The initial course provides learning experiences regarding online community culture, philosophy and writing components, case-based problem solving, critical thinking, and reflective experiences using examples modeling National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). Discussions will encourage how to utilize the Internet to: 1) build a community of learners, and 2) incorporate learning processes that consider individual learning styles. Additionally, a focus will be on conceptions of social justice and viewing the teacher as a leader. Finally, this course will include an introduction of the e-portfolio process as both a repository and a developmental learning tool.
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| Exposure to technology and its integration in all phases of instruction with special attention to realistic application in the classroom. Emphasis focuses on curriculum and technology and its role in creating and building inclusive learning online communities. Additional emphasis is placed on the role of Social networking and other Web 2.0 applications in the promotion of social justice. |
This course provides students the opportunity to analyze change in existing paradigms of social justice, exploring the interplay of the classroom, the larger school community, and the wider society. Students will reflect upon their own existing practice within the context of change, and how education itself is a process of change. The student will undertake both a journey inward toward a more coherent understanding of social justice, and a journey outward toward the potential for enhancing teaching and the community by incorporating social justice concepts. Emphasis will be on such questions as what is social justice, why should we pursue it, what does it encompass, and how various teaching strategies address social justice education.
This course parallels FL M.Ed. course EDU 510 - Trends and Issues in Educational Practice, and VT M.Ed. course - Critical Theory in Education: Social Political and Economic Issues in Schools. |
Directed reading, reports, and discussions of the current literature in the field of education, a critical analysis of research techniques, terminology and methodologies. Focus upon using differentiating types of research, together with the steps necessary to the solution of research problems in the field. This course explores the perspective that questions should drive the research rather the research driving the questions.
This course parallels FL M.Ed. course EDU 512 - Research Methods, and VT M.Ed. course - Research Methods. |
This course explores approaches to the analysis and study of social justice (including visual and cognitive analysis) as a focus, with an attention to the understanding of social justice issues as it affects and impacts educational issues. Issues presented for analysis, study, reflection, and ultimately social action will include poverty, cultural diversity, race and identity politics, gender equity, immigration, urbanization, affirmative action, income distribution, free speech vs. hate speech, and globalization. In any work of art, often simultaneous and conflicting views of social justice are presented in order to suggest (on the part of the artist) a form of social praxis which often serves as a vehicle for social change. Learners will engage in the study of alternative approaches to the systematic analysis of social justice ideas and consider the implications of the various views for the field of education.
This course parallels VT M.Ed. course - Ethics in Education |
The traditional role of the school as the heart of community life and organization will be examined, and how that role has gained renewed importance. This course focuses on effective strategies for leading and managing current challenges in educational and community settings. Federal/local mandates and policies, and analysis of social, political, and economic environments, will be examined in the framework of constructive social action and ethical decision-making. The values, vision, and mission of the school setting also will be enhanced through the Interstate School Leader Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards which will provide additional conceptualization and structure for teacher leaders and education administrators. Collaborative and inclusive models of sustained leadership, and case studies from diverse school and community venues, will be emphasized.
This course parallels FL M.Ed. course EDL 520 - Educational Leadership, and VT M.Ed. course - Educational Leadership. |
While most public systems assume a universal context for key concepts such as assessment, curriculum, pedagogy many researchers say we should question these assumptions as education has many different meanings across the cultural spectrum. This course will examine key educational concepts such as curriculum, assessment, cognition, pedagogy and other areas for the diversity of their interpretations across cultures and communities. Particular attention will be paid to areas of conflict where the child's cultural context impacts school performance and learning. Students will analyze and synthesize pedagogy and curriculum development, and design meaningful assessment activities focusing on diverse student populations. A focus will include cognitive development and its application to learning styles (i.e., multiple intelligence), as well as motivation. Journals will be kept in order to provide connections between readings and classroom observations.
This course parallels FL M.Ed. course EDU 511 - Teaching Curriculum and Change, and VT M.Ed. course - Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment. |
In this course, we will be introduced to the study of cognition--including topics such as perception, attention, memory, categorization, language and consciousness. In particular, we will link these topics to our understanding of visual cognitive analysis--that is, how do we interpret the visual field in the ways in which we do and to what end? Finally, we will connect these strategies to key educational concepts such as curriculum, assessment, pedagogy, and other diverse areas that contextualize our culture and our communities. We will consider how thought processes are organized and how they affect our everyday behavior.
This course parallels FL M.Ed. course EDU 550 - Cognitive Psychology and Methods of Teaching and Learning. |
This course focuses on remediating cultural and individual learning differences in the classroom. Students will differentiate components of the learning process through curriculum, learning styles and preferences, and evidentiary pieces of assessment in order to support better instructional practices. Additional focus will be on creating effective learning environments where respecting differences are modeled through integrating differentiation strategies into instruction. Examples of interventions which accommodate learning differences will be RIR and RTI; curriculum modifications will focus on UDL.
This course parallels VT M.Ed. course - Differentiated Instruction. |
| This course offers an historical survey of the integration of social justice and change concepts in major American social movements. The focus will be on thinkers and leaders who have emphasized education as a key institution in creating change. The genesis and development of these various schools of thought, including the influence of significant international thinkers and comparison to contemporary movements in other countries, will be addressed. An examination of how these movements have "won or lost," what role they have played in actual reform, and how they have continued to evolve, or not, in present form are integral to the course. |
| This course involves a research project designed by the learner in his/her own professional environment to foster the experiential component advocated by NBPTS as significant to the assessment process. |
The Electronic Portfolio will be presented as the program's culminating experience. The e-portfolio will allow the learner to reflect upon the spectrum of coursework completed throughout the program. Pre-selected documentation from each course will be used as evidence demonstrating the learner's mastery of the University outcomes and competencies, the core propositions statements from NBPTS, as well as the development of one's own conception of social justice. The e-portfolio is a capstone document marking the learner's success in the program.
This course parallels FL M.Ed. course PORT 599 - Capstone Portfolio. |
