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Curriculum and Teaching
The field of curriculum and teaching is a growth industry in K-12, corporate and higher education settings. If you have a passion for teaching others through quality curricula and desire to advance your skills and increase teacher effectiveness inside and outside the classroom, then the Curriculum and Teaching specialization may be for you. In this specialization, you will enhance your skills in curriculum review, analysis, development, design, implementation and evaluation in diverse contexts. You will also learn to analyze and implement best practices to ensure excellence in instructional delivery.
Certification and Licensing
The School of Education serves educational leaders by providing online graduate studies in education to reach worldwide populations. The MEd program is designed to reach national and international markets and does not purport to provide licensure or certification in any particular state or country. Certification requirements vary by state. Students are advised to contact their state department of education or local school district for guidance in obtaining certification or licensure, or for approval in fulfilling district level incentive programs.
There are several reasons why an educator would want to pursue a graduate degree in education that does not lead to state licensing or certification.
Reasons may include:
- "Move up" steps on the salary schedule.
- Improve skills and professionalism in general or to pursue a ”leadership” position outside the classroom (school-based or district level).
- Advance as a ”teacher leader” through a graduate degree (already has a bachelor's degree and certification).
- Meet the needs of increasingly diverse students.
- Work in a traditional K-12 classroom environment (trainer, educational consultant, etc).
Completion Period for Master's Degrees
Northcentral University allows 5 years to complete all 30 credit hour master's programs. Normal time to complete varies depending upon the rate courses are taken and credits transferred.
Course Length
Existing MEd students may opt to switch to eight-week courses by contacting their Academic Advisor. Once existing MEd students have opted for eight-week courses, they must receive approval from the Office of the Dean to switch back to a program of 12-week courses. All eight-week courses are indicated by a "-8" (dash eight) at the end of the course code.
Course Code | Name | Course Description |
|---|---|---|
EDU5000 / EDU5000-8 | Foundations for Graduate Study | This course is an orientation to Northcentral University and to the essential skills needed to pursue a Master's degree in Education. Graduate level skills, such as academic integrity, time management, effective use of the Northcentral Library, comprehending complex scholarly texts and research articles, and APA form and style in professional communication are also introduced. Students will complete the course with a better understanding of personal goals, strengths, and challenges, and a roadmap to navigate their way to completion of their educational aspirations. |
ED5022/ED5022-8 | Educational Policy and Practice | This Master’s level course focuses on research and theory in developing effective schools. Topics include: aligning contemporary educational practice with Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium Standards, collaboration, communication, decision-making, and conflict management. Current educational trends will be addressed to promote the establishment of effective educational climates for teaching and learning. |
Specialization Course 1 | ||
ED5001/ED5001-8 | Contemporary Issues in Education | This course examines the major contemporary issues impacting education. Students evaluate the issues, attempt solutions, and develop personal professional positions. In a broader context, the education profession is affected by numerous and diverse issues that are highly political, emotional, and complex. It is imperative that students understand the issues; the effects the issues have on the profession, as well as formulating a personal response to the issues. |
ED5034/ED5034-8 | School and Community Relations | This course introduces educators to essential competencies and considerations needed to build and sustain positive, productive relationships with members of school communities and the external communities in which schools reside. Emphasis is placed on the development of effective communication policies and practices to instill public confidence in community schools, improve school quality, and improve student learning. |
Specialization Course 2 | ||
ED5023/ED5023-8 | Multicultural Relationships in Educational Organizations | The effects of cultural diversity on organizational behavior are complex and powerful. What is diversity and what are the goals in achieving a more diverse society? This course examines the educational community's thinking on race, language, culture, gender and disability in the educational setting. |
Specialization Course 3 | ||
Specialization Course 4 | ||
ED6002/ED6002-8 | Action Research Capstone | This graduate course emphasizes practical research skills utilized by education practitioners. Students will develop an action research project based on the scientific method and concepts presented in ED6001. The culminating product will reflect critical thinking, graduate level writing skills, and correct APA format. This course is open only to students pursuing the Master of Education. |
Course Code | Name | Course Description |
|---|---|---|
EDU5000 / EDU5000-8 | Foundations for Graduate Study | This course is an orientation to Northcentral University and to the essential skills needed to pursue a Master's degree in Education. Graduate level skills, such as academic integrity, time management, effective use of the Northcentral Library, comprehending complex scholarly texts and research articles, and APA form and style in professional communication are also introduced. Students will complete the course with a better understanding of personal goals, strengths, and challenges, and a roadmap to navigate their way to completion of their educational aspirations. |
Course Code | Name | Course Description |
|---|---|---|
CT5000-8 | Curriculum and Instructional Strategies | The purpose of this masters level course is to provide an overview of theories, principles, practices, design, implementation, evaluation, and issues in curriculum and instruction. Students will learn to integrate theory and practice. Students will study accountability and high stakes testing, historical precedents, local and federal accountability rules. Students will be encouraged to distinguish between testing and accountability. Reflection and discussion will enhance deep understanding. |
CT5001-8 | The Teacher as Reflective Practitioner | Reflective practice is a powerful force for educational change. Reflection is a critical process that informs decision making and involves experience, research, discussion, and implementation. Reflective practitioners are committed to continuous learning and improvement. This course will provide the student with an overview of the reflective thinking process and model, and will invite the student to reflect on past actions in the classroom in order to improve and energize professional growth, teaching methods, classroom strategies, and student learning. |
CT5002-8 | Learning Styles and Teaching Styles _ Strategies for Success | Planning for successful, meaningful teaching involves strategies, processes, and relationships. This Masters level course introduces specific strategies, modalities, and principles that can be collected and integrated into a lesson plan or learning module. The question of how a particular strategy relates to a specific learning objective is partially dependent on the teaching and learning styles present in the specific context. The skillful use of learning and teaching styles requires familiarity with style models, an awareness of ones personal style and how it influences individual thinking, acting, and communicating. Both hypothetical and real teaching scenarios and strategy decisions will be critically considered and integrated into a personal working model with the focus on building practical style skills and associated strategies. |
CT5003-8 | Principles of Teaching & Learning | The foundations of teaching and learning can be viewed from several perspectives. One such perspective includes the principles supporting the theories and models used today by educational practitioners; this course will focus on such principles. Students will contrast and evaluate the development, motivation, and transfer of learning processes and models. Students will also evaluate learning styles and metacognition for possible changes that can improve teaching practices. Finally, students will analyze the influence of emotional, social, and cultural contexts in order to make effective decisions that support school structures that enable student learning. |
CT5004-8 | Foundations of Language & Literacy Education | This course will assist educators in learning more about the foundations of language development and the impact language acquisition has on literacy learning. Educators will be asked to reflect on their own understanding of language development and reflect on their teaching of language. |
CT5005-8 | Literacy Teaching and Learning | This course provides students working in professional teaching settings opportunities to develop their understanding of the eight principles guiding literacy development in the early years. Theory, strategies, activities as well as a summative assessment are presented throughout this course to assist teachers in gaining a more thorough perspective on literacy development in the early grades. |
CT5006-8 | Multiple Intelligences and Ways of Learning | In this course, students will explore the concept of multiple intelligences for appropriate and beneficial applications within school curricula, especially as applied to fostering students' higher-order thinking skills. Students will investigate and assess the influence of multiple intelligences on interdisciplinary learning, preferred learning styles, and appropriate applications in the classroom. Students will also analyze the options for evaluating and revising student assessment methods and tools so that multiple intelligences theory is included in curriculum development. Finally, students will develop activities to engage specific types of students using Blooms taxonomy. |
CT5007-8 | The Classroom: Management and Organization for Student Achievement | This course provides students working in professional settings opportunities to investigate, synthesize, and apply research-based best practices in classroom management and organization to maximize student achievement. Students will analyze major philosophical positions and theoretical models and their influences on classroom management practices. Students will integrate principles of curriculum development and models of instruction, management, and discipline to effect optimum student learning. Emphasis is placed on establishing a classroom management plan that is proactive in nature, effective in controlling student behavior, useful in a variety of contexts, adaptable to diverse student populations, and easily integrated into daily teaching practices. |
CT5008-8 | High Stakes Testing: Implications for Teaching and Learning | This course provides students working in educational settings opportunities to research and understand the underpinnings of the current No Child Left Behind legislation as it relates to accountability and high stakes testing. Students will study historical precedents, local and federal accountability rules, intended and unintended consequences of high stakes testing, as well as the impact of high stakes testing on the individual student, the school, the community, and the country. Students will be encouraged to distinguish between testing and accountability. Reflection and discussion will enhance deep understanding. |
ED5026-8 | Cognition, Emotion and Motivation Rio Articulation Course | This course will examine a comprehensive overview of the theories of human cognition, emotion, and motivation. This course will provide students with a solid understanding of the competing theoretical approaches and their applications to present social and cultural concepts. A contemporary view of research will be emphasized and upon completion, students will have a critical awareness of theories and research findings concerning diverse aspects of higher functioning in these areas. |
IL5000-8 | Instructional Leader as Creator of Learning Culture | Being an instructional leader essentially means being the leader of leaders; to create a culture of learning means mastering the art and science of effective leadership. The contemporary role and responsibility of the instructional leader demands a style of leadership that focuses on teacher development that promotes and enhances student learning. Successful instructional leaders encourage and inspire their faculty and staff to create a learning culture wherein effective teaching practices are embedded. In this course, students explore the knowledge, skill sets and behaviors that enable instructional leaders to establish and sustain these professional learning cultures. Furthermore, in this course, education practitioners who may or may not have any practical experiences in K-12 education will have the opportunity to expand their knowledge base per curriculum and its function(s) in educational settings. Students pursuing a specialization in instructional leadership will take this as their first course. |
IL5001-8 | Instructional Leader as Advocate and Decisioner | In this course, students examine the role of instructional leader as that of advocate and decision maker. The importance of this particular role is grounded in the realization that the instructional leader articulates the vision that reflects the mission, core values, beliefs, and purpose of the educational enterprise. Additionally, the instructional leader's role as advocate is to support the development and maintenance of high standards of performance and achievement. As decision maker and standard bearer for the enterprise, the instructional leader models the way and leads by example. |
Course Code | Name | Course Description |
|---|---|---|
ED6002 / ED6002-8 | Action Research Capstone | This graduate course emphasizes practical research skills utilized by education practitioners. Students will develop an action research project based on the scientific method and concepts presented in ED6001. The culminating product will reflect critical thinking, graduate level writing skills, and correct APA format. This course is open only to students pursuing the Master of Education. |
At Northcentral University, we pride ourselves in being completely transparent when it comes to tuition and fees. We have adopted an all-inclusive tuition model that gives you the cost of your Master of Education tuition and fees in one flat program rate*. The only additional cost above your MEd program rate is books. Learn more about the NCU’s MEd costs below:
- Per credit cost: $544
- Per 3 credit course cost: $1,631
- Program cost: $16,310
- Average book cost per course: $150
- Application Fee: $0
- Technology Fee: $0
- Registration Fee: $0
Click here to learn more about payment and financing options.
*Program rates are subject to change and generally increase at the start of each calendar year.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned about our students, it’s that they are motivated and ambitious—but they are also busy! At Northcentral University, we’ve designed our education experience to work with you, not against you, so you can achieve your academic goals without sacrificing the quality, flexibility and support you need to be successful.
- Regionally Accredited
- No Physical Residency Requirements
- One-to-One Teaching
- 100% Doctoral Faculty
- Flexibility of Online Learning
- University Resources
To learn more, request information or call 1-866-776-0331 or start a live chat to speak with an enrollment advisor today. We offer new courses every Monday of the year so you can get started when it’s best for you.
