Bringing course numbers to life! This page describes the ten courses I completed to earn my Master of Arts in Education from Michigan State University. The courses are listed in the order in which they were completed. I completed courses in Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education (CEP), Education (ED), and Teacher Education (TE).
I began my graduate work in the summer of 2023. The first course for the MAED program is Educational Inquiry. The course was broken down into 6 units. During each unit students read an assigned book as well as view lecture material. Each unit led students through a different educational struggles. The course was eye opening for someone who grew up in white suburbia. To end the course we created presentations synthesizing all that we had learned. My presentation can be found under reflections in the showcase tab.
Policy, Practices, and Perspectives in Special Education is one of two special edcuation courses I have taken in all of my higher education. This course focused on the basics of special education. Students worked through multiple modules, each of which focused on a different key piece in special education. To synthesis our learning we created an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) for a case student. Learners were also tasked with creating a resources binder that could benefit them in the future. My resources binder can be found under creations on the showcase tab.
I completed this course as part of my math and science concentration. As said in the course name, this course focused on teaching math! As a part of this course student worked through a key text as well as a book study. A main focus in our learning was collaboration and exploration. To synthesis our learning students were asked to further research a topic in teaching mathematics. The focus of my research can be found under the reflections section of the showcase tab.
Though I focused most of my studies on online learning and science, I felt it would be beneficial for me to learn how to better support my students in reading. This course detailed how to identify students with literacy learned differences, different testing strategies. We then worked through implementation strategies to help these learners. Throughout this course students were tasked with working one-on-one with a k-12 student. We were to identify a student who could benefit from individualized support in reading and writing. We used the skills we had just learned to support our k-12 students.
This course was an introduction to best practices in learning online. As a virtual teacher I found this course to be of extreme benefit. Students reviewed the history of online learning and current best practices. A large focus was put on assessment and course management. Students were tasked with creating multiple online teaching activities for synchronous and asynchronous learning. Students were also tasked to create a communication policy, which I currently use in my classroom.
Creativity does not simply mean coloring and crafting. This course emphasized that creativity can come in how students are learning and developing their thinking. Creativity can also take place in planning and staff endeavors. I was challenged to create an assessment rubric that could be used to assess students throughout a semester based on their creative thinking. This rubric can be found under creations on the showcase tab.
This course took a deep dive into the Next Generation Science Standards. The course was based on the latest research in teaching science. There was an emphasis on teaching students how to learn and not just the content of the standard. Multiple teaching techniques were introduced such as phenomenon. Students were tasked with creating multiple curriculum modifications based upon a units main concepts. One of my curriculum modifications and my final essay can be found under creations in the showcase tab.
Through out this course students developed an understanding of assessment. Students explored many technologies in which students could be assessed. The course challenged that idea that assessment is an "end of unit" activity. The course presented challenges teachers and assumptions may face when developing assessments. Students created multiple "mini" assessments with an array of criteria. To synthesis our learning we created one final assessment, with multiple criteria, and did our own research on an assessment topic we wanted to explore further.
This course was designed for students to showcase all of the learning that has been done through out their masters degree journey. Students are tasked with reflecting on past goals, new goals, and their over all journey through higher education. Students participate in discourse to continually improve upon the portfolio created. Students will present their final product to a small group of fellow students.
For a long time science teaching was rote memorization. This course was designed to break that cycle. Inquiry is a key piece in true science understanding and a transferable skill to the real world. For this course students were tasked with implementing inquiry into our own classrooms. Students were challenged with creating real lesson plans, assessments, and gathering data. The work was synthesized into a presentation, focusing on how students interacted with inquiry.