The graduate level courses offered by the Curriculum and Instruction Department prepare candidates to grow professionally as service-oriented educators. Choose any of the following options: an ESOL licensure, SPED licensure only or combine those programs with the core graduate courses in education to earn the M.Ed.

These three programs (ESOL licensure, SPED licensure, and the core) are provided by the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and, like the undergraduate Teacher Education Program, are governed by the Teacher Education Board.

Teacher Education Program

The Teacher Education Program at McPherson College is accredited by the Kansas State Department of Education (900 SW Jackson Street, Topeka, Kansas 66612); and by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), www.ncate.org (now known as Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), www.caepnet.org). This accreditation covers the Teacher Education Program at McPherson College; however, the accreditation does not include individual education courses that the institution offers to P-12 educators for professional development, relicensure, or other purposes.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Teacher Education Program of McPherson College is to develop service-oriented educators who effectively blend the art and science of teaching.

Goals, Objectives, and Dispositions

Goal I: The candidate has the knowledge bases necessary to be an effective teacher in her/his field.

To accomplish this goal, the service-oriented educator will:

Objectives:

1. Acquire a broad liberal arts knowledge base.
2. Demonstrate proficiency in his/her major area of licensure.
3. Acquire effective strategies of teaching in all appropriate content areas and for all learners.
4. Recognize how students learn and develop.

Disposition: Appreciate the connections between various areas of knowledge and commit to continuous learning.

Goal II: The candidate can apply effective teaching strategies to meet the needs of all learners.

To accomplish this goal, the service-oriented educator will:

Objectives:

1. Use appropriate best practices for specific content areas and for diverse learners.
2. Reflect upon his/her teaching and analyze the practices.
3. Demonstrate understanding and use of formative and summative assessments and make modifications based on them.
4. Provide motivational techniques based on students’ developmental and environmental needs.

Disposition: Value and respect students’ varied talents and abilities and project enthusiasm for teaching all learners.

Goal III: The candidate fosters relationships and collaborates with school constituencies. To accomplish this goal, the service-oriented educator will:

Objectives:

1. Communicate effectively in both written and oral formats and through the use of technology
2. Solicit input from students, parents, colleagues, and the greater community.
3. Act on information received from stakeholders.

Disposition: Value the many ways in which people seek to communicate and encourage various modes of communication.

In addition to meeting the Goals, Objectives, and Dispositions of The Teacher Education Program, the graduate-level program must also meet the additional graduate-level Student Learning Outcomes:

1. Demonstrate graduate-level problems solving and analytical skills.
2. (Re)Establish a personal philosophy of education.
3. Develop graduate-level action research and writing skills.
4. Develop an understanding of current research, best practices, and new approaches to teaching and/or learning.

CI 610 Issues in Learning

3 cr hrs
This course will identify national and regional issues surrounding education and the ways these issues impact educators.

CI 615 Foundations of Education/ Cultures in Education

3 cr hrs
This course will explore issues, problems and solutions relevant to schooling in a pluralistic society by viewing schools as social institutions that reflect and influence both the values and the cultural dynamics of a society at large. Issues of race, social class, and gender will be explored as factors of inequity that shape students and teachers both in and out of the classroom. Starting with their own lives, students investigate education as an agent of social change.

Class work as well as experiential assignments will assist participants’ exploration of their own as well as their students’ identities in order to identify the effects of various factors on the teaching experience, educational culture, and school change efforts. Special attention will be given to considerations necessary to implement action research projects.

CI 620 Fundamentals of Action Research.

3 cr hrs
This course provides a structured approach to the practice of action research. Educators learn how to identify relevant issues, become involved in collaborative inquiry, and use data and research to inform their practice, improve student academic success, and contribute to positive change in their schools. Students will begin to apply action-research methodologies in their own environments.

CI 630 Changes in Education

3 cr hrs
This course will focus on systemic and structural change at the school and classroom levels. Case studies of school change models, both traditional and experimental, will be examined and discussed as possibilities and springboards for candidates’ own action research projects. Emphasis will be placed on the collaborative nature of successful school change as well as analysis of examples of failures. Guest speakers will also provide insight into dimensions of school change.

CI 645 Data Collection and Proposal Development

6 cr hrs
Educators will engage in reflective practices as they develop a plan for action research, collect and analyze appropriate data, and develop data-informed decisions/actions to improve student learning and enhance professional growth.

CI 665 School and Community Partnerships

3 cr hrs
The purpose of the School and Community Partnerships course is for students to connect business and community resources with school resources to enrich students’ educational experience and increase student achievement and/or knowledge. Real world examples will inform students’ inquiry into ways partnerships can be forged and sustained. Particular consideration will be paid to the schools and communities in which students work.

CI 670 Legal Issues: Litigation v. Advocacy

3 cr hrs
This course is designed to familiarize educators with the legal system as it pertains to the educational process in order to empower educators to employ educational law to students’ advantage.

CI 675 Project Implementation

6 cr hrs
In this course, educators will use collected data to enact change. At the end of the implementation period, students will engage in reflective assessment of themselves and their program.

CI 650 Elective: Mentoring the Researcher

min 5 cr hrs
Additional courses / directed studies can be requested at any time for students seeking to better understand specific issues related to their projects. Students are required to take two hours of elective courses during their coursework.