Curriculum and Instruction (EDCI)

This course focuses on the ways in which successful community partnerships are built, fostered, and strengthened. A critical aspect of this course will be focusing on how P-12 schools interact with and respond to the needs of the local community. The course will also examine types of university and P-12 partnerships, how those partnerships develop, and different ways to make those partnerships successful. In addition, students will research various non-profit organizations, governmental agencies, and community-wide programs to determine the effectiveness of those programs on the community.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course focuses on culturally responsive methods and materials to improve instruction and student learning. Particular attention is given to interdisciplinary, multicultural materials for the English Language Arts and to the inclusion of multiple perspectives in Social Studies. This course will provide students with specific curricular suggestions, teaching methods, and pedagogical strategies to assist them in creating a culturally responsive classroom. The course will also provide readings grounded in relevant research that supports the use of culturally responsive practices with students.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

The course will introduce students to curriculum, its use, and how curriculum shapes pedagogy and practice. The curriculum is understood as both the explicit planned course of learning, and the hidden or latent experiences that people encounter in spaces designed for learning. Students will study curriculum theories, analyze curriculum in practice, and theorize new ways to think about curriculum inside the classroom and without.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course, Current Education Topics and Issues in Culturally Diverse Communities, takes an in-depth look into the various topics and current issues facing our students, teachers, administrators and schools in the United States. The emphasis of this course is on current issues relevant to P-12 schools as well as higher education in culturally diverse communities. The course will examine issues and themes of profound and lasting importance in educational studies. Issues such as standardized testing, school discipline, the achievement gap, school funding, and equity and access to higher education will be some of the topics addressed in the course.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course is the first of two required thesis courses for completion of the Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction-Teaching in Diverse Communities degree. The course will prepare students to successfully write and defend their thesis proposal. The course is designed to be completed at, or near the end, of the master’s coursework and will be the culmination of the readings, studies, and research that the students completed throughout their program.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

Repeat Status: Course may be repeated 1 time(s).

This course is the second of two required thesis courses for completion of the Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction-Teaching in Diverse Communities degree. The course will prepare students to successfully write and defend their completed master’s thesis. The course is designed to be completed at or near the end of the master’s coursework and will be the culmination of the readings, studies, and research that the students completed throughout their program.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

Repeat Status: Course may be repeated 1 time(s).

This course focuses on developing and applying appropriate, differentiated instructional strategies that will help teachers more effectively engage all students in optimal learning experiences. The course will examine and critique various pedagogical strategies that are intended to create a positive and rich learning environment for our diverse population of students. In addition, students in this course will reflect on their own instructional practices to determine best practices that will work to meet students’ needs and ensure student success.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course focuses on the development of a theoretical foundation for understanding relevant research on diversity education. There is an added emphasis on the teacher as an active participant in ongoing professional development and school improvement. This foundations course will provide students with a comprehensive knowledge of the early researchers and scholars in the field of diversity education as well as current researchers and scholars who have moved the field in distinct and important ways.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course will examine the problems in the education of children in the schools. Topics include basic research procedures needed in the preparation of thesis or other research reports and development or skill in reading, analysis, and application of educational and behavioral research. A research paper is required of each student in the Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction – Teaching in Diverse Communities program. This course is a prerequisite to both the Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methods courses and must be completed prior to taking either of those courses. This course will examine the various ways of framing research questions and designing studies, the procedures for generating, analyzing and interpreting both qualitative and quantitative data, and the overarching issue of the validity or generalizability of research claims. Ethical, theoretical and epistemological issues involved in conducting and reporting research are also addressed and discussed. This course is also designed to provide students with an opportunity to become critical readers of research and to begin thinking about their own future research studies and projects.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course offers a hands-on opportunity for students to experience the practice of qualitative research. We will address the nature of qualitative research in the administrative and policy sciences with ample opportunities to discuss the implications of the choices made in designing, implementing and reporting on the findings of a pilot project you will carry out. Qualitative research involves the collection and rigorous analysis of observations, interviews, and other records of human activity so that we come to a richer understanding of structures, processes, and perspectives that drive or shape human behavior. We will review a number of research studies that demonstrate different qualitative research methods and examine some of the epistemological foundations that motivate and inform the practices of qualitative inquiry.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course prepares students to develop and advance their quantitative skills for applied empirical research. The course will focus on the theory and application of basic statistical techniques. The topics to be covered in this course include data collection and description, normal distributions, sampling distributions, methods of statistical estimation and inference, correlation simple linear regression, and chi-square.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course focuses on the development of standards-based learning experiences in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics) as it pertains to teaching diverse populations of students. Emphasis is placed on creating units that engage students in discourse, utilize inquiry, and encourage all students to participate in STEAM learning. This course also will address ways to encourage minority student populations to engage with, and become excited about, learning in the STEAM fields.

Restrictions: Enrollment is limited to Graduate level students.

This course examines foundational and current research theory and practice as it pertains to assessments. Students will study different types of assessment instruments and evaluate their effectiveness in student learning and achievement and, in particular, when working with diverse populations. The course will also assist students in interpreting assessment data and selecting the appropriate assessments for measuring student learning. In addition, students will learn how school district communicate assessment data to their community stakeholders and partners.

Restrictions: Undergraduate level students may not enroll.