School of Education (GRAD)
The School of Education, in keeping with the general goals of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, embraces a threefold mission of teaching, research, and service. With these purposes in mind, the school's graduate programs are designed to meet the needs of professional educators who seek to further their knowledge, understanding, and skills relating to educational processes. These professionals vary in their career orientations. Some are employed in (or wish to become employed in) educational institutions, and others, in agencies and organizations performing noninstructional educational functions.
The research mission involves continuing inquiry into the development of knowledge of the teaching-learning process; human development; the organization of schools and educational agencies; the historical, social, and philosophical bases for educational institutions; and the processes of program development and implementation.
The service mission provides public and private institutions and agencies with the benefits of research and consultation, thereby enhancing these institutions and agencies' ability to satisfy their educational objectives.
The teaching mission involves the faculty and graduate students in applying the knowledge base in field settings and translating it into coursework.
The School of Education has attempted to present correct information as of the publication this catalog. However, this information does not establish a contractual relationship, and the school reserves the right to alter any statement when review is complete. Therefore, applicants should contact the School of Education to obtain updated information on programs prior to final application procedures.
Licensure
The School of Education recommends eligible graduates of its approved education programs to the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction for licensure as teachers, school administrators, school counselors, school psychologists, and curriculum and instruction specialists. In addition, the school recommends licensure candidates from the following University degree programs: the School of Information and Library Science (for school media coordinators), the School of Social Work (for school social workers), and graduates of the speech-language pathology program in the Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences.
Professional licensure is recommended for master of arts in teaching graduates at the initial level and for master of education in school counseling at the advanced specialist level. The master's program for experienced teachers provides the opportunity for practicing teachers who hold a current teaching license to achieve the advanced competencies of master's-level licensure. School administrators are eligible for licensure at the master's (for school principals) level through the Master of School Administration Program, and specialist and/or doctoral levels (for school superintendents) through the Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership Program. School psychologists are eligible for licensure at the specialist and/or doctoral level. Curriculum and instruction specialists may complete an Ed.D. for doctoral-level licensure.
Applications for North Carolina licensure must be submitted through the N.C. Department of Public Instruction’s online licensure system by the graduate seeking N.C. licensure. Forms are no longer submitted by the UNC School of Education Licensure Officer. The UNC School of Education Licensure Office reviews and either approves or denies all licensure applications routed to UNC through the N.C. Department of Public Instruction online licensure system. More information about applying for N.C. licensure is available on the School of Education website.
The programs described in this catalog are approved by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the State Board of Education, and the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, with specialty accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) and the American Psychological Association (APA).
Note: Additional information may be found on the School of Education's website.
The School of Education offers three doctoral degrees, the doctor of philosophy, the doctor of education, and the doctor of school psychology:
- The doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) in education with five research areas (applied developmental sciences and special education; cultural, curriculum, and teacher education; learning sciences and psychological studies; policy, leadership, and school improvement).
- The doctor of education (Ed.D.) with two research areas, one in educational leadership and one in organizational learning and leadership curriculum:
- The doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) in school psychology is a separate Ph.D. program that is APA- and NASP-approved and that prepares school psychologists to work in school, clinical, and hospital settings.
The master's programs include the following degrees:
- The master of arts in teaching (M.A.T.) with a concentration in middle grades or secondary education for English, social studies, mathematics and science; elementary education; English as a second language education; K–12 special education (General Curriculum); and K–12 ESL
- The master of education (M.Ed.) in school counseling and the master's for experienced teachers
- The master of school administration (M.S.A.)
- The master of arts in education (M.A.)
The Graduate School administers all but the master of school administration program and the master's for experienced teachers with an Early Childhood Intervention and Family Support (ECIFS) strand area, which the School of Education administers.
Two off-campus, part-time programs are offered: the master of education (M.Ed.) for experienced teachers (ECIFS) and the flexible master of school administration (M.S.A. Flex). The current content specialty areas for the M.Ed. program is early childhood intervention and family support (birth through kindergarten). The ECIFS content areas offers admission every spring for students to begin their program of study in May. It is a two-year program for part time students who are practicing professionals in the early childhood field.
The part-time, off-campus M.S.A. Flex program is designed for working professionals and stretches the normal two-year program offered over an extended period of two and a half academic years, beginning each January with a new cohort. While the program emphasizes preparation for the school principalship, individuals with other educational career aspirations (such as district-level leadership positions) will find it appropriate.
Education Degree Requirements
M.A. Degree Requirements
- A bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year university
- Completion of a minimum of 30 hours of graduate coursework and two consecutive semesters in residence
- Completion of all required and elective courses within five years of admission
- A grade of Pass on a written comprehensive exam or approved equivalent
- Filing the degree application no later than the date specified in the academic calendar
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F in an EDUC course makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program
M.Ed. Degree Requirements
- A bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university
- Completion of the minimum required number of semester hours of graduate coursework. (Check with individual programs to ascertain the minimum requirements.)
- Completion of all required and elective courses within five years of admission
- A grade of Pass on a written comprehensive examination or approved equivalent
- Filing the degree application no later than the date specified in the academic calendar
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F in an EDUC course or 9 hours of L (Low Pass) makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program
- Completion of at least 1 credit hour (50+ in-person hours) in an inclusive early childhood setting in the summer as part of the ECIFS program.
M.A.T. Degree Requirements
- A bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university
- The equivalent of an undergraduate major in the chosen subject area
- Completion of a minimum of 40 semester hours of advanced coursework
- Completion of at least two consecutive semesters in residence
- Completion of all required and elective courses within five years of admission
- Completion of a capstone teacher research project (in conjunction with required course)
- Passing scores on the Teaching Performance Assessment (edTPA), which synthesizes coursework and experiences as related to state and national standards and is required for North Carolina teaching license recommendation
- Passing the PRAXIS II pedagogy exams (for secondary and K–12 ESL candidates); passing the Foundation of Reading (for elementary and K–12 Special Education candidates)
- Passing the PRAXIS II exams related to optional add-on licensure area of K–12 ESL or Special Education as specified by the N.C. Department of Public Instruction
- Successful completion of the full-time student teaching internship
- Filing the degree application no later than the date specified in the academic calendar
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F in an EDUC course makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program
M.S.A. Degree Requirements
- A bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university
- Completion of the minimum required number of semester hours of graduate coursework. (Check with individual programs to ascertain the minimum requirements.)
- Completion of a full year (10 months) or 500 hours (part-time) administrative internship
- Completion of a portfolio of artifacts that demonstrate mastery of N.C. Standards for School Executives
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F in an EDUC course makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program. Two or more grades of L make a student academically ineligible to continue in the program.
Ed.D. (Doctor of Education) Degree Requirements
The School of Education offers two concentrations within the Ed.D. (Doctor of Education) Degree: an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and an Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership.
Ed.D. (Doctor of Education) in Educational Leadership
The first concentration, an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership is designed primarily for leadership roles in the K-12 public school districts throughout the nation. Degree requirements include:
- A bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university and a master's degree in the field of educational leadership, administration, or an approved field.
- Students without such a master's degree can still be admitted into the program as judged by faculty review but may not be able to earn a superintendent licensure. Please check with the program coordinator for details.
- Ed.D. students have eight years to complete both the coursework and the dissertation.
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F - or two grades of L - in an EDUC course makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program.
- Completion of 10 to 12 semester hours of research courses or research experiences as specified in the individualized program of study.
- Completion of a supervised field experience in the student's area of specialization is required for the educational leadership program, with additional requirements for the curriculum and instruction supervision licensure.
- A grade of Pass on a written comprehensive examination
- A grade of Pass on an oral examination
- Successful completion of a final oral examination, which is the defense of the dissertation.
- Satisfactory completion of a research- or practice-based capstone.
- Filing a degree application no later than the date specified in the academic calendar.
Ed.D. (Doctor of Education) Organizational Learning and Leadership
The second concentration, an Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership is designed primarily to equip students with the tools they need to empower the people around them to deliver on their organization’s goals and mission. Degree requirements include:
- A bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university.
- Ed.D. students have eight years to complete both the coursework and the dissertation.
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F in an EDUC course makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program.
- Completion of 12 semester hours of research courses or research experiences as specified in the program of study.
- Completion of a capstone project.
- A grade of Pass on an oral examination.
- Successful completion of a final oral examination, which is the defense of the capstone.
- Satisfactory completion of a research- or practice-based capstone.
- Filing a degree application no later than the date specified in the academic calendar.
Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) Degree Requirements
In addition to the requirements of The Graduate School for the Ph.D., the School of Education also requires:
- Full-time enrollment until all formal coursework is completed.
- Completion of all required coursework on an approved individual program of study consisting of required and elective courses
- A grade of P or better is required in all EDUC courses. One grade of F in an EDUC course makes a student academically ineligible to continue in the program.
Programs of Study
Master of Arts (M.A.) in Education
Master of Arts in Educational Innovation, Technology, and Entrepreneurship
The M.A. in Educational Innovation, Technology, and Entrepreneurship (MEITE) is a professional degree program that prepares its graduates for careers in the educational technology field, both in the public and private sectors. Students from all backgrounds join the program, and MEITE enrolls students into either full-time or part-time cohorts that begin in August and January.
The MEITE program is 36.0 credit hours, and it consists of a “core” group of courses (12.0 credit hours), one specialized course track (12.0 credit hours), a yearlong internship experience (6.0 credit hours), and a summer thesis project (12.0 credit hours). There are four specialized tracks, and students are to complete one of the following track options:
- The Edupreneur utilizes the core concepts for design thinking to develop and prepare for the launching of unique, innovative ventures in the field of educational technology. This track is ideal for students who wish to begin their own startup or join an early-stage startup.
- The Innovative Specialist gains a deep understanding of the trends, research, and budgetary issues related to leadership, business, and innovation in educational organizations. This track prepares students to work in the innovation departments of educational organizations, including companies, schools, districts, and non-profits.
- The Learning Engineer uses the learning sciences and design thinking principles along with data and analytics to improve designers' choices, instructors' practices, and learners' experiences and outcomes. This track builds the knowledge and skills needed to work in school districts, universities, textbook companies, eLearning providers, training departments, and non-profit organizations.
- The Human-Machine Interactionist learns the attributes necessary for effective human-machine interaction from an end-user perspective, which includes the visual aesthetics, intuitive design, technical knowledge, and text transactions. This track prepares students to join firms developing digital products for teaching, learning, productivity, and efficiency.
- Adaptive Learning Analyst trains students in techniques for evaluating assessment data reported by a range of instructional technologies and uses that data to improve teaching and student learning outcomes
Throughout the program, students will collaborate with the MEITE program director, advisor, and faculty, who work to ensure the students have a positive experience in the classroom, at their internship, and after the program.
Master of Education (M.Ed.) for Experienced Teachers
The M.Ed. for experienced teachers is a part-time, field-based program for teachers currently employed in local schools and community-based programs, public and private. The program is designed to assist licensed teachers having at least two years of experience in reflecting upon their experiences and developing further skill and art as professional educators. It is a 31-to-36-hour program (depending on the content area) that begins in the summer and extends through the subsequent two years. Courses during the traditional calendar school year are offered generally from 4:30 p.m. to 7:20 p.m in a hybrid format. Courses will be offered in a Hyflex format (with fully remote- synchronous and asynchronous sessions) in addition to the traditional Hybrid format. For specifics about content areas, please visit the School of Education's website or call (919) 966-1346.
Master of Education (M.Ed.) in School Counseling
The M.Ed. program in school counseling is predicated on the Strengths-Based School Counseling (SBSC) model, which asserts that the school counselor's primary role is to promote and advocate for positive youth development for all students and for the environments that enhance and sustain that development.
The SBSC approach characterizes positive youth development as nurturing and enhancing empirically identified student strengths or competencies rather than focusing on student weaknesses and problem areas.
SBSC provides a framework to guide the practice of school counseling in the 21st century that is both compatible with and operationalizes many of the features of the ASCA National Model for School Counseling Programs.
Strengths-based school counselors employ a variety of direct (e.g., counseling, classroom guidance) and systemic (e.g., consultation, advocacy) interventions to promote culturally relevant student development in the academic, personal/social, and career domains. The strengths-based perspective identifies the counselor as a school leader who works with students, teachers, administrators, parents, and other members of the community and promotes strengths-enhancing environments for all students.
Requirements
The M.Ed. program in school counseling consists of four semesters of full-time study — 60 semester hours of coursework over a 14-month period. Students normally begin classes during the last week in May. Students finish the program by August of the year following their entrance into the program.
Because the 60 semester hours of coursework are completed in a 14-month period rather than in the more traditional two-year period for programs of this type, this is a concentrated and intense program. As a result, only full-time students are admitted, and students may not enter the program at times other than the one specified above.
- Thirty (30) hours of content courses
- Twenty-four (24) hours of skill/clinical courses
- Six (6) hours of graduate-level electives, approved by the advisor.
The fall practicum runs from August through October. The fall internship runs from October through December. Students must spend a minimum of 100 (40 direct service) clock hours in the practicum and 600 (240 direct service) hours in the internship in their field experiences during the August to June K–12 public school year. The schedule for accumulating the required 700 hours is typically completed in three full-time days per week at the school site and/or arranged with both the field supervisor and EDUC 705 instructors.
Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.)
The Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) program is designed for individuals wishing to teach elementary school (grades K–6), middle school (grades 6–8) or high school (grades 9–12) in the subject areas in math, science, English, or social studies, Special Education General Curriculum (grades K-12), or English as a Second Language (grades K-12). This field-based, student-centered, cohort model program relies on partnerships between public schools and the University and provides the context of real classrooms as the motivation for students to connect theory and practice. Through the use of its signature pedagogy of experiential education, the M.A.T. is a professional preparation program that is designed to prepare candidates for initial teaching licensure in North Carolina by providing opportunities for students to accomplish three general objectives:
- Expand their understanding of methodology in a content specialization.
- Gain an understanding of curriculum and instruction, and
- Provide knowledge of the social and psychological foundations of education
The M.A.T. is a 12-month, full-time program that requires 40 hours of coursework. There are optional add-on programs (12 hours each) in special education and English as a second language, which if taken, extend the program length and cost by approximately two months. Seminars, methods, contexts, learner, and learning courses are ongoing throughout the M.A.T and are both interdisciplinary and subject area oriented.
The program of study and more detailed program and application information can be found on the School of Education's website.
Some clinical placements could include multiple settings and levels of instruction.
Seminars, methods, contexts, learner, and learning courses are ongoing over the entire 12-month period and are both interdisciplinary and subject area oriented.
Master of School Administration (M.S.A.)
The M.S.A. FLEX programs prepare individuals to lead schools and other educational organizations for the schools of North Carolina and the nation. These programs include three dimensions:
- Awareness (i.e., acquiring concepts, information, definitions, and procedures)
- Understanding (i.e., interpreting knowledge to school environments, integrating concepts with practice, and using knowledge and skills in context)
- Knowledge (i.e., applying knowledge and skills to specific problems of practice)
While most of those who complete this program move into administrative positions at the school-site level, some assume roles within state, regional, or national organizations that focus on educational professional development, research, or policy making. The completion of this program leads to eligibility for licensure from the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction and qualifies graduates for administrative certification in most states. For additional information, please visit the school's website.
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Educational Leadership
The Educational Leadership doctoral program develops students primarily for leadership roles in K–12 public school districts throughout the nation. The program prepares students to excel in ever-changing national, state, and local educational environments. Courses are offered in the evenings during the fall and spring terms, in the summer and on weekends. Most students are enrolled part time and typically take two courses per semester.
Students may transfer up to nine credit hours, subject to program faculty approval. Credits must have been taken at the graduate level, for a grade, within the past five years.
The program of study for the Ed.D. in educational leadership can be found on the School of Education's website.
The School of Education is approved by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction to recommend the superintendent license in the areas of educational leadership at the Specialist/S level and Doctoral/D level. More information on the required programs of study and specific licensing requirements can be found on the School of Education's website.
An Ed.D. student who does not have a master's degree in educational leadership or school administration, may not be able to obtain a superintendent's license through the program but may still earn the doctoral degree.
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Learning and Leadership
The online Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership immerses students in leadership theories and organizational research methods in order to lead organizational learning and improvement efforts. Courses are offered online with a blend of asynchronous modules and one virtual synchronous meeting for each course weekly in the evenings. Students are enrolled part time and typically take two courses per semester including fall, spring, and summer.
Transfer credit hours are not considered for this program.
The program of study for the Ed.D. in educational leadership can be found on the School of Education's website.
The program offers an optional immersion experience once each year which will provide a dynamic learning opportunity that fosters community building, connects students with faculty, and offers a platform for exploration, exposure to real-world leadership practices, and networking with peers from other programs within the UNC School of Education. Key aspects of the immersion experience include community building, familiarity with program faculty, exploration of opportunities, and mentoring connections with leaders in practice.
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education
The schools in North Carolina and in the nation face myriad complex issues and challenges. These challenges range from meeting the educational and social-emotional needs of diverse student populations to designing, implementing, and evaluating educational programs within cultural contexts. The Ph.D. in education prepares leaders in educational research who understand these issues and who can improve educational practice using state-of-the-art knowledge and research skills. The design of the program fosters collaboration among faculty members and students from diverse disciplines. Such cooperation across levels and areas of interest provides the opportunity to develop relevant research agendas. Graduates of this program are prepared for leadership positions in research and teaching at major universities and institutes in the state and nation.
The Ph.D. in education is a single program with four research emphases: applied developmental sciences and special education; culture, curriculum, and teacher education; learning sciences and psychological studies; policy, leadership, and school improvement. These five fields blend areas of inquiry that were formerly discrete.
The following courses are required for all School of Education Ph.D. students:
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
EDUC 710 | Introductory Statistical Methods | 3 |
EDUC 825 | Development and Learning | 3 |
EDUC 830 | Field Techniques in Educational Research | 3 |
One advanced research methods course (varies) | ||
EDUC 867 | Issues in Educational Policy and Research | 3 |
EDUC 876 | Histories of School and Schooling | 3 |
The mission of the applied developmental science and special education (ADSSE) program area is to train doctoral students in the interdisciplinary, theoretical foundations of applied developmental science and special education. These foundations will provide young scholars with the tools to advance knowledge about human development from birth through adolescence, with a particular focus on studying children/students at risk for learning and behavioral challenges. This mission is accomplished by offering research perspectives in
- the developmental trajectories of families and children/students from diverse sociocultural backgrounds in the multiple contexts in which they live, including school, home, neighborhoods, and communities, as well as a grounding in
- evidence-based models of prevention that seek to provide equitable opportunities for learning and successful adjustment for all children by emphasizing education and instruction directed towards individual differences among learners.
The ADSSE program is dedicated to developing a new generation of interdisciplinary scholars who have acquired a rigorous research knowledge base with expertise in a quantitative, mixed method, and single case methodology. Students work closely with their advisor and committee members to develop the skills and experiences necessary to work as leaders in a variety of research settings, including institutions of higher education, governmental entities at the state or federal level, and private research firms. Students may choose one of three specializations within the ADSSE strand: 1) Applied Developmental Science; 2) Special Education; and 3) Sociocultural Diversity. Throughout the doctoral experience, students will engage in research activities, grant writing, and the dissemination of their research and prevention efforts, such as presenting their research at local, state, and national conferences, and teaching college-level classes.
The mission of the applied developmental science and special education (ADSSE) program area is to train doctoral students in the interdisciplinary, theoretical foundations of developmental science. These foundations will provide young scholars with the tools to advance knowledge about human development from birth through adolescence, with a particular focus on studying children/students at risk for learning and behavioral challenges. This mission is accomplished by offering research perspectives in
- the developmental trajectories of families and children/students from diverse sociocultural backgrounds in the multiple contexts in which they live, including school, home, neighborhoods, and communities, as well as a grounding in
- evidence-based models of prevention that seek to provide equitable opportunities for learning and successful adjustment for all children by emphasizing education and instruction directed towards individual differences among learners.
The ADSSE program is dedicated to developing a new generation of interdisciplinary scholars who have acquired a rigorous research knowledge base with expertise in a quantitative, mixed method, and single case methodology. Graduates will work closely with their advisor and committee members to develop the skills and experiences necessary to work as leaders in a variety of research settings, including institutions of higher education, governmental entities at the state or federal level, and private research firms. Throughout the doctoral experience, students will engage in research activities, grant writing, and the dissemination of their research and prevention efforts, such as presenting their research at local, state, and national conferences, and teaching college-level classes.
The Culture, Curriculum and Teacher Education strand is designed for future scholars and researchers who will study the linguistic, social, and cultural contexts of education and how culture, language, and education are produced locally, nationally, and globally. This strand prepares future scholars, researchers, and faculty members who work in the areas of teacher education including general and discipline specific fields (e.g., mathematics, science, and social studies); multiple and critical literacies; social and cultural foundations of education; the intersectionality of race, gender, language, sexual orientation, and class; qualitative research methods broadly conceived; and how all to these contribute to creating social and educational inequities. Our focus is both critical and constructive. Our efforts first describe, interpret, and critique current practice and belief and then move to strategizing about how to create a more equitable society and world. We prepare scholars to be first rate educators, theorists, and qualitative research methodologists—and advocates for change.
The Learning Sciences and Psychological Studies (LSPS) Ph.D. program focuses on how people learn, drawing on interdisciplinary theory and research from biological, cognitive, social, and cultural perspectives. LSPS students use this knowledge to improve education in formal settings like schools and colleges, as well as informal settings that range from museums and community centers to video games and virtual reality. Our students also gain the foundational skills necessary to conduct rigorous scientific research, including extensive training in state-of-the-art quantitative and qualitative research methodology. Students interested in LSPS can elect to concentrate in a number of areas, including mathematics education, science education, educational technology, cognition, and quantitative methods and evaluation. In particular, many of our research faculty specialize in the design and evaluation of digital learning technologies, and the implications of these technologies for diverse, equitable, and inclusive education in today’s society. As one of only 21 Ph.D. programs worldwide recognized by the International Society of the Learning Sciences, our graduates are uniquely positioned to be leaders among the next generation of educational researchers, prepared for careers in industry, government, and academia.
The aim of the Ph.D. program in policy, leadership, and school improvement (PLS) is to prepare leaders who will influence the direction of educational organizations at home and around the world. The program produces scholars, administrators, and analysts for leadership roles in K–12 systems, universities, research organizations, and policy-making bodies. It does so by developing students' understanding of the societal, political, and economic conditions affecting schools; the capacity to analyze educational problems and their proposed solutions; and the ability to design innovations and implementation processes that work.
The Ph.D. program in PLS is among the few programs at elite public universities in the nation to offer opportunities to study with a faculty whose work in K–12 administration, education policy, and school improvement is internationally known. As leaders in these areas, our faculty works collaboratively with students to develop research questions and hypotheses, study them in state and national settings, and link findings to practice. Faculty and students in PLS are engaged in the examination and critique of today's important and contested issues in education, including
- Teacher quality
- Turn-around schools
- High school effectiveness
- Resource allocation
- Principal instructional leadership
- Issues of class, gender, immigration, and race in education
In addition to disciplinary core and research courses, students pursue programs of study that include courses in policy making, education program evaluation and policy analysis, school law, leadership, educational innovation, implementation, and taking reforms to scale. In combination with courses in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed research methods, students develop their research skills through a professional seminar and assistantships with faculty members. Committed to professional service, our faculty members are also members of editorial boards and advisory forums at the national, state, and local levels. They also work directly with school systems, consulting on issues of staffing, instructional delivery, and governance. PLS faculty members are currently working with the federal Race to the Top initiative in North Carolina and a national education research center funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
Engaging the tensions of individual freedom and collective responsibility and addressing both local and national issues and their histories, as well as international perspectives, scholarship in teacher education and curriculum includes school-based inquiry as well as theoretical studies of pedagogy, knowledge, and the construction of democratic communities. This inquiry flourishes when it employs a variety of research methods, qualitative and quantitative research as well as historical, literary, and philosophical studies. Students will select research courses that will complement their own intellectual skills and prepare them to address the problems they wish to study. Students in the Ph.D. program are required to maintain full-time enrollment through the completion of coursework, with the expectation that they will graduate in three to four years. Programs of study are available on the School of Education's website.
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in School Psychology
The goal of the UNC–Chapel Hill doctoral School Psychology program is to prepare school psychologists as scientist-practitioners to assume leadership positions in academic, research, and applied settings (e.g., schools, clinics and hospitals). To this end students study both broad and general knowledge in psychology, obtain knowledge, skills, and competencies specific to a professional psychologist, and participate in a wide variety of supervised clinical and research activities designed to prepare them for these positions. The UNC doctoral program is accredited by the American Psychological Association and through this accreditation has approval by the National Association of School Psychologists. All applicants are required to have either an undergraduate degree in psychology, 18 credit hours of psychology courses, or a master's degree in a related field.
The program emphasizes a prevention/intervention approach to enhancing the academic and social/emotional competencies of children and youth. It also emphasizes an ecological, systems perspective, recognizing that children and youth reside within increasingly complex situations, including their families, neighborhoods, communities, and school. Furthermore, the interdisciplinary nature of the school system is emphasized, and students develop the skills and understanding necessary to communicate with other school professionals as well as parents and community agencies as part of a multidisciplinary team. Finally, intervention research and implementation science are the used as the framework from which psychologists can help manage the research to practice gap and learn to successfully promote evidence-based practices. Students are expected to develop expertise in assessment, intervention, prevention, consultation, evaluation, and research, gaining increasingly advanced knowledge and skills as they progress through the program. Within the educational setting, school psychologists serve numerous clients including pupils, teachers, supporting educational personnel, and parents. In community and clinical settings students gain experience providing services to high needs populations of children, youth and families. Students complete internships in school, clinic and hospital settings in North Carolina and around the nation and most participate in the APPIC process. Completion of the program leads to eligibility for licensure from the State Department of Public Instruction, NASP' National Certification for School Psychology and the North Carolina State Psychology Board.
Professors
Fouad Abd-El-Khalick
Harriet Able
Brian Boyd
Lora Cohen-Vogel
Thurston (Thad) Domina
Dorothy Espelage
Jeff Greene
Jill Hamm
Sherick Hughes
Roger Mills-Koonce
Xue Lan Rong
Troy Sadler
Keith Sawyer
Joseph Williams
Associate Professors
Janice Anderson
Matthew Bernacki
Cheryl Mason Bolick
Dionne Cross Francis
Casey Calhoun
Nianbo Dong
Christian Ehret
Jocelyn Glazier
Dana Griffin
Peter Halpin
Eric Houck
Kara Hume
Ethan Hutt
Daniel Klasik
Steve Knotek
Marisa Marraccini
Robert Martinez Jr
James Trier
Assistant Professors
Courtney Hattan
Kathryn Leech
Constance Lindsay
Lauren Sartain
Research Professors
Donald Bailey
Sharon Derry
Samuel Odom Jr.
Ellen Peisner-Feinberg
Alistair Van Moere
Research Associate Professor
Desiree Murray
Research Assistant Professor
Jacqui McLaughlin
Clinical Professor
Helyne Frederick
Clinical Associate Professors
Leslie Babinski
Todd Cherner
Jennifer Coble
Jennifer Diliberto-Fender
Sandra Evarrs
Martinette Horner
Derrick Jordan
Diana Lys
Kristin Papoi
Yuliana Rodriguez
Clinical Assistant Professors
Clinton Bolton
Christina Cruz
Jemilia Davis
Emily Halpin
Matthew Harris
Lewis Hatcher
Justin Parker
Robert Pleasants
Dana Riger
Christopher Scott
Julie Vandiver
Caryn Ward
Carrol Warren
Clinical Instructor
Candice Powell
Adjunct Assistant Professors
Elizabeth Allen Green
Abby Ampuja
Jessica Amsbary
Juliann Anderson
Gina Amone
Alyson Baumgartner
Sara Bausell
Mary Bratsch-Hines
Timothy Conder
Theresa Coogan
Dana Copeland
Adina Davidson
Peter Duquette
Lori Edmonds
Rochelle Evans
Christine Fierro
Kayla Fike
Moya Foster
Daniel Gibboney
Brian Gibbs
Margaret Goodhand
Gordon Grant
Crystal Harden
Shauna Harris
Robin Horton
Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins
Carol Jordan
Ariana Kanwit
Francemise Kingsberry
Chih-lng Lim
Robert Lucas
Amber Majors
Kathryn Murray
Kyle Nickodem
Nathalie Powell
Darlene Ryan
Ann Sam
Beverly Schieman
Alisha Schiltz
Melissa Senior
Kenyann Stanford
Alex Tabori
Miranda Thomas
Megan Vinh
Chaka Ward Hatcher
Jessica Wery
Paul Wolff
Jonathan Wright
Nicole Young
Adjunct Associate Professors
Amy Johnson
Laura Klinger
Rebekah Layton
Catherine Scott
Meghan Walter
Adjunct Instructors
Mary Bartonlini
Scott Benson
Brenda Berg
Kayela Buffaloe
Luke Carman
Nikkiya Cosmey
Lucas Fayard
Carmen Gonzalez
Ricardo Hurtado
Darci Jones
Karimah Midgette
Mayra Morales
Ryan Nilsen
Ion Outterbridge
Berengere Phillips
Elizabeth Shaver
Marcela Torres-Cervantes
Adjunct Professors
Todd Boyette
W J Fitzgerald
Stephen Hooper
Malbert Smith
Post-Doctoral Research Associate
Shelbi Kuhlmann
Professors Emeriti
Richard Brice
Linda Brooks
Duane Brown
Frank Brown
William I. Burke
Richard Coop
James Cunningham
Barbara Day
R. Sterling Hennis Jr.
Paul B. Hounshell
Richard C. Hunter
Bobbie Boyd Lubker
William Malloy
William S. Palmer
Richard C. Phillips
Walter Pryzwansky
Dixie Lee Spiegel
Donald J. Stedman
Gary Stuck
Alan Tom
Neal H. Tracy
Gerald Unks
Ronald Wiegerink
Kinnard P. White
Ralph E. Wileman Jr.
EDUC
Advanced Undergraduate and Graduate-level Courses
Students have 30 hours of service-learning with individuals with autism at community partner sites. Class discussions introduce students to diverse topics related to autism spectrum disorder. This is an APPLES course.
This course examines the field of child development as it contributes to the teaching and learning of children in early childhood and elementary educational settings, ages prenatal to age 12.
This seminar serves as an introduction to the field of child development and early childhood education and special education. Students learn about the primary professional disciplines and agencies serving young children and their families. Current policy, recommended practices, and research innovations are reviewed.
This course examines issues of diversity among and across families, in order to better prepare students for human service fields in a variety of settings such as clinics, schools, advocacy, and other organizations.
Restricted to majors. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. Provides students with knowledge of program models and curricula/intervention strategies for working with infants and toddlers with and without disabilities. Information is provided regarding identification and assessment strategies for infants, toddlers, and two-year-olds. Program models for working with families are emphasized.
This course is a lifespan approach to parent-child relationships and implications for enhancing the well-being of families. A major focus will be on research and theory regarding parenting during the different stages of the lifespan.
An introductory examination of human development and family research methods designed to provide an understanding of scientific inquiry, methodology, measurement, test construction, scaling, and statistical terms and techniques.
This course is an exploration of the research and theory about programs that promote youth development and prevent youth problems in the diverse contexts where youth function (i.e., home, school, outside of school activities, sports, peer networks, etc.). Career options (e.g., social work, law enforcement, teaching, and community outreach work) will also be explored through sociocultural lenses.
Learn how to translate the outcomes of a liberal arts education to the world of work. The course will engage students in connecting one's intellectual and practical learning, as well as individual and social responsibilities to contemporary career skills and life-career design. Critical reflection on concurrent and diverse internship experience is utilized to contextualize skills and further explicate career identity working in a knowledge and digital ecology. Permission of the instructor for students with fewer than 8 hours of weekly work.
Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. This course covers the theoretical and developmental aspects of language and literacy processes and practices. The course will cover reading, writing, speaking, listening and viewing practices, birth to age 12.
This course introduces students to immigration-related schooling issues in the United States and North Carolina. Students will use scholarly writings by both theorists and practitioners as well as narratives from immigrant students and their parents to study the impacts of migration on education as a transnational, transcultural, and translingual process. The course includes an overview of immigration-related education policies and practices; issues of assimilation, acculturation, and identity; and other relevant topics.
Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. The focus of this course is children's development in mathematical and scientific ways of knowing and the use of technology to support this development.
The course introduces learners to issues related to pediatric care during hospitalization and illness in childhood and adolescence. It provides an overview of the multiple roles that health professionals, families, and child life specialists play in providing support for recovery and bereavement. Additionally, it explores the developmental and psychological needs of hospitalized children, their families, and those who provide services to children. The course will also examine the ethics of care for child life specialists.
Provides an understanding of the community contexts of schools and an experience working in community group. This is the first semester of two-semester course.
Provides prospective teachers with an understanding of the community contexts of the schools. Second semester of a two-semester course.
This seminar allows students to explore how social determinants of health affect the health of populations.
Introduction to teaching. Course covers foundations and philosophies of education, current issues, and trends in public schooling.
Offered concurrently with EDUC 466. Restricted to students admitted to the middle grades teacher education program. Initiates students into the teaching profession. The course stresses what it is like to be a teacher, with concurrent emphasis on the life of the student and the study of schools.
Offered concurrently with EDUC 465. Restricted to students admitted to the middle grades teacher education program. Helps students learn how to plan and develop skills to meet the unique and diverse needs of young adolescents as they prepare to teach.
Helps students develop a variety of basic teaching skills used by classroom teachers. This course will be conducted primarily as a laboratory course.
This course examines various theoretical models of play and development in clinical, health, and school settings. Students are taught basic skills to create therapeutic play environments and to respond to the intellectual, emotional, and social needs of children in schools, hospitals, and other therapeutic settings. HDFS majors or permission from the program coordinator.
A collaborative, experiential, and data-driven course for understanding and facilitating organizational learning and change. Students will complete an "improvement research project" based on their own personal interests and/or in partnership with practitioners in an organizational setting. Students will direct their course of study around three core questions: What is the specific problem I am trying to solve? What change might I introduce and why? How will I know whether the change is actually an improvement?
This course serves to integrate our core field of human development and family studies with other public health issues and professions to help improve understanding of factors impacting the health and well-being of children, youth, and families. The course blends human development theories, family systems theories, and health promotion theories to better understand the health experiences of individuals across the lifespan.
This course examines individual and family resource management. Students will develop skills related to importance of time management, financial planning and budgeting, consumer decision-making, and allocation of resources to the well-being of children, youth, and families. The course also examines issues related to grant writing, consumer economics, conflict resolution, poverty alleviation, work-family balance, and stress management.
Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. Students gain familiarity with the operations and complexity of teaching. Students observe instruction, assist in teaching, learn about the curriculum and specific resources, interact with school personnel, work with students, and apply skills learned in previous courses. Prepares students for internship or student teaching.
Permission of the instructor. Provides readings and research under the direction of a faculty member. May be repeated for a maximum of six credit hours.
This course examines biological, cognitive, psychological, and social development in adolescence and adulthood. Students will examine these milestones in development as they vary by gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, ability, socio-economic status, education, and other contextual/cross-cultural factors. The course includes an examination of how adolescents and adults function within families, social networks, schools, media, and work.
Course asks students to consider what it means to participate in schools as educational leaders. Students consider how to collaborate effectively with school colleagues, advocate for children and families, participate in the politics of schools and education, and examine what it means to be change agents in classrooms and schools.
Students learn about current educational emphases and controversies as well as what the research and scholarship in the fields of education and cognition can contribute to our understanding of these phenomena.
Introduces students to a research-based, highly practical understanding of leadership frames/styles prominent in educational/nonprofit organizations. Emphasizes continued student engagement with various leadership models and principles.
Through extensive case study and conversations with policy actors, students will learn the stages model of policy making and understand conflicting values that play out in policy decisions.
An exploration of the function and history of art in educational and social change movements. In this course students use a critical approach to examine various forms of art and expression as they relate to education.
This course was developed to confront and address questions of global cultural competence and self-critique. Culturally competent leaders work to understand their own biases and patterns of discrimination.
Learn strengths-oriented approaches in education practice, research, and policy. The course takes up contemporary literature on positive psychology, developmental assets, resiliency, cultural competence, school readiness, school engagement/ connectedness, and positive youth development.
Course examines the social-historical, cultural, and political contexts that shape the educational experience of Mexican Americans/Chicanxs and the broader Latinx community. Using critical race theory, paying attention to issues of cultural identity and agency as we move across various geopolitical dimensions of contestation, resistance, and immigration, including the southwestern U.S. and new Latinx diaspora spaces - namely the US South. Including critically exploring PreK-12 schools, higher education, and social initiatives to address inequities in education.
This course examines previous and present eras in American education from a critical race perspective. Critiques will feature dominant or majoritarian narratives (widely adopted accounts often taught as part of an institution's curriculum) and counter narratives in regards to racism with the education of Blacks in America serving as a case example.
Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. This methods block is a field based, integrated collection of science, literacy, and math courses designed to prepare pre-service teachers for planning and implementing instruction in elementary schools.
Restricted to students admitted to the elementary education program or the child development and family studies program. Explores integration of the arts in the curriculum.
Offers an overview of the special education field and its relevance to the classroom teacher. The course is based on an interdisciplinary perspective toward serving exceptional learners and collaboratively coordinating services. Course content emphasizes inclusive programming and the teacher's role in facilitating students' unique learning needs.
A practical introduction to theory and methodology in program evaluation, emphasizing partnership with educational organizations.
The generally accepted broad understanding of the term "public pedagogy" is that it refers to "the learning and education happening outside of formal schooling systems." Public pedagogy as a growing field explores how "spaces of learning such as popular culture, the Internet, public spaces such as museums and parks, and other civic and commercial spaces, including both old and new social movements," are potential "sites of pedagogy containing possibilities for both reproduction and resistance."
Course is restricted to majors. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. The senior seminar is inquiry based and directly connects student teachers with classroom practices. Throughout the semester student teachers develop and implement inquiry projects.
Course is restricted to majors. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. Course focuses on the language, reading, and writing development of children birth through third grade. Promotes early literacy learning for all children with and without disabilities, including those at risk.
Focus on youth in schools. This course considers the history and present lives of youth, primarily as teenagers/adolescents. It seeks recognition and understanding of the uniqueness of their lives.
Course focuses on schools and educational issues as they relate to practices and policies. Fulfills central ideas of the minor in education in consideration of the history and present conditions of schooling in a democratic society.
Course is restricted to majors. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. Students study the teaching and learning of mathematics for young children, birth to third grade. Emphasis is placed on content for math, as well as materials, techniques, and teaching aids.
This course examines experiential education in a variety of settings. Students will explore the role experiential education currently plays and suggest new roles in a chosen field of study.
Among the topics examined are ethical implications of democratic schooling for a democratic society, educators as moral agents, and education as an institution with incumbent responsibilities. Students explore the explicit and implied ethics of education and schooling as they relate to policy makers, educators, and citizens concerned about social justice.
Explore and analyze how education has been represented in popular culture. "Education" refers to teachers, students, principals, other educators, and the everyday processes of schooling, and "popular culture" refers to school films (fictional films), school documentaries, television shows, music videos and song lyrics, animation, and other media forms.
This course provides methods for supporting exceptional individuals across the age span. Resources for supporting families, including parenting skills, from birth through adulthood will be described.
Explore history of American schools to inform students' understandings of contemporary schools. Examine policies, issues, and controversies through a chronological examination of schools and society.
On average, Americans spend less than five percent of their lives in traditional classrooms and an ever-growing body of evidence supports the importance and quality of the knowledge gained outside of school. Parks, museums, theaters, zoos, and aquariums are just a few of the vast resources available to the American public. These informal learning environments are designed to educate, inspire, and entertain visitors in approachable and engaging ways.
Characteristics of effective teachers, classroom management, instructional methods, instructional planning and presentation, monitoring and assessing student behavior and learning, differentiating instruction, yearly plans and pacing guides.
This course examines the field of human development as it contributes to the teaching and learning of all children and youth. The emphasis is on understanding the nature of development in family and educational contexts and the implications of research and theory on human development for teacher practice and human services and the creation of supportive learning environments for all children and youth.
Course examines how education can help create more fair and just societies, ultimately contributing to high performing educational systems internationally. Students explore multiple perspectives on social justice; examine efforts at local, state, national, and global levels; and learn to articulate efforts in classrooms and schools with wider community initiatives.
Methods of assessment, multiple measures, monitoring student performance to inform and improve instruction, understanding students with special needs with individual education plans, test scores, and other information in student files.
Leadership in classroom and school with families, standards of practice, advocating equity, supporting teaching profession, school organization, school finance, legal issue/education strategies for environments that promote learning, issues and trends.
NCTM Standards, Standard Course of Study, developing student understanding of mathematics, problem-solving skills, and professional commitment.
Mathematical tasks for learners in grades six through 12 and instructional methods necessary to maintain a task at a high cognitive level.
Examining patterns of practice and assessment, modifying and improving planned units, pacing instruction, reconsidering individual differences and differentiation.
Does it matter what you learn in college? What is really going on when you join a fraternity or sorority? In this course we will examine the role of higher education in U.S. society and why it matters that you are enrolled here at all.
In this course, pre-service teachers and other students interested in education will explore international educational contexts (Hamburg, Germany or Quito, Ecuador/Galapagos Islands) through the lens of experiential education. In this study abroad experience, students will participate in formal and informal educational settings using Kolb's (1984) experiential learning cycle: experience, reflection, abstraction, application. This course is intended for anyone contemplating a career in education or any helping profession.
Nature of science, national science standards, teaching science as inquiry, safety in the science classroom, materials management.
Developing and redesigning science instruction to engage students actively, with emphasis on classroom management for energetic curricula, modifying tasks and projects, assessment strategies, and utilization of resources.
A practitioner's look at instruction in middle and high school science classrooms using many current pedagogical approaches of instruction: constructivism, models of inquiry, reflective practice, and conceptual change theory.
Designed to support lateral entry candidates, solving the most urgent problems in the classroom. Includes frequent online communication, individualized attention to immediate problems and combines supervision, coaching, and mentoring.
Course designed to help lateral entry candidates by improving their classroom management skills, specifically those related to student behavior.
Course designed to support the lateral entry candidates through individualized feedback about concerns, focusing on strategies for increasing student learning using content area literacy strategies.
Methods of teaching a second language, how people learn foreign languages, planning instruction, getting students to communicate, using and adapting foreign language textbooks, and developing lessons.
Students examine instruction as effective mechanism for classroom management, choosing and redesigning tasks and projects to engage students in active learning. Assessment of student understanding investigated as necessary for development of effective instruction.
Students will consider national standards frameworks as organizing principles for instructional strategies. They will develop skills by use of culturally authentic materials, performance-based assessment, and units and lessons promoting successful language learning.
Restricted to students admitted to the middle grades education program. Focuses on the goals and methods of teaching language arts in the middle grades, including planning for student diversity and unit planning.
Restricted to students admitted to the middle grades education program. Focuses on the goals and methods of teaching social studies in the middle grades.
Restricted to students admitted to the middle grades education program. Focuses on methods for teaching science in the middle grades and includes emphasis on the individual needs of students, reading and writing in the content area, and unit planning.
Restricted to students admitted to the middle grades education program. Focuses on methods for teaching mathematics in the middle grades and includes emphasis on the individual needs of students, reading and writing in the content area, and unit planning.
Explores literature in the contexts of interdisciplinary elementary and middle school curricula and the interests and needs of children and young adolescents. Topics include reader-response theory, censorship, Internet resources, school resources, and methods.
Students in this class will be introduced to higher education in the United States. This course will focus on the development of colleges and universities and how their development helped shape and define current institutional practices and policies.
Education research shows that people learn better when they move, they work with their hands, they manipulate objects, and they design and make things. We've known this for years, but it's been very hard to design activities for children where they can move and make, and at the same time learn the required course material. But today that's changed, thanks to exciting new technologies that bring learning and making together.
How do people create? How do people learn to be creative? This class will introduce you to the latest scientific understandings of how creativity works. You'll actively engage in the creative process, in four different domains, such as creative writing and music production. We'll connect these experiences to the latest science of how creativity works, in psychology and in other disciplines.
This course is a thought experiment examining current and historical controversies in the areas within which we live. Using the lens of Public Pedagogy defined as the pedagogy in which all humans are immersed in which is not without politics and message. The world as constructed as created by humans is charged with messages subtle and overt that shape our experience and point of view.
Representations of teachers, students, and schooling appear in many popular media forms, including films, television shows, animation, popular songs, music videos, TV news and commercials, young adult fiction, and more. Alongside the subgenre of "school films" there exists another vibrant and robust cinematic subgenre composed of documentaries about "Education" (writ large). This course is an introduction to and exploration of these documentaries about education.
Through engagement, students will critically reflect on challenges and opportunities within schools and communities to transform these spaces positively. The course's central focus is learning how to re-imagine and redesign inclusive learning environments that uplift and advocate for positive racial/ethnic identity development of Southern Latinx youth. This course will utilize theories and frameworks to help students contextualize the experiences of Latinx communities in education while acquiring high impact practices to serve Latinx youth effectively.
This course is primarily built upon weekly service learning, as students receive hands-on and behind-the-scenes experience in serving LatinxEd and its youth-serving initiatives and programs. Service-learning is coupled with weekly university course where students will collectively reflect on their experience in educational settings in and out of the classroom and receive mentorship from LatinxEd staff/partners. Students will demonstrate skills learned in EDUC 575.
The primary goal of this course is to provide an integrative learning experience that prepares HDFS students to apply academic learning, ethical and family life education principles acquired in previous coursework to real-life situations likely to be encountered in the internship experience and throughout their careers in the field of family studies and human services. Course materials and learning experiences are intended to help students with obtaining an internship consistent with their career goals.
This course provides an integrative learning experience that prepares students to apply academic learning acquired in previous coursework to real-life situations likely to be encountered in the internship experience and throughout their careers. The project-based approach is intended to culminate learning about human development and organizational theory and provide an opportunity to practice and prepare for their capstone experience. Majors only.
This course provides students the opportunity for intensive exploration and discussion of selected topics in education.
The education seminar in education provides direct experience in facilitating learning in undergraduate courses in education, human development, and organizational leadership. Students will serve as undergraduate learning assistants as part of the experiential activity of the course. Juniors and seniors only.
Internships are full-time, authentic, field-based experiences in an educational or professional setting. Preservice teachers are responsible for planning lessons, delivering instruction, assessing students, managing the classroom, and demonstrating their teaching effectiveness. All internships are devoted exclusively to the student's functioning in a professional capacity.
Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. Surveys giftedness and mental disabilities, emotional and behavioral disorders, learning disabilities, speech, hearing, vision, and physical impairments. Emphasizes the role of professionals, families, and the community in supporting the whole child.
Permission of the program director. Workshops designed around education topics primarily for licensed K-12 teachers.
This course will explore the systemic nature of families, both internally and externally. The first half of the course will focus on the family itself as a natural system, one that governs boundaries and structure and facilitates interactions in reciprocal and patterned ways. The second half of the course will focus on the sociopolitical systems within which families live, specifically, public policies that influence how families define themselves and gain access to resources. Juniors/Seniors only. Majors only.
This course examines the diversity of Black families in the United States with a focus on the intersection of race, class, gender. The course examines theoretical and practical knowledge needed to develop and promote and maintain healthy Black families and identities. The course considers how historical trauma, slavery, the social construction of race, Blackness, political, and economic factors impact the well-being of Black children, youth, and adults within relationships, families, and social institutions.
Introduction to the teaching profession including a focused, program-long emphasis on innovative, authentic, and resource-informed teaching. Includes engagement with 21st-century learning skills.
Course explores the symbiotic relationship between schools, families, and communities through a historical and sociocultural lens. Students participate in a community-based field experience.
Course focuses on ELA pedagogy, grades kindergarten through second grade. Course emphasizes best practices in foundations of reading and writing, cross-disciplinary concepts, and meaningful inquiry-based learning experiences.
Provides students with an introduction to the history, philosophy, and attributes of schools and curriculum specifically designed for young adolescents with attention to their developmental characteristics and needs as learners.
Enhances foreign and second language educators' understanding of English grammar, expands their skills in linguistic analysis, and helps them develop a more pedagogically sound approach to the teaching of English grammar.
Provides future English as a second language teachers with advanced concepts in linguistics and comparative linguistics. Topics such as phonology and morphology will be covered.
Provides an introduction to second language acquisition and considerations for the educational experiences of emergent bilingual/multilingual students in the context of U.S. schools.
Permission of the instructor. Explores issues of culture and language associated with teaching English as a second language.
This course covers advanced research designs and methodologies that are common in contemporary research on human development and family studies. It is designed to follow the introductory course in research methods and provides a more immersive learning experience into research design and methods. As such, it is appropriate for advanced undergraduate students as well as graduate students with limited exposure to advanced research.
This course is required during both fall and spring semesters for all UNC students currently receiving funding through the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. The course will focus on addressing NC Teaching Fellows Commission-mandated enhancements in areas of leadership, diverse learners, classroom management, and assessment. Fellows will reflect on experiences and knowledge gained through readings, discussions, and community engagement. Previously offered as EDUC 872.
This course emphasizes the interconnection of a classroom/school and society, the role of cultural beliefs in education, and mathematics instruction.
This course emphasizes the interconnection of classroom/school and society, the role of cultural beliefs in education, and science instruction.
This course emphasizes the interconnection of classroom/school and society, the role of cultural beliefs in education, and social studies instruction.
This course emphasizes the interconnection of classroom/school and society, the role of cultural beliefs in education, and English language arts instruction.
This course provides an advanced introduction to key concepts, issues, and service delivery approaches pertaining to the educational needs of students with high incidence disabilities.
Restricted to honors candidates in the School of Education. Required for graduation with honors in education. Integration of critical analysis of selected educational themes, introduction to methods of educational research, and intensive work in skills of reading critically and writing.
Required of all candidates for graduation with honors in education. Preparation of an honors thesis under the direction of a member of the School of Education faculty and an oral examination on the thesis.
This course provides an integrative learning experience in which HOLD students apply academic learning acquired in previous coursework to real-life situations encountered in the field. The internship serves as the capstone of the HOLD major, requiring senior students to demonstrate mastery of the skills learned in the HOLD major. Students are required to complete a Human Organizational Leadership and Development project that will be shared in both written format and an oral presentation. Restricted to Majors only.
Student completes a major project in education. Course involves discussion about the changing and contested goals of education, how student projects are implicated in these complexities, and how the projects may be articulated in terms of policy change.
The primary goal of this course is to provide an integrative learning experience in which HDFS students apply academic learning acquired in previous coursework to real-life situations encountered in the field. The internship serves as the capstone of the HDFS major, requiring senior students to demonstrate mastery of skills learned in the HDFS major. Students are also required to complete a Leadership/Family Life Education project for the internship site shared both in written format-and-oral presentation.
The course examines the science of literacy and how children learn to read and write. The course will emphasize evidence-based practices in foundations of reading and writing, based on the literature of the science of reading. Using the multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) framework, students will learn how to target literacy to meet individual needs based on formative and summative assessments. Students will learn to link progress monitoring to EBPs for tracking responsiveness to instruction.
Graduate-level Courses
Provides students the opportunity to observe and become involved with all aspects of teaching and schools within their content area. Previously offered as EDUC 693.
Introduction to the counseling profession and ethical codes. Primary focus on the history and ethical practice of school counseling, specifically the Strengths-Based School Counseling framework.
School Counseling students only. Explores theories and theory-based techniques of counseling, with emphasis on theory as a means of conceptualizing behavior change in the counseling process.
Master of Education in School Counseling majors only. Course examines theories and models of career development, school transitions, college access/college admissions counseling, and educational policy. Students will utilize action plans that include assessment tools, information sources, and technology for diverse K-12 school communities.
Places students in counseling and consultation under supervision in a school setting in order to develop competencies in individual counseling, group counseling, and consultation. May be repeated for credit for a maximum of 12 credit hours.
Students are required to have taken 18 hours in counseling courses. Emphasizes the collaboration and leadership skills needed to effectively organize and implement a comprehensive school counseling program.
Permission of the instructor. Explores the cognitive and affective considerations of counseling in culturally different social systems. This includes ways to incorporate specific sociocultural dimensions into the counseling process.
Examines various models of consultation and the role of the consultative model in the schools and related agencies; uses role playing and experience in the school. May be repeated for credit.
Permission of the instructor. Provides opportunities to expand understanding of research in education, psychology, counseling, and school psychology.
Introduction to descriptive and inferential statistics applicable to the design and analysis of research in the social, behavioral, and health sciences. Topics include descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, statistical power, confidence intervals, ANOVA, and multiple regression. Students use statistical software (R) to conduct analyses, with examples drawn largely from education and human development.
The course addresses the school counselor's role in promoting student academic development. Interventions for impacting academic achievement at both the individual and systems level are explored.
School counseling graduate students only. Develops basic strengths-based counseling and interviewing techniques at specified levels of mastery through role playing, feedback sessions, and other experiential counseling activities to enhance counselor competence.
Studies basic concepts in measurement and their application in the use and interpretation of tests. The student may be required to purchase tests.
Permission of the instructor. Applies counseling theory and research to the organization and implementation of group work (e.g., guidance, task, psychoeducational, counseling groups) in schools.
Who is a girl? How do the intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality, disability, citizenship status, and other such markers of difference influence what is known and knowable about girl(hood)s? What are the temporal spaces of girlhood? How does the idea of girlhood travel across times and geographies (i.e., places and spaces)? How does school function as an apparatus for the socialization, acculturation, and disciplining of girl(hood)s? What are the cultural and curricular constructions.
Explores the field of educational technologies, situating the field within the context of historical and theoretical foundations, current practices, and future directions.
This course is based on the review and critique of research and theoretical literature in the field of education technology. Students will conduct critical analyses of theory, research, and methodology in the field of education technology and design a proposed education technology research study.
Permission of the instructor. Addresses knowledge and skills in techniques of observation, interviewing, assessment of environment, intelligence, achievement, perceptual motor skills, and interpersonal perceptions. May be repeated for credit.
Permission of the instructor. Addresses knowledge and skills in techniques of observation, interviewing, assessment of environment, intelligence, achievement, perceptual motor skills, and interpersonal perceptions.
Deals with the goals and roles of school psychology, ethical concerns, privileged information, certification and licensing, and other relevant areas. May be repeated for credit.
Permission of the instructor. Provides supervised observation and participation in school psychological services in schools and school-related field facilities. May be repeated for credit.
Provides supervised full-time field experience for master's students in school psychology in a school setting.
Assessment and treatment of students who have sustained traumatic brain injury; for school and clinical psychologists.
Focus on the environmental context of family and community engagement. Research-based best practices applied to an identified local school site, where analyses of school/district initiatives, policies, and practices are examined through a social justice lens. Review federal/state legislation and compliance to ensure the rights of parents and guardians.
Admission to the master of school administration program required. Focuses on the role of school administrators in facilitating the continuous improvement of the clinical supervision process and on a variety of observation and conferencing skills that school leaders may employ with teachers and other support staff.
Students will identify and define a problem that exists and its impacts on specific populations. Students will design a response to that problem in the form of a venture that is feasible, desirable, and scalable venture. Students will then use design thinking principles to develop a venture plan and prototype. Permission of the instructor.
Provides retrospective, contemporary, and prospective examinations of the social, cultural, political, and philosophical contexts from which the current issues that affect schools and schooling have evolved.
Provides an internship to teach ESL/FL under the supervision of an experienced ESL teacher.
This course provides an overview of current issues in second language teaching (ESL, foreign languages, and bilingual education) with a focus on culture, politics, and diversity.
Applies curriculum skills required of school executives today, including the development of an alternative school schedule with a different curricular focus; analysis of test data to discern achievement trends; test item deconstruction; instructional mapping; and the creation of a group-based curriculum management plan for a specific elementary or secondary school.
This course provides pre-service school executives with a skill set and practical experiences that address effective organizational management behaviors. Topics include time management, budget and resource allocation, use of data to assess decisions and initiatives, implementation of appropriate rules and procedures, and open communication with all stakeholders.
Experiential course that focuses on the development of an understanding and skills for working with various organizational groups. Focus is on teams, leadership of teams, team problem solving, and team decision making.
This course will prepare teacher candidates for teaching emergent bilingual students at the elementary and secondary level. This course builds upon skills and methods introduced in EDUC 628 with a focus on language arts and social studies content.
Examines a conceptual and practical approach to planning in educational organizations. Includes a focus on environmental scanning, futures research, and strategic planning.
Students examine a variety of issues that arise during their internship. Heavy emphasis on the creation of required artifacts needed for both program completion and State licensure.
Provides supervised internship in school administration to facilitate the student's progress toward certification in the principalship. May be repeated for credit.
In addition to dealing with a variety of issues that candidates are dealing with in their internships, there is a heavy emphasis on creation of required artifacts needed for both program completion and State Licensure.
Required preparation, six semester hours in educational administration, including EDUC 834. Permission of the instructor. Provides supervised internship in school administration to facilitate the student's progress toward certification in the principalship. May be repeated for credit.
Examines issues, policies, and practices related to children's development and education in a global context. Universal documents and declarations will serve as frameworks for review of the status of children's education and well-being globally.
Course focuses on the importance of school executives' understanding the organizational culture of their schools and then exerting symbolic leadership strategies to reshape that culture so it is more conducive to promoting the academic achievement of students.
Course focuses on the use of various types of data that can be used to impact decisions regarding school improvement and increased student achievement. It also introduces a number of proven strategies and tactics for improving schools.
Course focuses on the basic legal principles that school executives need to know and follow in their day-to-day leadership activities.
Following a case format and utilizing online instruction, M.A.T. students learn to teach secondary learners in inclusion settings.
Covers the knowledge and abilities necessary to create and interpret assessments of academic progress, engagement, and motivation. Emphasis on (a) technology and (b) assessments for ESL and special needs students.
Provides a weekly seminar (part two of a two-semester sequence) for interns with full-time teaching responsibilities. Interns will connect their teaching experience to social, cultural, and philosophical issues in education.
Permission of the instructor. Provides full-time internship in teaching in the content area under the supervision of experienced teachers and a university supervisor for the semester.
Teaches student teachers to be aware of trends and issues in their content area in North Carolina and the nation, therefore improving their understanding and skills in curriculum development and instruction.
Course restricted to graduate students in the M.A.T. program. The course will provide a foundation for advanced students to consider what it means to participate in schools as educational leaders. This course builds on experience gained from the student teaching internship and is one-half of the capstone module of the MAT program of study.
Admission into the M.A.T. program required. This advanced course examines strategies for effective communication and collaboration with families, professional team members, and school resources. Topics will include a return to contextual issues and reflection on initial preparation experiences. This course is one-half of the capstone module of the MAT program of study.
Course focuses on the factors that hinder both school executives and their teachers from feeling empowered to fulfill their leadership potential and examines a variety of strategies for overcoming those challenges.
Admission to the M.A.T. program required. Introduces the principles of effective teaching with emphasis on the first year of teaching.
Examines college access/college admissions counseling. Students will utilize action plans that include assessment tools, information sources, and technology to promote college readiness for diverse K-12 school communities.
Open to graduate students in education or permission of the instructor. Surveys the nature of curriculum development and contemporary changes as they relate to social aims, learner characteristics, and social problems.
In this course, students will examine seminal literature related to teachers, teaching and teacher education in the United States. We will focus on examining the who, what, where, how and why of PK-12 teachers, teaching and teacher education, exploring this through both historical and contemporary lenses.
Course restricted to graduate students in the M.A.T. program. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. This course provides prospective secondary teachers with a conceptual understanding of assessment to promote all students' school achievement and adjustment in the 21st century.
Examines principles, theory, models, and methods for work with parents and families in educational settings, with relevant research and practical applications.
Introduces students to the planning of courses and educational programs for college students. Emphasis is on a systematic approach to developing, implementing, and evaluating instruction. This course is intended for graduate students in any academic department who plan teaching careers.
Investigates social (including political, economic, legal, and demographic) and cultural impacts on immigration and education.
Course restricted to graduate students in the M.A.T. program. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. For educational institutions to be effective in a diverse society, teachers must take on key leadership roles. This course helps prepare future teachers for such leadership.
Prepares students to teach discipline-area material at the secondary level. The immediate purpose of this course is to prepare participants for full-time student teaching during the spring semester.
This course is designed for students in the MA in educational innovation, technology and entrepreneurship (MEITE) program. The course will introduce a studio-based approach to the design of emerging technologies for education in formal and informal learning environments to help MEITE students build and test prototypes to support their MA projects.
Emphasizes typical development and developmental deviation exhibited by children in cognitive, language, social, and affective areas.
Focuses on the theory and research related to the biomedical and psychological aspects of exceptionality.
The main purpose of this seminar is to engage students in the synthesis and critical examination of current research and policy issues in literacy education.
Course examines contemporary issues, policies, and practices related to children's development and education in a global context. Universal documents and declarations like the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, Education for All, and the Millennium Goals will serve as frameworks for review of the status of children's education and well-being globally.
Develops individual counseling skills and an understanding of the school as a setting for counseling through an apprenticeship experience.
First of two part course to guide students in integrating all of their program experiences. This is an intensive discussion seminar, largely constructed around the contributions and concerns of the students.
Exploration of the relationship between national development and education. The process through which groups form their cultural and social identities. Theoretical perspectives drawn from development studies, globalization and comparative education.
Exploration of racial/ethnic differences in educational achievement and persistence in school including language and schooling and the interplay of race, gender, and class.
Dialectically explores narratives about race, class, and gender through critical, multicultural, aesthetic, and postmodern lenses.
Explores topics in the social and philosophical context of American public education.
Applies sociological theory and research to problems of concern to educators.
Analyzes social change within a theoretical framework and describes its probable impact on education. Considers the role of the school in the development of human capital.
Provides a survey of the social forces influencing the development of American education from the period of colonization to the early years of the 20th century.
Identifies issues arising in the professional activities of education personnel in the context of systematic consideration of the nature of ethical choice.
Provides an understanding of (and remedies for) the racism, sexism, and class divisions that schools can perpetuate. Examines curriculum, counseling, and interaction in classrooms; structure and leadership; and fundamental assumptions.
Covers feminist critiques of organizational and political power structures in readings and discussions leading to group and individual research projects.
TESOL program aimed to prepare future teachers to lead their own English Language Learning classroom. Part 1: pedagogy, independent learning & lesson planning. Part 2: lesson & course planning & practice. 4 skills: listening, speaking, reading & writing.
Provides a comparative study of current philosophies of education, with particular attention to their impact on solutions offered to problems currently recognized in American education.
This online course will help prepare teachers and teacher candidates for teaching emergent bilingual students at the elementary and secondary level. This course will provide teachers fundamental knowledge and practice of technical English grammar, phonology, morphology, phonetics, syntax and semantics. Participants will also look at the socio-cultural aspects of linguistics and how it is connected to identity and a sense of "place".
Permission of the instructor. Covers the basic theories and the research bases for instructional decisions. This is an advanced-level course in human development.
Studies learning in the school setting, with emphasis on fundamental concepts, issues, and evaluation of materials and experiences.
This course will prepare teacher candidates for teaching Science and Mathematics and STEM content to emergent bilingual students at the elementary and secondary level. Specifically, it will focus on challenges emergent bilingual students may face when learning science and math in U.S. K-12 classrooms due to the language in which and the worldview from which the content is being taught.
The second course in statistics for the behavioral, social, and health sciences. Building from a review of statistical inference and power analysis in simple linear regression, we work through standard topics in multiple linear regression, leading to specialized topics including logistic regression, fixed effects, and longitudinal / panel data.
An examination of major approaches to program evaluation with emphasis on differences between evaluation and research.
Permission of the instructor. Study and development of original investigations in the area of educational psychology.
Provides an opportunity for advanced doctoral students to study a particular problem area in educational measurement under the supervision of a faculty mentor. May be repeated for credit.
Examines the nature and application of various theories of instruction to instructional goals, individual differences, teaching strategies, sequencing, motivation, and assessment.
Second of two-part course to guide students in integrating all of their program experiences. This is an intensive discussion seminar, largely constructed around the contributions and concerns of the students.
This course provides graduate students the opportunity for intensive exploration and discussion of selected topics in education.
This course includes instruction in developing and implementing Tier 3 interventions and providing specially designed instruction to meet the needs of students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). The course builds on information presented in methods classes. In this course, students further learn to plan for and provide more intensive interventions based on data provided through multiple forms of assessment. Admission to the MAT sequence for special education required.
Explores and discusses the application of emerging technologies in education.
The course examines characteristics of students with mild-to-moderate disabilities in the area of literacy. The primary focus is on determining instructional literacy needs for students with disabilities as well as those receiving Tier 2 and 3 interventions through a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) framework. The course covers how to target literacy instruction to meet individual needs based on formative assessments paired to high-leveraged and evidence-based practices. Admission to the MAT sequence required to enroll.
The course examines specific characteristics of students with mild-to-moderate disabilities in the area of mathematics. The primary focus is on determining instructional mathematics needs for students with disabilities as well as those receiving Tier 2 and 3 interventions through a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS). The course covers how to target mathematics instruction to meet individual needs based on formative assessments paired to high-leveraged and evidence-based practices. Admission to the MAT sequence required.
Students will receive an introduction to learning and learning analytics. Through assignments involving learning by teaching, product evaluations, research reporting, and proposal/design projects, students will learn about various theoretical frameworks, digital learning platforms, and research and evaluation approaches, relevant to the study and production of learning analytics solutions. This is an interdisciplinary course; learning analytics rests at the intersection of learning theory, educational technology, computer and information sciences, and artificial intelligence.
Independent study at the doctoral level.
Permission of the instructor.
Instructs students about the resources available to them, their students, and their students' families. Students will develop skills in working with parents and professionals as partners in the instruction and planning of programs for students with learning disabilities.
Provides supervised experience in a phase of special education or literacy studies appropriate to the student's qualifications and future educational goals. May require a minimum of 300 clock hours at the internship site per semester depending on student placement. See your advisor for credit hours needed.
Restricted to graduate students in the M.A.T. program. Permission of the instructor for nonmajors. Along with providing overview of schools, their structure, and their role in American society, the course introduces students to the necessity of differentiated instruction based on race, culture, special education, and English as second language learners.
This course provides an in-depth, critical review and analysis of a current topic pertinent to sociocultural diversity in human development. Each offering of this course will focus on a specific domain to be determined by the course instructor in collaboration with the Applied Developmental Science and Special Education program faculty. Potential topics for this course include: The Development of Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color in America; The Health and Well-Being of LGBTQ+Youth.
Applies the philosophies of science, social science, language, and history (including recent theoretical issues) to the understanding of how educational research is conducted and what contribution it makes.
Students develop an in-depth understanding of scholarly traditions within education, histories of curricular area and current issues facing these areas and education as a whole, and application of these histories and issues to classrooms and schools.
Open to doctoral students only. Critical examination of topics and policy issues related to curriculum and educational change, considered in cultural context.
Introductory seminar for graduate students. Review current issues in early childhood, special education, and literacy and introduces students to the research of current faculty members.
Course explores history of psychological studies in education and examines areas of current inquiry such as cognition and learning, teaching and instruction, academic motivation, contextual influences, and theory-based intervention.
Open to doctoral students only. Critical examination of theoretical and research issues related to learning, development, teaching, assessment, and quantitative methods of research, from a psychological perspective.
Looks at social studies as a discipline that easily integrates other disciplines, particularly the arts, which includes literature. It emphasizes curriculum and instruction, as well as theoretical underpinnings.
An overview of the history of community mental health counseling and current topics impacting the profession. The emerging identity of the clinical mental health counselor is explored in terms of theoretical influences, diverse roles and tasks of counselors within various community settings, and professional ethics. There will be an emphasis on multicultural and social justice perspectives shaping the field of clinical mental health counseling with regards to best practice, research, and program development.
Permission of the instructor. Provides an opportunity for post-master's students who wish to engage in supervised field and pilot research. May be repeated for credit.
Open to doctoral students only. Reviews theories and research in the psychology of career development and counseling. Emphasis is on theory and implications for practice.
Provides students the opportunity for directed study in school counseling.
Provides students experiences that may include working with individual, family, or group counseling and consultation.
Provides students a supervised professional predoctoral internship training experience in counseling.
Enables students to gain supervision and teaching skills that will enhance their functions as professors and as leaders in counseling agencies. Strategies of practicum supervision are summarized and research literature is reviewed.
Provides an in-depth appraisal of topics of theoretical and/or clinical nature that are of particular relevance to the field.
Examines 20th-century schools that have attempted to redefine and deepen United States democracy, embracing pedagogies and values that offer alternatives to mainstream education.
Course provides introduction to purposes of educational research, roles of theories, hypotheses, questions, and ethical issues. While being exposed to a range of research designs, students are to become critical reviewers and develop research proposals or a master's thesis.
We will develop knowledge and skills that relate to the implementation of evidenced-based interventions. This innovation implementation course is based on Forman (2009).
This project-based course focuses on utilizing the fields of intervention research and social entrepreneurship to design a novel educational innovation.
Required preparation, appropriate courses. Permission of the instructor. Considers advanced topics in the field of school psychology such as professional issues, standards and ethics, and interdisciplinary relations.
Permission of the instructor. Supervised field placement experiences for doctoral-level students in school psychology, integrating training with field responsibilities at a systems level in schools and school-related settings.
Supervised doctoral internship in school psychology for advanced training in professional skills and research in schools and school-related settings.
Graduate course about the political process and policy dynamics. With a focus on the U.S. domestic context, the course addresses the policy process in general and examines the workings of that process in education.
Explores and analyzes the range of educational research designs including experimental, correlational, survey, descriptive, case study, ethnography, narrative, policy, and longitudinal research.
Introduces influential theoretical approaches to the study of development and learning. Students learn how to apply various methodological approaches and theoretical frameworks. Readings include developmental psychology, learning sciences, and cultural anthropology.
This course provides an overview of some of the major mental health problems facing children and adolescents. Equips students entering the school counseling profession with pivotal knowledge needed to develop and implement comprehensive school counseling programs that include collaborative approaches to addressing mental health and wellness. An emphasis will be placed on cognitive-behavioral research-based methods and strategies for addressing emotional and behavioral difficulties of the most prevalent mental health diagnoses of children and adolescents.
School of Education majors only. Emphasizes theories of child and adolescent development as well as research findings that aid in the understanding of human behavior and development.
Identifies the basic concepts in measurement and evaluation, describes the role of evaluation in curriculum construction and revision, and describes the development and use of teacher-constructed tests.
An examination of the logic and theory of educational measurement. Practical applications of measurement theory to the construction and use of a variety of educational measurement devices.
Introduces students to field research methods and analysis of qualitative data that focuses on the application of these techniques in evaluation and policy research.
Required preparation, six semester hours of graduate school work in school administration. Provides an overview of the legal structure of education, liability, constitutional rights, contractual relationships, federal regulations, and collective action. May be repeated for credit.
Students study the politics surrounding the nation's largest public institution (education) along with the motivations and maneuvering of people with power to shape it.
Focused on the issues pertaining to personnel, planning, facilities, administrative applications of technology, superintendent/board relations, district-level curriculum and assessment issues, and creating and sustaining community inter-agency partnerships.
Permission of the instructor. Analyze the theoretical assertions and empirical knowledge claims that have led to the dominant structures, power relationships, and performance expectations of American schools.
Provides fundamental knowledge of instructional design, techniques of teaching/learning, evaluation of the teaching/learning process, and ways in which school-based leaders can support excellence in classroom instruction.
Covers the area of financing school corporations in the current economic and political setting, with emphasis on the interrelationships of educational, economic, and political decisions. May be repeated for credit.
Designed to provide students with perspectives regarding the interplay of cultural issues that challenge the partnership between administration and instruction.
Permission of the instructor. Focuses on governance and policy at the school building level and how district-wide governance, state educational policy, federal involvement in education, and educational special interest groups impact school-sized governance.
Permission of the instructor. Research and models on high-performing organizations, instructionally effective schools and school systems, and national school reform efforts presented in the context of traditional and emerging organizational theory and research. .
Requires students to integrate previous studies to focus on management applications, dilemmas, and conflicts.
Requires students to integrate previous studies to focus on theory, inquiry, and organizational practice.
Permission of the instructor. Research and models on high-performing organizations, instructionally effective schools and school systems, and national school reform efforts presented in the context of traditional and emerging organizational theory and research.
Focuses on educational issues and theories involving culture, curriculum, and change. Issues and theories addressed will vary.
An advanced internship and seminar relevant to the program in administration and to the student's progress toward advanced administrative certification. May be repeated for credit.
Will prepare students to enact evidence-based strategies that integrate digital tools and resources for delivering instruction in blended, hybrid, and fully online contexts. Students will design an aligned unit of instruction that includes objectives, assessments, and instructional activities that adhere to instructional design standards and utilize an array of contemporary digital tools. Will consider design approaches that enable the gathering and visualization of data that reflect student activity and performances.
This blended, seminar-and-workshop style course (1) provides an overview of learning and instructional design theories, then (2) introduces ways that theory can guide personalization of instructional materials and provision of adaptive design features to produce improved learning experiences and outcomes. Personalization topics in include definitions and policies, approaches that accommodate learners' interests, and ways to provide choice and promote ownership of learning. Adaptivity topics include provision of feedback and support, and designing for learning efficiency.
The course is a core requirement for all students enrolled in the Interprofessional Certificate in Improvement Science and Implementation as well as the Masters of School Administration program. Introduces students to cutting-edge approaches to change leadership and system improvement. It leverages lessons from implementation and improvement sciences to help students learn to drive system change in the nation's schools, social service agencies, community organizations, and healthcare settings.
Relates curriculum development to relevant theories and research in humanistic and behavioral studies. This is an advanced course.
Delineates strategies for developing instructional systems, including needs assessment, job analysis, goal setting, use of criterion tests, delivery systems, project management, and evaluation of learners and programs.
Examines the history, nature, and purposes of educational supervision, with an emphasis on the supervisor's role in improving teaching, curriculum development, and staff development.
Review and interpretation of existing research in the area of curriculum and instruction.
Required preparation, two courses in graduate education. Provides an opportunity for advanced students to do independent study under supervision in an area of study. (Sections include early childhood, intermediate, secondary subjects, media, literacy, and general.) May be repeated for credit.
Experiences may include projects, field studies, or internships with one of a number of agencies concerned with education. (Sections include early childhood, intermediate, secondary subjects, media, literacy, and general.)
Research apprenticeship for all students in the Curriculum and Instruction Ed.D. program. Individually arranged with a faculty advisor and an appropriate placement.
In this course we focus on quantitative forms of inquiry, highlighting the types of questions quantitative data are best positioned to answer and common forms of data collection and analysis. To foster your development as a scholar-practitioner, the course will provide you with the foundational knowledge to be a discerning consumer of quantitative research and help you find the tools to answer your own well-formed practice-based research questions. For students enrolled in the online Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership program cohort
Foundations of Inquiry -- Qualitative Methods is a graduate level course designed to support students in developing an understanding of qualitative research methods and designs. The focus of this course is on the creation of research questions, the development of qualitative designs, employment of data collection approaches, and analysis procedures to address those problems. For students enrolled in the online Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership program cohorts.
Emphasis on developmental deviation exhibited by exceptional children in cognitive, language, social, and affective development.
Focuses on teaching and personnel development at the preservice and inservice levels. Topics include: application of adult learning principles and styles; syllabus development; technology and teaching; supervision; mentorship and research innovations in college teaching.
Permission of the instructor. A full-time field placement under the joint direction of a University staff member and a selected professional at the internship site.
The purpose of this seminar is to provide an introduction to the theory, research, methods, and current issues related to the influence of families and schools on children's development.
Open to graduate students only. Permission of the instructor. This course is designed to give doctoral and masters' students experience at college teaching prior to taking on full responsibility for a class of her/his own. The student will fully participate as a teaching assistant in the class of an experienced tenured, tenure track, or clinical professor.
Examine relationships between broader social, economic, and political currents and the chosen instruments for education reform. Students examine what purposes stakeholders believe schools serve and how policy is/isn't translated into practice.
Course familiarizes students with public policy in education and its influence on schools and schooling. Students learn methodological perspectives of education policy research. Examine major policy initiatives in education.
This advanced seminar focuses on the needs of doctoral students immersed in qualitative research, with an emphasis on data analysis and representation.
Required preparation, two courses in graduate education. Permission of the instructor. Provides for seminar treatment of appropriate topics.
Provides an opportunity for advanced doctoral students to do independent study under supervision.
Provides an opportunity for advanced doctoral students to do independent study under supervision.
Course provides an understanding of the history of American public education, its current status and research in education based in a larger context of society, and its schools and schooling practices.
Examination of the current issues in multicultural education, cultural study, and the development of curriculum for critical multicultural education.
Involves an in-depth exploration of theories and issues involving culture, curriculum, and change. Topics will vary.
The seminar will explore issues related to causal inference in educational research and discuss several research designs that are well-suited for making causal inferences. We will draw upon the counter-factual model of causality to discuss what it means to observe a cause and effect relationship and then focus on the problems researchers regularly encounter. The course will provide a detailed discussion of a wide range of experimental and quasi-experimental research designs.
Required preparation, at least one course in human development at the graduate level or permission of the instructor. Analyzes research data and theoretical positions pertaining to individual differences in human development in the educational setting.
Required preparation, one or two courses in educational and developmental psychology. Studies theoretical aspects and practical implications of psychologies of learning.
Provides students with an overview of the methodology of case study research and to enhance students' skills in using research techniques.
An extension of the general linear model to analysis of educational data with multiple dependent variables, with computer applications.
Provides students who have an introductory background in statistics with an overview of secondary data analysis and enhances students' skills in using data analysis to test hypotheses.
This course is required during both fall and spring semesters for all MAT supervisors. The course will focus on exploring teacher education through the lens of field-based supervision. Weekly meetings to bring teacher education research and literature to supervisors' ongoing practice through discussion of selected readings, book study, dialogue about problems of practice. The course will align supervisors' practice in the field with MAT methods pedagogical approaches for supervisors to best support candidates.
Introduces structural equation modeling with both observed and latent variables. Applications include confirmatory factor analysis, multiple group analyses, longitudinal analyses, and multitrait-multimethod models.
This course provides students the opportunity for intensive exploration and discussion of selected topics in education.
Provides for seminar treatment of appropriate topics related to education policy.
Topics in educational philosophy to be determined by the students with the instructor. May be repeated for credit.
The course aims to provide a systematic examination of leadership in practice and how these examples result in successful leadership practices relative to theories of leadership, ethical frameworks, and your personal strengths and abilities. From these reflections you will develop an intellectually rigorous, personal statement of leadership. For students enrolled in the online Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership program cohort
A first course in test theory (e.g., EDUC 829, PSYC 842) is recommended but not required. Please ask the course instructor if you are unsure about prerequisites. This course covers basic and advanced topics in item response theory (IRT). Examples are taken from educational testing, psychological assessment, and patient-reported health outcomes. Students produce a term project applying IRT to assessment data, and / or addressing mathematical or computational aspects of IRT.
This course aims to develop a sociological understanding of the complex relationship between education and society.
Students in this course explore and analyze how education has been represented in popular culture. Theoretical foundation of the course from seminars and readings.
This course will provide the foundational knowledge for creating, sustaining, and leading an inclusive culture within organizations. You will learn to incorporate multiple stakeholders' voices within and outside the organization through an equity-minded leadership lens. We will place a strong emphasis on collaboration and coalition building within organizations to create an effective organizational culture in which all stakeholders can thrive. For students enrolled in the online Ed.D. in Organizational Learning and Leadership program cohort
Students examine historical and contemporary aims for and assumptions underlying the public "education" of African Americans in the United States. Analysis of published histories, theories, qualtitative and quantitative research, encounters, events, and issues.
Applied statistics course designed to introduce students to how descriptive and inferential statistics are used in curriculum studies and teacher education. Students explore how statistical procedures are used in school, school district, state, and national settings.
Language is involved in the construction of social identity and power structures. Students examine how individuals construct their identities and language interacts with other social groupings (class, ethnicity, and gender) and examines how language creates and maintains power for certain groups. Special attention to marginalized groups in the United States.
Course is designed to provide an overview of the field of learning sciences. Goals of learning sciences are: 1) understand the physical, cognitive, and social aspects of learning environments and 2) use these understandings to design more effective learning environments.
Course provides an overview of learning theories in education with a special emphasis upon a sociocultural perspective. Course examines how learning theories are or can be enacted in research, policy, and practice.
This course provides a studio-based approach to the design of technology-enhanced learning environments for formal and informal education. Students will explore various forms of emerging technologies for education, engage in a design thinking process, and design prototypes to solve a specific learning problem.
Explore foundations of mixed methods. Build familiarity with research designs and methods, learning how to integrate data from mixed methods designs. Learn to critique mixed methods research and designs. Provides preparation for proposing mixed methods projects.
DBR is a multi-disciplinary and mixed methods approach. When developing interventions DBR designers draw theoretical insights from various disciplines (e.g. cognitive science, sociology, learning sciences, instructional design, etc.). When researching interventions, DBR researchers draw from numerous modes of inquiry. Thus, this course is not a substitute for further work in quantitative or qualitative courses. Students in this course should have some grounding in quantitative and qualitative methods and we draw upon this knowledge.
Students consider and critically reflect upon the contributions of economic theory to educational policy issues. Course provides an overview of economic theories as they pertain to the provision of public education and an overview of econometrics. Focuses on salient topics in educational policy and their analysis through an economic lens.
Course examines the judiciary's role in policy making, and its direct impact on school law and policy issues as they pertain to schools, stakeholders, and society.
The primary goal for the course is to assist the students in investigating research problems in social sciences, particularly when data is meaningfully organized into multiple layers as a hierarchy, or contextual levels. Multilevel models (MLM) are also known as hierarchical linear models (HLM), random coefficient models, or random effects models. MLM can be used to analyze a variety of questions with either categorical or continuous dependent variables, and explained by many independent variables.
Course will explore ideas about children, families, knowledge, and the state that resonate through European and U.S. histories, primarily, and, though changed, continue to be debated now.
Focus on research in teacher education that addresses diversity issues, a particular focus on sociocultural and sociopolitical approaches. Course emphasizes the relationship between theory and practice by focusing on the teacher as an agent of change.
Course looks at research in teacher education that addresses diversity issues, with a particular focus on sociocultural and sociopolitical approaches. Course will emphasize the relationship between theory and practice by focusing on the teacher as an agent of change in addressing issues of equity and social justice in diverse classrooms.
Learn about institutional theory and management and issues, policies and practices that describe, define, complicate, and confine those whose work focuses on curriculum and teaching.
Course brings together those with interests in academic disciplines of literature, history, foreign languages and literatures, English as a second language, and the arts to examine the status of the humanities in our society and in our P-12 schools. Students will consider socio-cultural and political contexts and contributions to the humanities.
Study different approaches taken to studying teacher education and the implications of that work on policy, tracing the trajectory from research to policy.
This course will provide the foundational knowledge for creating, sustaining, and leading an inclusive culture within organizations. You will learn to incorporate multiple stakeholders' voices within and outside the organization through an equity-minded leadership lens. We will place a strong emphasis on collaboration and coalition building within organizations to create an effective organizational culture in which all stakeholders can thrive. This course is core course in the curriculum for the EdD concentration in Organizational Learning and Leadership.
In this course, students learn how to analyze quantitative data from various sources (e.g., administrative, survey) to answer pragmatic questions. The course focuses on generating and interpreting graphical descriptive summaries and the associations between multiple continuous or categorical variables. You will also be introduced to the inferential statistics concepts of hypothesis testing and confidence intervals to characterize the uncertainty of conclusions based on the data. Students will use data visualization software. This course is a required methods course in the curriculum for the EdD concentration in Organizational Learning and Leadership .
Course explores planning and conducting qualitative research. Students will apply knowledge of qualitative research to dissertation proposal/projects. They will also explore different research proposals and data collection strategies.
Course will explore the historical development of Critical Race Theory (CRT) from its origins in Critical Legal Studies through the more recent frameworks established in education, including intersections with LatCrit Theory, AsianCrit, QueerCrit, TribalCrit, and Critical Race Feminism.
Focus, through a critical lens, will be on African American and Latino men, also covers experiences of Asian American and Native American males. Study of research that addresses issues of identity, masculinities, system barriers, cultural capital, and peer group dynamics.
Course explores critical social theories through popular culture texts. Course challenges the perception that popular culture texts have little to offer in the way of educational discourse.
Course will focus on the theory and practice of autoethnography, or "reading" significant patterns in everyday experience and connecting those patterns to the self and to broader social concerns. Students will read models of autoethnography, methodological works, do writing exercises, and create independent autoethnographic projects.
Open to graduate students only. Provides students with the opportunity to work with individual faculty members in collaborative research activities in association with a seminar during the second, third, and fourth semesters of study. May be repeated for credit.
Focuses on the development of a master's project or a major paper other than a thesis.
EDMX
Graduate-level Courses
Focuses on reflective literacy teaching: problematizing, processes of understanding students' thinking about reading and writing.
Provides students with the opportunity to review, renew, and expand their understanding of assessment and program evaluation procedures, as well as the role of accountability in educational settings.
Admission to the M.Ed. for experienced teachers program required. Addresses contexts of teaching, teaching in the world, and teaching students in schools. This course is designed for experienced educators to "reinvent teachers and teaching."
Enrollment in the M.Ed. for Experienced Teachers program required. Explores the meanings of research and the potential roles of teachers in conducting research. Teachers formulate possible individual or small group research projects that they can carry out during the year.
Teachers will plan and conduct advanced inquiry/research projects informed by their knowledge of teacher-research and their experience as teacher-researchers garnered through their successful completion of EDMX 708.
Focuses on the nature of change and teachers' roles as leaders within a changing environment. Several themes are addressed: shaping school cultures, schools as communities, schools as sites for reform, and politics and schools.
Enrollment in the M.Ed. for experienced teachers program required. Enhances teachers' understanding of how to differentiate assessment.
Enrollment in the M.Ed. for experienced teachers program required. Enhances teachers' understanding of how to differentiate instruction. Using a case-based approach, teachers examine the areas of human development, special education and inclusion, cultural diversity, linguistic diversity, cognitive styles, and multiple intelligences as frames through which to consider creative environments to promote students' classroom success.
Focuses on current theory, research, and issues in the teaching and use of reading and writing in the content areas. This is an introductory course.
Teachers will learn how to problematize assessment of students' thinking about reading and writing in this practicum course.
Course has major restrictions. Analysis and construction of effective mathematical tasks in teaching number systems and operations at the K-5 level; attention is also given to the expansion of content knowledge.
Course has major restrictions. Focuses on statistical literacy of elementary teachers and the teaching of data analysis and measurement to K-5 students; attention is also given to learning methods that facilitate appropriate classroom interactions.
Course has major restrictions. Focuses on rational number concepts through learning trajectories at the K-5 level. Attention also given to problem solving and content knowledge.
Uses a problem-based format and group work to explore the mathematics of the real numbers with an emphasis on rational numbers.
Course has major restrictions. Focus on the early algebra concepts of functional thinking and generalized arithmetic in relationship to pedagogical practices centered on questioning in the mathematics classroom.
Provides students with a mathematical foundation and cognitive support for elementary and middle school geometry. Specific goals address structure of elementary and middle school geometry.
Course has major restrictions. Geometric concept development along with formative and summative assessment strategies of students' geometric thinking. Attention also is given to geometric content knowledge and diagnosis of student errors.
Focuses on the writing process and the theoretical foundations necessary to become practitioners who can develop and implement effective writing instruction using 21st-century skills.
Explores what it means to be a reader and writer, the nature of development of literacy.
This graduate-level course is an introductory immersion-style Spanish course for anyone involved in education. Learners will acquire novice-level proficiency in Spanish and an awareness of Hispanic culture.
Explores literacy topics as capstone course for master's or licensure program in literacy.
Students will learn characteristics of students with mild to moderate learning disabilities in math, social studies, and science. They will also learn assessment techniques and instructional methods to address these specific characteristics.
Restricted to majors. Generating mathematical representations and making explicit connections between concepts. Pedagogy designed to equip elementary teachers to become mathematics teacher-leaders in school settings. Focuses on topics integrated within mathematical strands.
Designed to extend students' professional content knowledge by exploring the content and methods of a social science discipline.
Designed to extend students' professional content knowledge by exploring the content and methods of a social science discipline.
Focuses on current research topics and methodologies in the field of social studies education and examines their implications on the field.
Builds on earlier coursework and will include teachers from each of the two concentrations in the M.Ed. for Experienced Teachers. It focuses on exploring what is meant by integrated curriculum and understanding the process of developmental research as it relates to the design and use of curricula.
Aims to develop social studies teachers' understanding of social science and humanities through an interdisciplinary inquiry process.
Advanced course on emergent and early literacy, focusing on the research and theory in the development of reading and writing processes from birth through first grade, emphasizing the cognitive and socio-cultural perspectives.
Provides a linked perspective on international studies and multicultural education. Students explore issues relevant to these two topics as they relate to teaching and learning in social studies.
Open to graduate students only. Explores issues and models of family-professional and interprofessional relationships in early childhood settings. Collaborative communication and problem-solving strategies are emphasized in the context of diversity.
Open to graduate students only. Provides an overview and application of strategies for developmental screenings, normative evaluations, curriculum, and play-based assessments for young children ages birth through five.
Open to graduate students only. Focuses on individually, developmentally, and culturally appropriate learning environment and curriculum strategies for young children with and without disabilities ages three to five.
Focuses on infant/toddler development and mental health strategies for facilitating development in the home and in child care.
Focuses on leadership skills in mentoring, supervision, staff development, resource gathering, and applied research related to early childhood settings.
Teaches students curriculum and instruction strategies in science education. The focus of the course is on teaching and assessing science for conceptual understanding.
Examines physical science domains in depth. Students reflect on their own understandings of science phenomena and research their students' understandings.
Studies the history of science education, curriculum design, and national reform ideas as well as projects and programs currently used in United States classrooms.
Explores current reforms in science education through an examination of critical topics in earth-space science.
Through investigations, research, and guest speakers, this course engages students in discussions about teaching science in conjunction with issues of technology and society.
Emphasizes effective behavior management and applied behavior analysis techniques for intervening in the environments of exceptional children to increase learning.
Focuses on the analysis and construction of mathematics instructional activities.
Focuses on the analysis and construction of mathematics instructional activities: tasks, problems, and materials with which students and teachers engage.
Designed to help teachers think through the major mathematical ideas of the curriculum and to examine how students develop these ideas.
This course initiates thoughtful discussion of race and culture in our schools by exploring history, identity, and issues in academic achievement.
School of Education
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Director of Graduate Studies
Thurston Domina