This course provides learners with opportunities to acquire and use graduate-level skills, including the ability to critically examine and apply relevant educational theory to professional practice. Learners develop expertise in scholarly writing as well as explore the importance of multicultural perspectives and diversity in professional contexts. Finally, learners articulate and examine their professional purpose and its alignment with their specialization and career aspirations. Must be taken during the first quarter by learners who have been admitted to the MEd in Teaching and Learning, MS in Education, MS in Education Innovation and Technology, and MS in Higher Education degree programs and the Adult Education and Higher Education Leadership and Administration graduate certificate programs. Cannot be fulfilled by transfer or credit for prior learning.

This course is an overview of graduate research methodology. Learners examine fundamental research methodologies and their respective quantitative and qualitative approaches to rigorous scholarly inquiry.

In this course, learners examine national and state learning standards related to their content area or grade level. Learners utilize research-based curriculum to craft assessments that are aligned to standards, and implement instruction that is meaningful to students and supports their academic achievement. This course requires access to a P–12 classroom and/or educational stakeholders in a P–12 school or district.

Learners in this course gain an understanding of the differences between standards, outcomes, and competencies and how they can be integrated into the curriculum. Learners build on this understanding, mapping competencies to outcomes and aligning standards to competencies and outcomes. Learners integrate competency- based curriculum and lesson planning with best-practice teaching approaches and develop competency-based classroom management techniques. This course requires access to an educational setting, students or learners, and/or classroom practitioners.

Learners in this course apply strategies for managing diverse and challenging student behaviors and develop the skills needed to create classroom environments that maximize the opportunity for each student to learn. This course emphasizes the roles, rights, and responsibilities of all stakeholders under The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and Section 504 legislation. This course requires access to a P–12 classroom and/or educational stakeholders in a P–12 school or district.

In this course, learners evaluate their own instruction techniques and performance to determine how well they align with professional teaching standards and dispositions for English Language Learners (ELLs). Learners also examine instruction and learning strategies for ELLs and collaborate with ELLs, their families, the community, and other stakeholders for the purpose of improving instruction.

In this course, learners examine the origins and complexities of student achievement gaps between English Language Learners (ELLs) and their mainstream peers within the contexts of race, culture, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and linguistic difference. Learners also explore current student achievement research and best practices and identify instructional strategies most likely to eliminate achievement disparities.

In the capstone course, learners demonstrate their proficiency in the program’s competencies by integrating learning from coursework to complete a literature-based project and complete and submit their e-portfolio. Learners prepare a project plan that includes a proposed topic area that directly relates to English Language Learners (ELLs), the associated skills and competencies exhibited in the project, and deliverables with completion dates. Upon approval from their instructor, learners execute their project plans. For MS in English Language Learning and Teaching learners only. Must be taken during the learner’s final quarter. Cannot be fulfilled by transfer or credit for prior learning.

Learners in this course examine the fundamental concepts and elements of applied linguistics, including meta-language; and explore the ways they are used to plan and deliver instruction to English Language Learners (ELLs); and identify techniques for collaborating with other administrators, teachers, school guidance staff, families, and other stakeholders to ensure the success of ELLs.

In this course, learners study the processes by which P–12 English Language Learners (ELLs) develop proficiency in a second language. Learners also explore the developmental stages of first and second language acquisition and evaluate the impact of first language literacy on second language acquisition. Prerequisite(s): ED5724.

This course presents ways in which the theoretical model of communicative competence guides the instruction of English Language Learners (ELLs). Learners examine and apply various differentiation strategies in the planning and delivery of appropriate instruction to ELLs and evaluate ways to use instructional technology in the teaching, learning, and assessment of ELLs. Prerequisite(s): ED5726.

Learners in this course explore the fundamental components of human culture, the characteristics of individual cultures, the ways in which society and language interact, and the processes by which individuals manage cultural adaptation. Learners use their understanding of these elements to enhance their own cultural competence and pedagogical effectiveness.