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2. Secondary Teacher Certification M.Ed. >
3. Program Curriculum -- Secondary Teacher Certification

Overview of the Program

The program is designed to be completed over seven consecutive quarters. Each fall a group of students will begin the program as a cohort and progress together to complete the Master of Education in the spring of their second year. Students in the cohort at this time may be pursuing endorsements in any of the five endorsement areas (Biology, English/Language Arts, History, Mathematics, and Social Studies).

Each full-time quarter students engage in reflective seminars in which they examine the professional role of the teacher and the complexities of work in schools. They experience a holistic program, not merely a sequence of loosely connected courses and classroom experiences.

This is the general schedule for the program. The schedule may be adjusted in future academic years as the program is typically in a state of continuous change and improvement.

Courses

The Secondary Teacher Certification M.Ed. students take courses that are designed to foster their professional expertise and state-of-the art knowledge in pedagogy, curriculum, teacher leadership, multiculturalism, and cross-curricular literacy. They will have numerous opportunities to learn along with experienced teachers in M.Ed. classes, including core courses of the M.Ed. Program. They also have opportunities for taking elective courses of their choice.

All of the participants in the UW Bothell Master of Education program take three core courses. These courses focus on:

• Examination of research methodologies and the generation of research questions.
• The use of multicultural education as a theoretical foundation for examining the ways in which students' biographical journeys, values, and beliefs influence the questions they raise and the framing of those questions.
• Organizational change and school reform as well as the responsibilities of professional leadership related to educational change.

Endorsement Area

A significant portion of the program is spent examining instruction and assessment of a chosen endorsement area. Endorsement areas currently supported by the program are:

• Biology
• English Language Arts
• History
• Mathematics
• Social Studies

Students also choose elective courses under the guidance of a faculty advisor. These may be selected from M.Ed. courses, or from appropriate courses in other academic programs such as the UW Bothell Master of Arts in Policy Studies. Up to twelve credits of graduate-level coursework may be taken at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Fieldwork

Secondary Teacher Certification M.Ed. students spend three consecutive quarters in field placements in which they have increasing curricular and instructional responsibility. Guided and supported by faculty, field instructors and master teachers, students will have multiple opportunities to learn, observe, and apply a variety of instructional methods and tools in different educational settings.

Completion Dossier

Students complete a dossier the reflects their entire graduate school experience comprised of:

• An Introduction
• Four substantive projects selected from individual graduate education courses that best show how the student met the program learning goals.
• A product that reflects the student's application of knowledge through a capstone project. Some options include:

1. Inquiry Project: The focus of an inquiry project is the improvement of professional practices and educational programs through the implementation of change or innovation in an educational setting; it extends over three quarters under the advisement of a faculty advisor.
2. Professional Paper: A professional paper is done under the advisement of a faculty member following submission and approval of a description of the proposed paper; it extends over two quarters and includes a public presentation of the completed work.
3. Professional Portfolio: This portfolio provides an opportunity to reflect on learning and professional growth through the construction of a culminating portfolio. It serves to document and deepen understanding of the competencies gained as a result of participation in the program and extends over two quarters.

• and a program reflection.

Upon successful completion of the program, graduates will have earned both a Master of Education degree and a Washington State Residency Certificate with an endorsement in Biology, English/Language Arts, History, Mathematics, or Social Studies.