Oct 05, 2024  
2024-25 Academic Catalog 
  
2024-25 Academic Catalog

Master of Education MED


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Upper Iowa University’s Master of Education (M.Ed.) program is designed to increase an educator’s skill set when working with students as well as enhance knowledge, skills, and dispositions to be an effective leader in the educator’s discipline. Classes are taught by individuals who have strong hands-on experience teaching in K-12 and working in higher education. Within the M.Ed. emphases, we offer advanced coursework that targets the needs of those seeking endorsements in Special Education, Early Childhood Education, English as a Second Language, Talented and Gifted, and Reading. We also offer an emphasis in Teacher Leadership. We expect to serve those students who seek to earn certain teaching license endorsements and/or meet the requirements for the Master of Education degree. Students may earn one or more of the following Iowa endorsements:

  • Early Childhood (PreK-K)
  • Early Childhood Unified (Birth-Grade 3: Inclusive Settings)
  • English as a Second Language K-12
  • Instructional Strategist I: Mild/Moderate (K-8 and/or 5-12)
  • Instructional Strategist II: Behavior Disorders/Learning Disabilities K-12
  • Instructional Strategist II: Intellectual Disabilities K-12
  • Reading (K-8 and/or 5-12)
  • Reading Specialist
  • Talented and Gifted

All students who complete endorsements are encouraged to complete the additional graduate work to earn a Master of Education degree in one of the following areas of emphasis:

  • Early Childhood
  • English as a Second Language
  • Instructional Strategist
  • Reading
  • Talented and Gifted
  • Teacher Leadership

To be eligible for admission to the Master of Education program, the applicant must have earned a bachelor’s degree from an institution recognized by its own regional accreditation association and must have earned a cumulative undergraduate grade point average of 2.75 (A = 4.0) or above.

Program Planning

There are three categories of graduate students - those just seeking a teaching license endorsement, those seeking a graduate certificate and those seeking the Master of Education degree. Candidates in all three categories must follow the degree plan/advising worksheet developed for the individual. The degree plan is developed by the candidate and his/her graduate advisor in a manner consistent with expectations of the graduate program.

Degree Requirements

To be awarded the Master of Education, candidate must earn a minimum of 36 credits in an approved program of study and achieve a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.00 for all graduate courses. All requirements for the Master of Education degree must be completed within five years from the date of admission to the graduate program.

Program Student Learning Outcomes

Candidates successfully completing the Master of Education core and an emphasis in Teacher Leadership, Instructional Strategist, Reading, Early Childhood, English as a Second Language, Talented and Gifted, or Higher Education will be able to:

  1. Read and evaluate educational research and/or engage in a research project.
  2. Using the student’s knowledge of different backgrounds, ethnicities and cultures, explain how to collaborate effectively with constituents.
  3. Identify and solve problems in program finance, legal issues, distance learning, curriculum design, methods, or assessment using research.
  4. Demonstrate effective leadership decision making and analytical skills.

Areas of Emphasis

The Masters of Education is offered in the following areas of emphasis:

  • Early Childhood
  • ESL (English as a Second Language)
  • Instructional Strategist
  • Reading
  • Talented and Gifted
  • Teacher Leadership

Generally, candidates who pursue the Master of Education Instructional Strategist, Reading, Talented and Gifted, Early Childhood and/or ESL sequence of courses seek a teaching license endorsement. These candidates must complete the Iowa State Department of Education approved Upper Iowa University endorsement requirements, successfully complete the Master of Education core requirements and additional coursework in the Teacher Leadership area of emphasis, if necessary, to meet the Master of Education degree credit hour requirements.

For candidates who are seeking a Master of Education degree without adding an endorsement, the following emphasis areas are offered as non-licensure options:

  • ESL (English as a Second Language non-licensure)
  • Instructional Strategist (non-licensure)
  • Talented and Gifted (non-licensure)

Early Childhood


To be awarded the Master of Education Early Childhood emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses/requirements:

English as a Second Langauge


To be awarded the Master of Education ESL emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses/requirements:

Instructional Strategist


To be awarded the Master of Education, Instructional Strategist I emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses/requirements:

Reading


To be awarded the Master of Education, Reading emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses/requirements:

Talented and Gifted (TAG)


To be awarded the Master of Education, Talented and Gifted (TAG) emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses/requirements:

Teacher Leadership


To be awarded the Master of Education, Teacher Leadership emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses:

ESL K-12 English as a Second Language Non-Licensure Emphasis


To be awarded the Master of Education ESL Non-Licensure emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses/requirements:

Talented and Gifted (TAG) Non-Licensure Emphasis


To be awarded the Master of Education, Teacher Leadership emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses:

Instructional Strategist Non-Licensure Emphasis


To be awarded the Master of Education, Teacher Leadership emphasis, the candidate must earn a minimum of 36 approved graduate credit hours that include the following courses:

Other Resources (Professional Development)


One-credit, online, and self-paced graduate-level professional development courses:

  • EDGD 503 - 2 Classroom Management by Robert Marzano
  • EDGD 503 - 3 Better Conversations by Jim Knight
  • EDGD 503 - 4 Mindset by Carol Dweck
  • EDGD 503 - 5 Collaborative Leadership by Peter Dewitt
  • EDGD 501 - 7 Differentiated Classroom by Carol Ann Tomlinson

Happy Teacher Professional Development Partnership

Happy Teacher Professional Development is a private company that partners with Upper Iowa University to offer professional development courses for teacher license renewal or salary advancement with optional graduate level credit. Courses are self-paced over the span of a month, and each 3-credit course carries the equivalent of 45 hours of content and coursework. The courses are research-based, current, relevant, and relate to a variety of topics within the field of education.

Learners Edge 

Learners Edge is a national, private company that partners with Upper Iowa University to offer relevant, applicablecontinuing education for graduate credit. Learners Edge offers 100+ online courses that are rigorous and align with theQuality Matters framework - and the Learners Edge Professional Learning Model. Courses are self-paced, and each 3-creditcourse carries the equivalent of 45 hours of content and coursework. The majority of courses are built around seminal textsthat are a balance of research and applicability, and written by major authors in the field of education. Courses include highquality tutorial videos, multi-media clips and research-based articles to supplement course texts.

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