Mar 29, 2024  
ARCHIVED 2016-2017 Graduate Catalog 
    
ARCHIVED 2016-2017 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Education - Comprehensive Education (M.A.Ed.)


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Program Description

The program leading to the M.A.Ed. degree in comprehensive education requires a minimum of 30-36 semester hours of graduate study consisting of a professional core of 12 semester hours and a concentration of 12-24 hours. Each of the concentrations leads to a recommendation for Advanced Competencies licensure from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Concentrations may have additional requirements for admission specific to the concentration. Completion of degree requirements includes a satisfactory portfolio demonstrating advanced competencies for all concentrations. Candidates with current National Board Certification in the concentration area have demonstrated advanced competencies and are exempted from the required portfolio. An oral and/or written exam may be required for some concentrations.

Program Admission Requirements

In addition to the Graduate School Admission Requirements, applicants for some M.A.Ed. programs must submit a written essay. Instructions for the essay vary by concentration and will include topic(s) and length specified by the concentration and description of the evaluation process.  All programs require three recommendations from former instructors or employers who are in a position to judge the applicant’s aptitude for graduate study. Applicants must meet the requirements for admission based on the written essay and an undergraduate grade point average for the last sixty hours of the baccalaureate program.  Applicants must hold or be eligible to hold a North Carolina Class A teaching license, or a comparable license from another state, in the chosen field unless admission is sought to certain programs in which licensure is not a factor. Concentration specific requirements include:

  • Comprehensive Education - English must submit a senior level analytic essay that synthesizes multiple sources and articulates an argument.

  • Comprehensive Education-Elementary and Middle Grades - must submit a written essay. Additional prerequisite coursework may be required.

  • Comprehensive Education- Special Education - must submit a written essay. Additional prerequisite coursework may be required.

  • Comprehensive Education-Biology and Social Sciences - must submit a satisfactory score on the General Test of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE)

Academically or Intellectually Gifted (AIG) Add-on Licensure (K-12)


Licensure in AIG may be obtained by teachers holding or eligible for a North Carolina license in any area.  The licensure program is completely online with the exception of a one-week field experience associated with SPED 500 that takes place in the summer.  Credits earned may be applied to the gifted concentration in the MAEd program in special education. The program requires 12 hours and includes the following:

Professional Core - 12 Hours


The Professional Core is common to all M.A.Ed. Programs.

Art Concentration (24 hours)


Twenty-four hours in addition to the Professional Core. Six hours of Methods courses and eighteen hours of Art Content courses are required.

Art Content Area


18 hours of Art Content courses are required. as follows: nine hours of studio, six hours or upper level art history, and three hours of independent study or thesis.

Biology Concentration (24 hours)


Twenty-four (24) hours in addition to the Professional Core. Six hours of Methods courses and eighteen hours of Biology Content courses are required.

Biology Content Area


18 hours of Biology courses as follows: Eighteen semester hours from any 500-600 level Biology course, except BIOL 699. At least 6 hours must be taken from courses numbered 600 or above.

Elementary Education Concentration (12 hours) to include:


(In addition to the Professional Core)

Elementary Education Core


 The Elementary Education Core includes requirements beyond the Professional Core.

Option 1 - Gifted, Creative and Innovative Education (AIG)


Required courses for the AIG concentration:

Option 2 - Literacy


Required courses for the Literacy concentration:

English Concentration (24 hours)


(In addition to the Professional Core)

Methods:


Six hours are required.

British Literature:


Three hours of British Literature are required. Choose any British Literature Course (500 or higher)

American Literature:


Three hours of American Literature are required. Choose any American Literature Course (500 or higher)

Other Literature:


Three hours of other literature courses are required and must be chosen from the following list:

Guided Electives:


Nine hours of guided electives in English are required. Elective courses are chosen in consultation with the program director.

Additional Information:


English Comprehensive Examinations on both early and later literature and a Master Teacher Project are required. Neither a thesis nor foreign language proficiency is required. For reading lists, sample exams, and other information about the English concentration, see the current Guide to Graduate Studies in English, available online.

Middle Grades Concentrations (18 hours) to include:


(In addition to the Professional Core)

Middle Grades Core


 The Middle Grades Core are requirements beyond the Professional Core.

Social Sciences Concentration (24 hours)


Twenty-four hours in addition to the Professional Core. Six hours of methods courses and eighteen hours of social science courses in the areas indicated are required. 

Social Science Content Area:


18 hours of social science coursework as follows: 12 hours in history, 3 hours in second social science area, 3 hours in third social science area.

Special Education Concentration (18-21 hours) to include:


 (In addition to the Professional Core)

Emphasis:


Must declare and complete eighteen to twenty-one (18-21) hours from one of the three emphasis options listed below:

Option 1 - Gifted, Creative and Innovative Education


Choose nine (9) hours from Content Area list of courses and nine (9) hours from Methods list.

Option 2 - General Curriculum: Mild to Moderate Disabilities


Choose nine (9) hours from Content Area list of courses and nine (9) hours from the Methods list.

Option 3 - Adapted Curriculum: Severe/Profound Disabilities


Choose eighteen (18) hours from Content Area list of courses and three (3) hours from the Guided Electives list.

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