Each student enrolled in professional education programs at the master's level must complete the graduate professional education core as it is described in the program requirements for his or her major. Students study research methods, procedures, and designs. Preparation of research abstracts in education and related fields is included. This course provides an overview of the research methods and philosophy of practitioner self-study. The development and application of classroom assessment instruments and the use of standardized measurement instruments in educational settings are emphasized.
Students learn ways to enhance and stimulate opportunities for democratic schooling.
Topics address teaching for social action through community service, critical literacy, multiculturalism, and postcolonialism. Students explore educational reforms in relation to race, ethnicity, culture, gender, and diversity within a democratic framework. Emphasis is placed on examining the economic, political, and social frames that affect the quality of education within a multicultural, social reconstructionist perspective. Students analyze the roles of schools in the social order from the perspectives of the humanities and the social sciences. This course provides an overview of major behavioral, cognitive, and sociohistorical approaches to learning, with consideration of learning across the lifespan.