leading to initial licensure as elementary teacher, grades 1 to 6. Graduates holding initial licensure are eligible to begin work leading to professional licensure as a teacher in Massachusetts by completing additional course work and the option of completing a master of arts degree. Undergraduates interested in pursuing careers in teaching and who desire professional licensure may apply for acceptance into the graduate program as early as their sophomore year.

Undergraduate Minor Program
The Department of Child Development offers a minor in child development. Five courses are required, two of which are to be chosen from Child Development 1, 51 or 151, 61 or 161, and 155. Three additional electives are to be chosen from other course offerings from within the department.

American Sign Language (ASL)
The department offers three levels of American Sign Language. Undergraduates completing all three can have ASL fulfill one part of the foreign language (foundation) requirement.

Graduate Program
The Department of Child Development offers the master of arts degree, a joint master of arts degree with the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, the master of arts in teaching (M.A.T.) degree, and the Ph.D. degree. Along with the standard material sent to the graduate school, applicants for admission to these graduate programs must include a statement of two to three typewritten pages describing their motivation for applying for graduate work in child development and the ways in which they envision using the education received at Tufts. Scores from the Graduate Record Examination are required. The deadline for applications is January 15, although applications received after that time are considered, based on the availability of places.

At both the master's and doctoral levels, students may choose to concentrate in one of six areas of study: clinical developmental psychology, cognitive development, early childhood education, family studies, language and literacy, and children with special needs. At the core of all concentrations is a firm foundation in child development theory and research, and the integration of basic and applied knowledge.

Master of Arts (M.A.)
The master of arts degree requires the satisfactory completion of a ten-credit course of study. Students interested in engaging in child development research conclude the program by writing a thesis; students interested in the more applied, practical aspects of child development conclude the program with an intensive supervised internship. Each route offers a combination of required and elective courses. The master of arts program offers two options for completion of degree requirements. For students who wish to conduct research, the program entails four required courses and six additional elective courses. Students must also complete a thesis.

The M.A. degree program serves child development students with a broad range of professional and intellectual interests. Graduates enter positions in human services agencies, research organizations, schools and early childhood programs, advocacy groups, and institutions of higher education. A significant percentage of graduates continue their studies in law schools, medical schools, Ph.D. programs in developmental or clinical psychology, or public policy. Provisionally certified teachers wishing to obtain standard certification may enroll in the master of arts program, which includes a 400-hour apprenticeship in the schools.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Program with Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning
The master of arts degree offered jointly by the Department of Child Development and the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning is a fourteen-credit graduate program in child and family policy. Students matriculate in two nationally renowned departments at Tufts and fulfill the general requirements for each, including courses in developmental psychology, policy planning and analysis, and research methods and statistics. In addition, they follow a specific course of study in child and family policy, culminating in a master's thesis. Contact either department for more information.

Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) Early Childhood and Elementary
The degree of master of arts in teaching is offered for students who seek Massachusetts State Department of Education initial licensure as an early childhood teacher (pre-K to grade 2), or as an elementary teacher (grades 1 to 6). The elementary 1-6 program is offered in conjunction with the Department of Education at Tufts.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
The doctoral program in child development prepares individuals for either academic or applied settings involving children and their families. Such settings include schools, hospitals, social service agencies, the arts and media, courts, clinical research centers, and policy organizations, as well as colleges and universities. Accordingly, intensive training in theory and research methodology is involved, as well as extensive field experience. Applicants should have strong preparation in the behavioral sciences.

Course work during the first two years emphasizes the major theoretical orientations of the field and research methods and statistics. The remaining courses are selected in accordance with the student's academic plan, which is decided by the student and his or her advisers.

On completion of course work and an internship, students are required to undergo a qualifying review. Two major papers related to theory and research in child development are submitted and the student's progress and course of study in the doctoral program are reviewed. Successful completion of this review is a prerequisite to further doctoral study.

Internships are selected according to the participant's career interests, with students serving as supervised trainees in the service and research functions of the particular setting. The remainder of the program is devoted to participation in research and the completion and defense of a dissertation.

For more detailed information, please visit the website http://www.ase.tufts.edu/epcd.

To view Course Descriptions, please go to:  http://webcenter.studentservices.tufts.edu/courses/main.asp.