Master of Education

Curriculum

The Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction is designed to strengthen the knowledge, skills, and dispositions of candidates for the Master of Education program employed as teachers. Course syllabi, course descriptions, and performance assessments clearly indicate and provide opportunities to gain knowledge and demonstrate the content, pedagogical, and professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to help all students learn. The M.Ed. program focuses on what professional teachers should know and be able to do. We strive to develop advanced professionals who are highly effective teachers, and who are reflective, inquiry-oriented, cognizant of cultural diversity and individual differences, able to communicate effectively, aware of research, and able to assume leadership responsibilities as practicing teachers.

Our conceptual framework, NCATE (National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education) standards, and five core propositions of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) guide the curriculum, instruction and assessment for our advanced professional education program. Our framework, Teachers as Reflective Educational Leaders, comprises a standards-driven, research-based, reflective leadership development approach through which teachers develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions deemed essential for effective teaching.

Our conceptual framework reflects the following standards for advanced professional educators and provides the foundation for program performance competencies:

 Professional Studies and Research:

• The advanced professional educator accesses, reads, and interprets the literature in his or her field and applies information from the research to professional practice.
• The advanced professional educator understands the theoretical foundations for the profession and applies knowledge of theoretical foundations to professional practice.
• The advanced professional educator recognizes and addresses current issues in the profession, solves problems encountered in professional practice, and reflects on his or her professional practice and its effects.

Leadership Skills and Technology Application:

• The advanced professional educator assumes leadership roles in the profession and shares knowledge and expertise with others in the profession and community.
• The advanced professional educator fosters and maintains positive work relationships and models effective oral and written communication.
• The advanced professional educator understands, appreciates and applies technology to enhance his or her professional practice.

Reflective Professional Practice:

• The advanced professional educator recognizes and addresses current issues in the profession, solves problems encountered in professional practice, and reflects on his or her professional practice and its effects.
• The advanced professional educator uses a variety of formal and informal assessments to evaluate his or her performance and the performance of others.
• The advanced professional educator fosters and maintains positive work relationships and models effective oral and written communication.
• The advanced professional educator displays the beliefs, values, and behaviors that guide the ethical dimensions of professional practice.

RISE Program

RISE (Reinventing Intervention Specialist Education) is a program of graduate courses, developed and offered through a grant from the Ohio Department of Education, to prepare experienced teachers for licensure in special education (Intervention Specialist).

Initially RISE students will complete eight (8) courses for licensure, including six (6) courses focused on special education, and two courses, EDU 315-Asssessment Practices and EDU 518-Content Area Reading and Writing: Instruction and Technology, included in the professional courses of the ODU Master of Education program. Upon completion of the initial eight (8) courses, RISE students can apply for admission to the Master of Education program. RISE students must successfully complete four (4) additional graduate courses including EDU 501-Current Trends in Education or EDU 521-Psychology of Learning and EDU 511-Curriculum and Instruction, EDU 561-Educational Research Methods, and EDU 630-Research Project to earn the Master of Education degree. EDU 561 and EDU 630 may not be transferred from another institution.