Masters of Education: Teacher Leadership

The curriculum of our Teacher Leaderhip program is designed to immediately improve the professional competencies of our learners. Principles learned in the earlier courses are often built upon in later courses.

EDU 6700 Quality Curriculum and Instructional Practice (3)
Focuses on the assessment of quality curriculum and instructional practices. Students will demonstrate instructional strategies, inquiry based learning, organizational skills, and the integration of technology. They will also engage in using methodologies for monitoring, assessing, and supporting quality instruction with teachers whom they are coaching.

EDU 6705 Practicum Focusing on Staff Development (1)
Provides hands on learning experience in environments under the guidance of practicing school educators. Students will maintain a lot of activities and submit a reflection paper for each practicum course. Assessment feedback will be included from both cooperating teachers and course instructors.

EDU 6710 Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning (3)
Focuses on integrating technology into instructional content. Students will experience emerging technologies, Web 2.0, and classroom hardware/software. They will also develop skills in troubleshooting, school/grade-level leadership with instructional technology, and technology presentation. Students will use technologies for school improvement that will include consideration of student achievement data, research, grant writing, technology plans, and community relations. Research and project development will focus on specialization area.

EDU 6715 Leadership Styles and Beliefs (4)
Allows teacher leaders to examine leadership styles and beliefs of themselves and others for effective school improvement. Topics include: understanding how ethics shape decisions and practices, how legal issues impact the school, how to build leadership teams and provide effective assistance to teachers, and how to develop and evaluate program effectiveness. Also, this course will explore effective practices of creating, maintaining, and facilitating professional learning communities in schools and districts. Research and project development will focus on specialization area.

EDU 6720 Action Research for School Improvement (3)
The student will identify an area for instructional or school culture improvement, refine strategies for investigating the issue, begin to engage in effective educational decision making, and work toward a project that will effect positive change in the school setting. Assessment philosophies and methodologies inform the overarching framework for this course. This course will be in tandem with EDU 6725.

EDU 6725 Data Analysis for School Improvement (3)
The student will collect and analyze data for data driven decision making, based on the action research project developed in EDU 6720. The emphasis will be on how to interpret and utilize data for improving student achievement through instructional practices and for total school improvement. This course will be in tandem with EDU 6720.

EDU 6730 Practicum Focusing on School Improvement Planning (1)
Provides hands on learning experience in environments under the guidance of practicing school educators. Students will maintain a lot of activities and submit a reflection paper for each practicum course. Assessment feedback will be included from both cooperating teachers and course instructors.

EDU 6735 Effective Classroom Environments for Teaching and Learning (3)
Focuses on strategies for assisting teachers with effective planning, organizing, and managing an effective classroom environment. Students will use research, classroom visits, and other collaborative opportunities to demonstrate for mentees effective classroom strategies in time management, classroom management, and instructional planning. All research and project development will focus on specialization area.

EDU 6740 Inclusive Practices in Teaching and Learning (3)
Focuses on the role of social justice in the educational community and ways to raise awareness of relevant issues among colleagues. Areas of emphasis will include: differentiated instruction, special education, inclusionary practices, legal and ethical issues, and community relations. Students will investigate relevant community partners, agencies, and charitable organizations within the community. Further, they will be aware of the impact of economic disparities within neighborhoods and predict the impact on local schools. Students will be able to identify an equitable classroom and identify instructional and assessment practices that promote equity. All research and project development will focus on specialization area.

EDU 6745 Mentoring and Coaching Strategies (5)
Focuses on the research base for high quality coaching and mentoring. Students will have an understanding of what constitutes mentoring/coaching: cognitive coaching, coaching models, building relationships, building trust, and classroom management strategies. The emphasis will be on understanding the theory of coaching. This course will also focus on the practice of mentoring/coaching. Students will demonstrate mentoring/coaching strategies, facilitate collaborative strategies in the educational setting, and identify means to assist mentees in self-assessment of teaching and in evaluation of student learning. This course has a required practicum.

EDU 6750 Practicum Focusing on Mentoring/Coaching (1)
Provides hands on learning experience in environments under the guidance of practicing school educators. Students will maintain a lot of activities and submit a reflection paper for each practicum course. Assessment feedback will be included from both cooperating teachers and course instructors.

EDU 6755 E-Portfolio (0)
Students will maintain an e-portfolio throughout the program and will maintain the findings of the Action Research Project developed in EDU 6720 and EDU 6725 and implemented throughout the remainder of the program as part of the e-portfolio.

EDU 6760 Exit Assessment (0)
Students will present the results of their Action Research Project via their e-portfolios.

ETM 5050 Technology Planning and Administration (3)
Prepares technology leaders for technology planning and administration, including staff development, management programs, legal issues, and grant writing. The course includes creating technology plans; reviewing acceptable use policies; working with IT department in school and district; previewing school management software, grade programs, counseling programs, special education programs, and library programs; managing change processes; and considering the ethical and societal impact of technology. Elements such as technology planning and administration, creating a technology plan, acceptable use policy, working with IT department in school, school management software, grade programs, counseling programs, legal issues, ethics, and societal impact will be addressed.

ETM 5040 Instructional Design and Multimedia Authoring (3)
Focuses on the utilization of design principles to effectively communicate instructional and professional materials prepared for the classroom, school/district, and professional development use. Students learn how to use multimedia authoring tools to produce courseware for classroom use and how to incorporate multimedia design projects into their curricula. The course includes such elements as Web page design, I-Movie, enhanced PowerPoint, and Windows MovieMaker.

ETM 5030 Application Software for Educational Settings (3)
Studies applications of technology to the curriculum in a variety of disciplines and reviews software and technology projects to enhance science, mathematics, social studies, language arts, and other pertinent curriculum areas. Criteria for evaluating software and technology projects are discussed, and technological resources in each curricular area are presented. The course includes using software such as KidPix, School House Rock, Inspiration, Kidspiration.