The Masters in Education (EdM) is developed from a conceptual framework that is drawn primarily from a social constructivist philosophy. In particular, the program recognizes that individuals (students and teachers) construct their own sense and meaning of reality in collaboration with peers and more knowledgeable others in the context of authentic activity.
The master’s program stresses the development of those intellectual skills that provide the teacher with the ability to make informed, rational decisions when confronted with the multitude of instructional situations that comprise the daily reality of a teacher. The Master’s program acknowledges that there are important distinctions between beginning teachers and expert teachers in the degree of sophistication teachers’ exhibit in the construction and application of knowledge. Expert teachers will have developed their abilities to deal simultaneously with more of the complex facets of the teaching context, with greater flexibility and adaptability, and with a more highly developed capacity to integrate their understandings and performance on behalf of students’ individual needs. This program aims to help teachers early in their careers to become expert teachers and to help them develop their abilities to interpret and respond effectively to the complex facets of teaching and learning.
In addition, a goal of the Masters is to develop teachers as leaders who can successfully advocate for and influence educational local, state, and national policies and programs in a democratic society. Graduates are not only confident and competent in their own practice but are able to articulate, defend, and justify their point of view about educational policies, programs, and instruction based on the best available syntheses of educational research. The Masters in Education degree also values teachers as theory builders and aims to help teachers become more reflective thinkers.
The Master’s program expects teachers to conduct research on their own practice, to reflect on the data they gather, to integrate these findings with the broader syntheses of educational research to develop their own theories of education, and to use this to improve teaching and learning.
The EdM program also supports the premise that cognitive, social, cultural, and moral development empowers and emancipates individuals evidenced by the knowledge base produced by the research on teaching and learning in a diverse world. Graduates of the program embrace diversity and are able to navigate and thrive in diverse settings and cultures (e.g., social, economic, political, religious, geographical, generational, linguistic, ethnic, racial, gender). We are committed to providing teachers with learning experiences that help them to develop knowledge, skills, and dispositions within a framework of moral and ethical societal norms including a commitment to equity and diversity.
Finally, the Masters in Education acknowledges that the professional development of teachers is the responsibility of the entire profession, the teacher himself/herself, school-based personnel, and those in higher education. By providing collaborative professional development activities, both institutions benefit and teachers are better able to provide an improved learning environment for their students. By working together, teachers are better able to facilitate high levels of learning by all children, to promote a better environment for preparing teachers, and to create a more supportive site for renewal and inquiry by experienced teachers, administrators, and university faculty.
