Curriculum and Instruction, Secondary Education Licensure Path Specialization, M.Ed.
Terry Goodin, Program Director
(615) 898-2943
Terry.Goodin@mtsu.edu
The M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction is designed to foster the development of teaching skills that result in increased pupil performance. By analyzing curriculum choices and strategies, along with best teaching practices, those who complete this program will be better equipped to provide an environment in which students engage in relevant and meaningful learning activities.
The Secondary Licensure Path Specialization is designed to allow graduate students to meet the State of Tennessee initial licensure requirements in secondary education while pursuing a Masters degree in Curriculum and Instruction. Candidates in this program must meet all requirements in the major areas of study, any undergraduate requirements, and all education courses needed to obtain an initial teaching license. In addition to any academic courses needed, students must meet admission requirements for both the College of Education Teacher Education Program and Educational Leadership's graduate program; successfully complete and pass all required clinical experiences; and pass all parts of the required culminating exams (Praxis II [NTE] Exams, Graduate Comprehensive Exams, and the edTPA Exam). The program is 33-39 hours depending on student's status, prior coursework, and hours required for the teaching practicum. Completion of this Master's program does not guarantee licensure, but fulfills all education requirements necessary for an initial license in secondary education.
The program is structured as an on-campus cohort program and, depending on student's transcript analysis, should last around five semesters. Applications for the program are being accepted throughout the year for the next fall semester cohort.
Please see undergraduate catalog for information regarding undergraduate programs.
Admission Requirements
Admission to the Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in secondary education licensure path requires
- an earned bachelor's degree from an accredited university or college;
- an undergraduate GPA of 2.75 or above, or for those who have started but not completed a graduate degree, a GPA of 3.00 or above on the last 60 hours of coursework (undergraduate and graduate) completed, or a completed graduate degree GPA of 3.00 or above;
- a satisfactory score on the Miller Analogies Test, the Graduate Record Examination, or the Praxis II content area exam(s) for which the candidate is seeking licensure;
- successful admission to the College of Education Teacher Education Program.
Specifics on these requirements can be found online (www.mtsu.edu/programs/curriculum-instruction-med-secondary-licensure/index.php).
Application Procedures
Applicants must be admitted to the College of Education Teacher Education Program prior to admission to this program.
Applicants must submit the following application materials to the College of Graduate Studies:
- an application with the appropriate application fee (online at www.mtsu.edu/graduate/apply.php). Once this initial application has been accepted, the applicant will receive directions on how to enter the graduate portal to be able to submit other materials. When filling out the application, the degree sought is M.Ed: the major is Curriculum and Instruction; the specialization is Secondary Education Licensure Path. This degree is a non-thesis option.
- official transcripts of all previous college work;
- three letters of recommendation addressing the applicant's potential for completing the Master of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction;
- official scores on the Miller Analogies Test (MAT), the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), or the Praxis II content area exam(s) for which the candidate is seeking licensure.
Specifics on these requirements can be found online (www.mtsu.edu/programs/curriculum-instruction-med-secondary-licensure/index.php).
Degree Requirements
The Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction with the secondary education licensure path requires completion of a minimum of 33 semester hours.
Once admitted to the program, candidate must
- complete 33-39 semester hours with no more than 30 percent of the total degree hours dually listed as undergraduate/graduate hours (see specifics in Curriculum section below);
- successfully complete all clinical experiences, including one semester of a Teaching Internship;
- successfully complete all courses and exams required for licensure;
- successfully complete a written comprehensive examination during the semester of graduation (exam may be retaken once).
Curriculum: Curriculum and Instruction, Secondary Education Licensure Path
The following illustrates the minimum coursework requirements.
Required Courses (9 hours)
FOED 6020 - Educational Foundations
3credit hours
Assists educational personnel in developing contexts and concepts in which educational problems and issues may be understood through awareness of findings in humanistic and behavioral studies.
FOED 6610 - Analysis and Application of Educational Research
3credit hours
Qualitative and quantitative research applicable to the field of education. Both producers and consumers of educational research with a literature review presented to support possible solutions to significant hypotheses or problems.
YOED 6680 - Issues and Trends in Teaching and Learning
3credit hours
Emphasis on examining current issues and trends in teaching and learning.
Specialized Core (24-30 hours)
YOED 6500 - Planning and Assessment
3credit hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the Teacher Education program. Offers preparation for teacher candidates to plan for instruction, to assess student learning, and to understand how classroom assessments and standardized testing impact instruction. Introduces lesson planning with respect to a wide range of contextual factors, and through the use of field experiences, provides opportunities for the analysis of planning and assessment procedures in real life contexts. Field experience required which includes a teacher enhancement plan supported by current literature on best practices and/or data collection from teacher-directed action research.
YOED 6000 - Classroom Management
3credit hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the Teacher Education program. Equips teacher candidates with a variety of classroom management strategies and techniques that will foster a positive learning environment in their classrooms. Provides an overview of behavior management models, theories, and research as a foundation for classroom practice. Facilitates, through the use of field experiences, the analysis of school-wide policies/procedures and insight on the real life classroom management expectations of the first-year teacher. Requires a field experience which includes a teacher enhancement plan supported by current literature on best practices and/or data collected from teacher-directed action research.
YOED 6300 - Problem-Based Instructional Strategies
3credit hours
Prerequisite: Admission to Teacher Education Program. Offers preparation for students to develop and present instructional strategies that frame curriculum content in problem-solving contexts. Requires a field experience in a public school setting which includes a teacher enhancement plan supported by current literature on best practices and/or data collection from teacher-directed action research.
SPSE 6140 - Teacher Leadership for School Improvement
3credit hours
Assessing standard teaching practices, analyzing the relationship between effective teaching and effective schools, and developing strategies for instructional and school improvement. Includes experiences to help students become more reflective in their daily teaching.
YOED 6030 - Methods, Instruction, and Assessment for Teaching ELs in Regular Education Classrooms
3credit hours
Focuses on meeting the varied needs of English learners within the regular education (non-ESL) classroom. Examines appropriate accommodations, curriculum adjustments, techniques for building academic language within content instruction, communicative group work, differentiation, and formative assessment strategies to identify needs to inform instruction. Emphasis placed on collaboration between the regular education teacher and the ESL professional.
YOED 6120 - Residency I: Grades K-12 Graduate
6credit hours
Prerequisites: Admission to Teacher Education program; successful completion of YOED 6000 and YOED 6500; overall grade point average maintained at a minimum of 2.75. Consists of completing and reflecting on a school-based clinical experience (in a problem-based learning format) in K-12 education.
YOED 6220 - Seminar in edTPA Professional Performance
6credit hours
Prerequisites: Admission to teacher education program; successful completion of YOED 6000 and YOED 6500; overall grade point average maintained at a minimum of 2.75. Consists of an edTPA preparation experience in a problem-based learning format.
(appropriate course selected in consultation with an advisor)
YOED 5510 - The Teaching Internship, Grades 7-12
3 to 9credit hours
Directed field experience which will meet specific needs related to individual needed competencies. Applicant must meet all prerequisites for directed teaching.
Cohort Course Rotation: Curriculum and Instruction, Secondary Licensure Path
Fall Semester
FOED 6020 - Educational Foundations
3credit hours
Assists educational personnel in developing contexts and concepts in which educational problems and issues may be understood through awareness of findings in humanistic and behavioral studies.
YOED 6500 - Planning and Assessment
3credit hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the Teacher Education program. Offers preparation for teacher candidates to plan for instruction, to assess student learning, and to understand how classroom assessments and standardized testing impact instruction. Introduces lesson planning with respect to a wide range of contextual factors, and through the use of field experiences, provides opportunities for the analysis of planning and assessment procedures in real life contexts. Field experience required which includes a teacher enhancement plan supported by current literature on best practices and/or data collection from teacher-directed action research.
Spring Semester
YOED 6300 - Problem-Based Instructional Strategies
3credit hours
Prerequisite: Admission to Teacher Education Program. Offers preparation for students to develop and present instructional strategies that frame curriculum content in problem-solving contexts. Requires a field experience in a public school setting which includes a teacher enhancement plan supported by current literature on best practices and/or data collection from teacher-directed action research.
YOED 6680 - Issues and Trends in Teaching and Learning
3credit hours
Emphasis on examining current issues and trends in teaching and learning.
Summer Term
FOED 6610 - Analysis and Application of Educational Research
3credit hours
Qualitative and quantitative research applicable to the field of education. Both producers and consumers of educational research with a literature review presented to support possible solutions to significant hypotheses or problems.
SPSE 6140 - Teacher Leadership for School Improvement
3credit hours
Assessing standard teaching practices, analyzing the relationship between effective teaching and effective schools, and developing strategies for instructional and school improvement. Includes experiences to help students become more reflective in their daily teaching.
YOED 6120 - Residency I: Grades K-12 Graduate
6credit hours
Prerequisites: Admission to Teacher Education program; successful completion of YOED 6000 and YOED 6500; overall grade point average maintained at a minimum of 2.75. Consists of completing and reflecting on a school-based clinical experience (in a problem-based learning format) in K-12 education.
YOED 6220 - Seminar in edTPA Professional Performance
6credit hours
Prerequisites: Admission to teacher education program; successful completion of YOED 6000 and YOED 6500; overall grade point average maintained at a minimum of 2.75. Consists of an edTPA preparation experience in a problem-based learning format.
(appropriate course selected in consultation with an advisor)
Fall Semester
YOED 6000 - Classroom Management
3credit hours
Prerequisite: Admission to the Teacher Education program. Equips teacher candidates with a variety of classroom management strategies and techniques that will foster a positive learning environment in their classrooms. Provides an overview of behavior management models, theories, and research as a foundation for classroom practice. Facilitates, through the use of field experiences, the analysis of school-wide policies/procedures and insight on the real life classroom management expectations of the first-year teacher. Requires a field experience which includes a teacher enhancement plan supported by current literature on best practices and/or data collected from teacher-directed action research.
YOED 6030 - Methods, Instruction, and Assessment for Teaching ELs in Regular Education Classrooms
3credit hours
Focuses on meeting the varied needs of English learners within the regular education (non-ESL) classroom. Examines appropriate accommodations, curriculum adjustments, techniques for building academic language within content instruction, communicative group work, differentiation, and formative assessment strategies to identify needs to inform instruction. Emphasis placed on collaboration between the regular education teacher and the ESL professional.
YOED 6120 - Residency I: Grades K-12 Graduate
6credit hours
Prerequisites: Admission to Teacher Education program; successful completion of YOED 6000 and YOED 6500; overall grade point average maintained at a minimum of 2.75. Consists of completing and reflecting on a school-based clinical experience (in a problem-based learning format) in K-12 education.
Spring Semester
YOED 5510 - The Teaching Internship, Grades 7-12
3 to 9credit hours
Directed field experience which will meet specific needs related to individual needed competencies. Applicant must meet all prerequisites for directed teaching.
Program Notes
Students enrolling in 6000-level courses must hold a bachelor's degree, and students enrolling in 7000-level courses must hold a master's degree.
