The M.Ed. program is oriented around a fifteen credit hour pedagogical core curriculum that reflects this mission by cutting across five essential areas of knowledge and skill needed by teachers: 1) Art and Science of Teaching. 2) The Learner. 3) Literacy. 4) Foundations, Context, and Purpose. 5) Research and Inquiry. Students complete coursework in each domain as specified in the program curriculum.
The pedagogical core domains are described as follows:
Art and Science of Teaching
Teaching comprises an ever–changing, unique combination of scientific
reasoning and artistry intended to promote the highest level of student
achievement. Skills that foster student motivation, communication,
self–worth, and content mastery provide a foundation for developing
artistry to further enhance the learning experience. This domain
encourages students to explore the techniques of teaching, while
developing effective teaching styles consistent with their individual
personalities.
The Learner
At the center of all education is the learner. In order to provide
effective education to all learners, teachers need to understand the
specific learning needs of each student, and how those learning needs are
affected by differences in development, temperament, cognitive
functioning, and social, economic, and cultural contexts. In this domain,
contemporary psychological theory and research is applied to learners in
the context of the study of development, assessment, and learning. Study
in this domain allows educators to create classroom learning communities
where everyone, including teachers, are unique and respected learners who
participate actively in their own education.
Literacy
This domain is the cornerstone of all teaching and learning. Here teachers
acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for teaching others to become
critically literate in all six domains of literacy: reading, writing,
listening, speaking, viewing, and visually representing. Furthermore,
teachers learn to appreciate how the acquisition of critical literacy is a
necessary requisite for a lifetime of growth and empowerment. A wide
variety of theoretical and practical matters pertaining to literacy are
explored in this domain.
Foundations, Context, and Purpose
The purpose and meaning of any educational activity is not a given, but
must be constructed, articulated, and justified within the particular
context in which it occurs. Teachers and other educational professionals
must, therefore, have a deep awareness of this context . including its
cultural, historical, linguistic, technological, and philosophical roots .
in order to engage in purposeful and meaningful teaching. This essential
domain of study prepares teachers who are able to reflect critically on
teaching practices and educational policies in light of their complex
relations to the environing culture. This study aims to equip teachers to
make sense of classroom practices through an understanding of the larger
social context in which these classrooms are embedded.
Research and Inquiry
Teachers, in order to be effective, must be adept researchers and they
must be actively engaged in meaningful forms of inquiry. Moreover,
teachers must have the capacity to critically examine various research
claims and to assess the relative worth of such claims to understanding
their own classroom practice and environment, which includes using
technology to obtain and evaluate information from the Internet. Teachers
must also be able to foster research skills in their own students and
create a learning environment that encourages inquiry and critical
thinking. This domain gives teachers experience from which to sharpen
their expertise in this key area.
