Education (ED)

ED502: Transforming Teaching Practice

This course explores the knowledge and skills essential to the highest standards of teaching and guides you in the transformation of classroom performance. Through research and reflection of best instructional practices, the development of learning targets, effective assessment techniques, student engagement strategies, and effective teacher skill, you will develop an instructional plan that addresses these components, which leads to improved student achievement.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED503: Educational Psychology

This course introduces you to prominent research-based theories of learning and examines the impact of these theories on students, learning and motivation, teaching, and assessment. You will critically evaluate opposing sides of current issues in educational psychology and articulate and defend personal positions on these issues. The application of case studies, problem-solving strategies, collaborative learning, emergent technologies, and distance-learning techniques is discussed within this course.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED513: Child and Adolescent Development

This course examines the course of normal child and adolescent development. Emphasis is placed on strategies for applying development theory to classroom management and educational practice, and understanding how development influences academic achievement. You will learn how to apply knowledge of child and adolescent development to your teaching practice as a way to identify various student behaviors and create classroom management strategies that address those behaviors.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED521: Reading and Writing in the Content Areas

This course focuses on building prospective teachers' competence in the processes of planning, implementing, and evaluating content-area literacy learning for P-12 students. You will use a standards-based approach in crafting strategies for reading and writing for the content area classroom. Topics covered include research-based reading and writing strategies as well as planning standards-based lessons that incorporate reading and writing in the content area classroom.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED522: Classroom Management

In this course, you will examine several classroom management theorists to provide a comprehensive overview of models and approaches on which to base your own philosophy and practice. Through a research-based approach, you will gain a clear understanding of the philosophical underpinnings of classroom management and its effect on student behavior and achievement. You will design classroom management plans for the contemporary classroom to meet the needs of diverse learners.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED523: Research on Effective Teaching

In this course, you will examine and evaluate current teaching practices and the research devoted to them. You will learn if the practices have theoretical support and if they are effective with respect to student learning. You will also evaluate the quality of the research, including consideration of the problem statement, research questions and hypotheses, literature review, methodology, findings, and limitations and recommendations.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED531: Secondary Student Assessment

This course examines best practices of assessing secondary student learning, with particular emphasis on the relationship among instructional goals, instruction, assessment procedures, and student achievement. Topics include the use of both formal and informal assessments, diagnostic assessments, rubrics, and methods of using assessment data to inform instruction and improve student achievement.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED532: Curriculum Design

This course examines current theories of curriculum design in traditional and non-traditional education settings. The focus will be on the application of research and theory to instructional practice for any learning environment. You will have an opportunity to integrate curricular approaches and share strategies and effective techniques to better understand connections between various content areas, learning opportunities, and diverse learner populations.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED533: Perspectives on Diversity

This course explores various issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belongingness. You will be challenged to examine your own experiences with regard to culture, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, race, gender, sexual orientation, and language and how these are impacted in educational settings. Particular emphasis will be placed on creating opportunities for equitable access for marginalized and oppressed learners in educational settings.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED552: Educational Leadership

This course introduces the concept of instructional leaders and explores strategies for managing change in educational settings including best practices for collaborative decision-making in schools. You will critically examine your current knowledge base, skillsets, and leadership abilities with the goal of improvement and increased self-awareness and reflection. You will explore the importance of the instructional leader in school cultures, the instructional leader's impact on student learning, and how you can help facilitate effective change in school culture and student achievement.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED553: History and Philosophy of Education

This course introduces philosophical viewpoints that can affect new teachers' priorities and strategy choices in their practice. This course will also provide a historical perspective of how public education has become a democratic right in the United States. You will compare and contrast philosophical theories that have driven pedagogy over the past two centuries. You will also evaluate current research in your quest to develop as a reflective and creative practitioner in the twenty-first century classroom.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED558: Leadership Essentials

This course provides practical insights, tools, tips, techniques, and strategies for educational leadership. You will learn the characteristics and fundamentals of effective leadership and managing change. This course will help you understand different leadership styles and help you create cultures of innovation, engagement, and growth. You will explore leadership practices where you will discover that an aspiring leader, or even an experienced leader, can discover leadership values, identify leadership purposes, and clearly define a leadership vision. Finally, in this course, you will learn how to lead others with integrity and ethics, and empower them to be their best.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED562: Assessment in Education

This course provides you with a broad knowledge base of best practices in the field of assessment. This course will explore the purpose of assessing learning in traditional and non-traditional settings. Further, you will apply various approaches for assessing learning to develop a culture of assessment. Additionally, you will analyze assessment data to improve instruction for various learning contexts. The ethical considerations associated with assessment will also be examined. In addition, you will design assessment techniques for different learning contexts.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED572: Advanced Action Research

Action research, unlike traditional research, places action at the center of research; it is the process of systematically evaluating the consequences of educational/organizational decisions and adjusting practice to maximize effectiveness. Practitioners use action research to answer questions about their organizations, schools, and classrooms. In this course you will prepare an action research report that reflects attention to a broad range of approaches and tools for a systematic inquiry focused on improving quality of practice. You will also synthesize action research results, use findings as a basis for evidence-based decision making, and reflect on the impact these decisions may have on your practice.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED581: Secondary Classroom Management

This course focuses on training teachers to organize their secondary classrooms to maximize the amount of time students are actively engaged in learning. You will learn to identify the features of the classroom environment that must be planned ahead of time, so that you can be ready when your students arrive. You will learn how to effectively create classroom procedures to maximize instructional on-task time and minimize disruptions, as well as how to create a fair, easy-to-follow, and practical discipline management system including classroom rules, consequences, and rewards. Coursework will include practical and reflective components, and you will also design a personal Classroom Management Action Plan, which could be easily implemented in your future classroom.

Quarter Credit Hours: 4 | Prerequisite: None

ED710: Trends, Patterns, and Ethical Issues That Impact Education

During this course, you will analyze trends, patterns, and ethical issues that impact educational settings. You will design innovative solutions that respond to challenges in professional practice.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED720: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Educational Contexts

During this course, you will examine the characteristics of successful change agents. You will study historical figures to illuminate issues related to access and equity associated with culture, ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and ability. You will explore ways to advocate for policies and practices inclusive of all individuals while recognizing diversity as an asset in an educational setting.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED730: Educational Systems

During this course, you will analyze the historical and current contexts in which educational systems operate. You will examine factors that impact the various roles and functions within educational systems and investigate systems thinking as it applies to policy and organizational change. Additionally, you will analyze educational systems and design a plan for organizational change.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED740: Ethics and Accountability in Leadership

During this course, you will evaluate the impact of policies and practices in educational settings for their ethical implications on diverse stakeholders. You will identify various stakeholders' ethical issues. Based on these findings, you will design accountability measures that are inclusive of multiple, diverse perspectives.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED750: Research in Responsive Curriculum Design and Development

During this course, you will design responsive curriculum and instruction to meet the interests and abilities of various types of learners. Research-based methods and theories will be integrated into instructional experiences to develop curriculum that is culturally sustainable and inclusive for diverse stakeholder groups.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED760: Learning and Professional Practice

During this course, you will examine learning and motivation and how they occur in professional practice. You will design innovative research-based learning solutions that promote change in your organization. This course will focus on how research and technology strategies can reinforce and contribute to professional practice in various educational environments.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED770: Transformative Learning Environments

During this course, you will examine theories of transformative learning. You will analyze the learning environments and opportunities available to learners of different ages in a variety of educational settings. You will also explore how technology can be used to promote transformative learning. This course will focus on examining education programs that target transforming individual capabilities, beliefs, perceptions, and expectations.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED780: Creativity, Innovation, and Intrapreneurship in Education

In this course, you will explore innovative approaches in education that promote creativity in leadership. You will analyze how intrapreneurs diffuse innovations in educational systems. You will also examine opportunities within educational systems that promote environments conducive to intrapreneurship and innovation. This course will focus on designing creative and innovative solutions to challenges in various educational settings.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED810: Applied Research Project I Academic Writing and Project Proposal

During this course, you will build skills in academic writing to develop a literature review and project proposal for the applied research project. This course will be graded pass/fail.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: None

ED810A: Applied Research Project I Extension Course

This course may be taken for the specific purpose of ED810 Applied Research Project I Academic Writing and Project Proposal project completion.

Quarter Credit Hours: 0 | Prerequisite: None

ED820: Applied Research Project II Qualitative and Quantitative Research Design

During this course, you will examine qualitative and quantitative research methods. You will apply research design and analytical methods to the applied research project. This course will be graded pass/fail.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: ED810

ED820A: Applied Research Project II Extension Course

This course may be taken for the specific purpose of ED820 Applied Research Project II Qualitative and Quantitative Research Design project completion.

Quarter Credit Hours: 0 | Prerequisite: ED810

ED830: Applied Research Project III Project Implementation and Analysis

During this course, you will implement your research design, collect data, and analyze results for your applied research project. This course will be graded pass/fail.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: ED820

ED830A: Applied Research Project III Extension Course

This course may be taken for the specific purpose of ED830 Applied Research Project III Project Implementation and Analysis project completion.

Quarter Credit Hours: 0 | Prerequisite: ED820

ED840: Applied Research Project IV Project Dissemination

During this course, you will develop a conclusion and recommendations for your applied research project. You will also explore various opportunities for disseminating academic research findings. This course will be graded pass/fail.

Quarter Credit Hours: 5 | Prerequisite: ED830

ED840A: Applied Research Project IV Extension Course

This course may be taken for the specific purpose of ED840 Applied Research Project IV Project Dissemination project completion.

Quarter Credit Hours: 0 | Prerequisite: ED830