Course Descriptions
- Framing the Social Context of High Needs Schools
- The Application of Theories of Learning to Classroom Practice
- Foundations of Literacy Development and Instruction
- New Media Literacies in High Need Schools
- Instruction for English as a New Language
- Pedagogy A & B
- Elementary Literacy/Social Studies Practicum
- Elementary Math/Science Practicum
- an understanding of and flexible application of learning theories to the learning of elementary mathematics and science.
- general instructional strategies and those specific to mathematics and science
- learning experiences in which mathematics and science is related to and integrated with students’ interests, community concerns, and societal issues.
- balanced assessment practices.
- a systematic approach based on learning theory to the analysis and design of curricula.
- an attitude of inquiry toward one’s practice (lessons as experiments) through individual and collaborative study, discussion, assessment, analysis, and classroom –based research and practice.
- self-efficacy, craftsmanship, collegiality, and flexibility in addressing problems of practice in the classroom, school, and community.
- Secondary Mathematics- Teaching from a Socio-Cultural Prospective
- Teaching Science in Secondary Classrooms
- Teaching English Language Arts in Secondary Classrooms
- Teaching Secondary History/Social Studies
- Integrating Literacies in Secondary Content Instruction
- Human Differences
- integrate an understanding of how one’s own beliefs interact with characteristics of classroom students.
- be well informed about “typical” child characteristics and differences.
- participate in activities that explore higher incidence and lower incidence learning differences.
- identify strategies to mediate the learning environment to acknowledge and address the diversity that students bring and inequity they face in the classroom.
- identify strategies to help classroom students learn to actively advocate for equity for self and peers to promote opportunity and access.
- compare and contrast traditional and authentic methods of assessment and the information they are able to gather from various types of assessments.
- gain an awareness of the range of racial, cultural, ability, language and social needs of students that need to be considered when planning pedagogy.
- think about the kinds of questions to be asked and considerations to be made when planning instruction that meets the learning needs of all children.
- demonstrate the use of academic language when describing the learning environment, characteristics of students, developing instructional plans, and communicating with colleagues and families.
- Guided Practice A & B
- develop the abilities to use learning theory as the basis to translate and apply content and pedagogical knowledge in the planning and implementation of lessons/curriculum in any school context.
- develop the decision-making abilities to mediate learning using multiple and varied representations and strategies to attain high individual and group outcomes.
- reflect and problem solve regarding the teaching/learning process in order to identify oneself as a teacher change agent and leader with personal and professional insight and efficacy.
- Integrated Visual and Performing Arts for Elementary Students
- Physical Education for Elementary Students
- Culture Learning in Schools: Latino
- Political and Academic Issues Effecting Gifted Students
- Differentiated Curriculum and Pedagogy for Gifted Students Introduction and Purposes
The purpose of this course is to provide a sequence of readings and learning experiences that will enable consistent application of theories of learning in designing classroom learning experiences, developing a classroom learning community, and assessing progress towards the expected student learning outcomes. We will cover the primary theories and perspectives related to learning, including behavioral, developmental, cognitive, social cognitive, sociocultural, and constructivist learning theories. In addition, we examine how these different theories address student assessment, motivation, self-regulation, and classroom management.
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Candidates focused on Elementary Education will take this course.
This course is designed to prepare teachers and prospective teachers in the application of a balanced, integrated, and interactive perspective to teaching reading/language arts in grades K through 8. The focus of the course is on the foundational skills and strategies needed in the developmental phase of “learning to read,” which is essential to the next phase of “reading and learning for life.”
Literacy processes develop over time through active construction on the part of the learner and through interaction with the teacher who scaffolds the learning. We begin with a focus on literacy practices in the home and community and continue on to the formal practices and experiences of school. We will examine how to foster literacy learning and support children’s ways of learning, including those with special learning styles or needs; those from language backgrounds other than English; and those from diverse cultures and/or socio-economic backgrounds.
Candidates focused on Secondary Education will take this course.
New Media Literacies in High Needs Schools is designed to provide candidates with the opportunities to explore an emerging body of literature where media and communication studies converge with educators, researchers, and public policy makers. This course attempts to facilitate the convergence of students’ interests in communications, cultural studies, media production, and literacy education. Candidates will examine curricular materials, as well as apply learning theories, content knowledge, and the pedagogical repertoire of skills acquired in concurrent courses and threaded throughout the program as the basis for decision-making to positively affect student participation, learning, and outcomes.
This course includes systematic study of effective ways to structure learning opportunities for diverse student populations. An understanding of the instructional needs of language minority populations is developed and an awareness of the appropriate programs and services to meet those specific needs is presented. The course is intended to engage graduate students in exploring a variety of theories, issues, procedures, methods and approaches for use in bilingual, English as a second language, and other learning environments. It provides an overview of the historic and current trends and social issues affecting the education of language minority students. It also provides candidates with practical experience in the implementation of instructional strategies addressing the needs of a diverse student population. Major units of the course include: language learning theories; socio-cultural contexts of language development, principled selection of instructional strategies for teaching language and non-language subjects; a focus on the development of academic language, assessment of language and non-language competencies; and selected issues in teaching language minority populations.
Pedagogy is the flexible application of learning theories in problem-solving contexts. Pedagogical knowledge includes understanding and applying learning theories, developing subject matter expertise, implementing general and discipline specific instructional strategies and practices, developing, analyzing and modifying curriculum, assessing outcomes of learning and developing professional self-efficacy, collegiality, and community to address problems of practice.
In these pedagogy courses, candidates build an understanding of the importance of planning, instruction, assessment and reflection as necessary elements in the teaching and learning cycle.
This course prepares candidates to facilitate, mediate and intervene in the development of literacy and language integrated within social studies content and instruction. It begins with an in-depth look at literacy development, leading to an integrated approach for developing literacy within the context of history/social-science.
The integration of literacy and language with social studies is intended to prepare participants to engage learners in the active inquiry of major and recurrent themes, concepts, values, problems, and issues of the social sciences from multiple and interdisciplinary perspectives. Participants will develop the content and pedagogical tools of “historical thinking” through inquiry into the events and accounts of history.
The philosophical underpinnings of this course are rooted in the cultural-historical viewpoint and brought to life by challenging students to solve real-world problems through constructive activity and modeling processes. Model-based reasoning and inquiry are the heart and soul of what scientists, engineers, and mathematicians do and therefore a natural means of integrating the STEM disciplines.
Candidates will develop:
EDUC 509B
Candidates focused on Secondary Mathematics will take these courses.
Candidates design and teach a balanced and clearly aligned standards-based lesson with a progression of tasks that build on each other to promote an understanding of the designated mathematical concepts and procedures. The learning tasks are justified by the candidate’s explanation of their appropriateness for the students with references to relevant research and/or learning theory. The learning tasks and materials draw upon students’ academic development, social/emotional development and experiences to help students reach the standards/learning objectives. Included in this lesson, candidates will create a set of assessments that provide evidence of learning relative to the standards being taught. Candidates will demonstrate a deeper analysis of student understanding by producing an analysis of student work as a whole class and more extensive analysis of 3 individual students that represents gifted (high achiever), special needs and ELL subgroups within the classroom. The MAT candidate teaches a lesson using strategies to promote intellectual engagement that offers opportunities for students to develop an understanding of mathematical concepts, procedures and reasoning.
EDUC 502B
Candidates focused on Secondary Science will take these courses.
Teaching Secondary Science is designed to provide candidates with the opportunities to develop innovative practices in designing inquiry-based science lesson and unit plans. This course attempts to facilitate the convergence of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) as a foundation for teaching science. Candidates would learn that STEM forms a more holistic approach to the teaching and learning about natural phenomena. The philosophical underpinnings of this course are rooted in the cultural-historical viewpoint and brought to life by challenging students to solve real-world problems through constructive activity and modeling processes.
EDUC 513B
Candidates focused on Secondary English Language Arts will take these courses.
The purpose of this course is both practical and theoretical. Teacher candidates will begin to build pedagogical practice through fieldwork observation and reflection and through practice in planning and implementing of rigorous and relevant learning opportunities for all learners. Along with a focus on planning instruction for meaningful learning, candidates will engage in a continual cycle of reflection for critical interrogation of their observations and experiences. In order to build instructional approaches for opportunity and access for all students, candidates will examine pedagogical practice not only to build a toolkit, but also to question practice and curricular decisions for purpose and relevancy, equity and access, within varied contexts.
EDUC 541B
Candidates focused on Secondary History/Social Studies will take these courses.
The purpose of this course is to align the content knowledge with a repertoire of pedagogical practices responsive to the characteristic needs and interests of diverse adolescent students in order to achieve these specific outcomes: the development of an informed citizenry in a democratic society and concern for individuals to assume civic responsibilities for self and others. The major goals related to introducing and implementing the pedagogical practices are to engage students in the study of history using various forms of inquiry and direct instruction that enable them to become critical and creative thinkers and problem solvers of history. Fundamental to this class is the understanding that history demands learning how to question, research, debate, and summarize. All of the pedagogical practices presented aim to teach content knowledge and skill mastery to students to reinforce this goal. The essence of this course is WHAT curriculum should be taught and HOW the content can be instructed in order to develop the cognitive, affective, and social skills that facilitate the intended outcomes for BOTH students and their teachers. Essentially, this course prepares teachers to teach and become a practicing professional educator.
Students focused on Secondary Education with an emphasis in Mathematics will take this course.
This course prepares candidates to integrate literacy with their secondary students’ construction and development of content area enduring understandings. Candidates will become ongoing decision makers across instructional contexts through the application of theory and promising instructional practices for diverse student populations. This course highlights facilitation, mediation and intervention in the development of literacies and language integrated within the content areas. The course foregrounds the connection between language and literacy as a vehicle for developing content knowledge and articulating one’s thinking and learning.
Human difference refers to characteristics and conditions that identify, distinguish, and differentiate individuals based on social and cultural experiences, as well as naturally occurring physical and intellectual challenges and abilities. Perceptions and reactions to human differences influence interactions and relationships among groups and individuals. This is particularly true in contexts such as schools and classrooms. Policies and practices related to human differences have the potential to influence the quality of education received by individuals and groups.
Upon completion of this course candidates will be prepared to:
EDUC 568B
Guided Practice is a two-part course. These courses provide participants with the opportunities to translate theory into classroom application in order to gain understanding of the teaching-learning process in varied contexts. Participants will apply learning theories, content knowledge, and the pedagogical repertoire of skills acquired in previous courses and threaded throughout the program as the basis for decision-making to positively affect student learning. Guided Practice A will introduce a developmental sequence that is continued in Guided Practice II/EDUC 568B.
By the end of these courses, teacher candidates will be able to:
Candidates focused on Elementary Education will take this course.
The course addresses the direct applications of Visual and Performing Arts standards and their integration into core classroom instruction. The course is designed to introduce teachers to the application of visual and performing arts content across the areas of mathematics, science, language/literature, and history/social sciences, including current events and human rights. We will introduce museum education programs, art resources centers and community arts programs that offer teachers the resources to carry out a balanced art curriculum. Teachers will explore visual and performing artists, their work, and the historical/cultural context that more fully informs the role of the arts in our society. The course will emphasize the application of learning theory and reflection to meeting the learning needs of diverse and special populations, creating a healthy, supportive learning environment and providing opportunities for all children to learn.
Candidates focused on Elementary Education will take this course.
Through interrelated activities, this course will introduce pre-service teachers and experienced teachers to using physical education and movement to enhance learning. In particular, the course looks at strategies to integrate a variety of motor skills and abilities in students; student recognition of the importance of a healthy lifestyle; student knowledge of human movement; and student self-confidence and self-worth in relation to physical movement and learning. The course will emphasize the application of learning theory and reflection to meeting the learning needs of diverse and special populations, creating a healthy, supportive learning environment and providing opportunities for all children to learn.
Candidates for the Spanish BCLAD are required to take this course in preparation for the BCLAD authorization.
Through this course, participants will learn about themselves and their own culture. We begin by exploring our own beliefs, attitudes, perceptions and experiences as members of diverse ethnic backgrounds. This helps us understand the similarities and differences within and across ethnic cultures to gain a better understanding of diversity. As we gain a deeper understanding of ourselves as individuals and as learners we can begin to understand the decisions we make as teachers working with diverse student populations.
Candidates seeking a Certificate in Gifted Education are required take this course.
This course has been designed to assist educators to understand the beliefs and misconceptions about the political, academic, social, and personal decisions related to gifted and high-ability students. This course is intended to uncover the reasons contributing to both the achievement and underachievement of gifted and high-ability students. Learning theories and teaching practices that contribute to nurturing and/or denying the realization of potential in gifted and all students will be examined for their implications to develop curriculum, improve pedagogical practices, and design the intellectual environment of a classroom. Relationships with peers, parents, community members, and policy makers that foster the multiple dimensions of gifted and high ability students of cultural, linguistic, and economic diversity are areas of study in this course. An outcome for course participants is to become an “educational leader” in the field of gifted education. Education leaders are defined as teachers of the gifted, coordinators of gifted services, counselors working with gifted students, curriculum developers, professional development consultants or advocates.
Candidates seeking a Certificate in Gifted Education are required take this course.
While the major goal of the course is to recognize and nurture the talent and potential of gifted and high ability students, a concomitant goal of the course is to address how gifted education can provide the “spill-over effect,” or the means by which the tenets of gifted education can be generalized to affect the education of all students. The issue of the isolation versus impact of gifted education on general education is an ever-present concern. Differentiation of curriculum and pedagogy for gifted students provides the foundation for understanding what could constitute academic rigor, challenge, and advanced learning for ALL learners. The multiple elements and models proposed to design and implement differentiated curriculum and differentiated pedagogy will be emphasized to determine the answers to these questions: (a) What constitutes differentiated curriculum and instruction?, (b) How are differentiated curriculum and instruction developed and implemented?, and (c) How are differentiated and regular curriculum and instruction related? Acquiring the knowledge and the skills needed to articulate and design the progression from a regular or basic to a differentiated to an individualized curriculum is a primary outcome of this course.
Framing the Social Context of High Needs Schools (Social Context) prepares candidates to understand the relationship between the actions of the teacher and the extent to which students are enabled to learn in the classroom and school context. Candidates will engage in a process of critical reflection and inquiry to adjust their teaching based on student outcomes. This course introduces candidates to content and skills that will be built upon throughout the remainder of the MAT, and focuses on the “how” of facilitating learning at the classroom level.
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