School of Education: Master of Arts Program (M.A.)

This program is a professional degree preparing students for work beyond the master's. Applicants for this degree are assigned to an academic advisor who assists in selecting the specific program of courses along with cooperating disciplines to comprise a three-person committee. The program of study is normally arranged at the beginning of the first semester of study.

Requirements for this degree include 18 semester hours in education and 18 semester hours in an emphasis option to be selected in consultation with the student's advisory committee, for a total of 36 hours.

The M.A. program has two options:

• Option A is for students who plan to continue beyond the master's level and wish to complete a thesis.
• Option B is for students who seek professional preparation as a practitioner and select to do a non-thesis project.

The advisory committee may require the student to complete additional semester hours for this degree. The courses in education include the following:

Core Requirements --18 hours
Hrs.

3	ED 550 Professional Growth and Development 3 cr. hrs. An examination of issues critical to educators' professional growth and life-long learning. Candidates make explicit their values and goals as they relate to pedagogical approaches, school and student assessment, technology use both in and out of the classroom, and other issues connected to educators' professional lives. This course provides a foundation for professional inquiry and research throughout the M.Ed. program.
3	ED 551 Social and Cultural Foundations 3 cr. hrs. Examines social and cultural forces that affect schools and the experiences of students and teachers. This course encourages practitioners to value, embrace, and affirm the cultural, racial, class, and gender diversity of both their local and global communities and will help them to design and implement instructional practices that empower all students.
3	ED 555 Teacher as Researcher 3 cr. hrs. Introduces research as a means to improve instructional and school-based decision-making. Various qualitative research techniques will be examined to classroom or school observation. As an extension of reflective practice, candidates will be expected to produce a qualitative research-based proposal.
3	ED 558 Educational Research for Improved Student Learning 3 cr. hrs Examines educational research and statistical methods in light of current research on effective teaching and schooling practices. The course is developed to enhance practicing educators’ understanding and application of research findings in the classroom. Candidates will be expected to develop a proposal which applies course knowledge.
3	ED 563 Master of Arts Capstone Project 3 cr. hrs.   Candidates design and conduct a classroom, school, or community-based research project written in formal academic style that addresses the candidate’s integration of the professional knowledge and the School of Education's conceptual framework in the non-thesis graduate program. The project is completed independently in consultation with a project advisor. (Candidates must be eligible to graduate in the subsequent academic term.)
and
3	Elective
or
6	ED 599 Thesis 3-6 cr. hrs. Candidates develop a research thesis with a major professor and two other committee members for the master of arts degree.

Emphasis Options

Emphasis Requirements -- 18 hours
Emphasis option programs are constructed with the assistance of the academic advisor. The option program may include courses from the areas of business, communication studies, drama, education, and theology.

Total Credit Hours -- 36