Programs of Study

Education Department Graduate Programs

The Department's dedicated faculty endeavor to prepare teachers who will author the culture of our times. We believe that the teacher is a leader, able to challenge the educational communities in which they work so as to provide the most appropriate and challenging learning environments for all children from all backgrounds and all circumstances of the rapidly changing urban society.

The MAT program prepares teachers to act as creative change agents and use democratic practices in teaching. The focus is on learner-centered approaches that respect diversity and address technological advances in the classroom.

The Department's major goals are:

1. To educate candidates about the nature of learning and the outcomes of learning as a way to study the self, to become better learners, and to serve as active participants in the societal discussion of education;
2. To create teachers who are creative leaders who infuse principles into the importance of collaboration, critical thinking and reflection, and consciousness of self and one's culture in relation to the world;
3. To serve as a seminal participant in educational reforms, to prepare new teachers, and to present critical symposia.

  Programs of Study

The following graduate programs are offered by the Education Department as two-year, part-time courses of study.

Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT)

The MAT Program offers three specializations leading to certification in the state of Illinois:

• Elementary Education (K-9)
• Elementary Education with Bilingual Approval (K-9)
  only available to elementary school teachers holding transitional bilingual certificates
• Visual Art Education (K-12)

Focused Programs for Certified Teachers Seeking a Subsequent Certificate/Endorsement/Approval:

• Type 03 - Elementary Education
• Type 10- Special - Art Education
• LBSI – Special Education
  

Professional Development Opportunities

• Special Education Topics

CPDU. CEU or one-hour course credit

General Education and Concentration Requirements for the Graduate MAT Program

A B average is required for the general education component.               A grade of C or better is required in individual courses.                         A B average is required in the concentration field.

• Three semester hours of Composition II or higher.

• Three semester hours of algebra (College Algebra or higher preferred).

• Three semester hours of biological science and 

• Three semester hours of physical science. (one of these courses must have a laboratory component.)

• Nine semester hours in the humanities. Coursework is required in the arts, literature, and philosophy.

• Nine semester hours in the social sciences. One of the courses must be U.S. History or U.S. Government. Courses must be from at least two of the following areas: anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, religion, history, sociology.

• Health: This requirement will be met by attendance at a series of workshops on health directed to the needs of elementary and high school teachers. The workshops will be provided by Columbia College Chicago during the course of the master's program.

FOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATION

• Concentration: To consist of 18 semester hours, all at the 200 level or higher, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (on a 4 point scale, a B average) in the 18 hours of the concentration. If your concentration was an approved major at your undergraduate institution, it will usually meet the criteria.

FOR ART EDUCATION

• A 32-hour art major (or equivalent coursework) distributed among drawing(6 credits); painting (3 credits); printmaking (3 credits); basic design (3 credits); 3-D design or sculpture (3 credits); jewelry/weaving/photography/ceramics/crafts(6 credits); art history/aesthetics (8 credits).

*To check whether a particular course satisfies a requirement, you may submit a course description.

(Please contact Sheila Brady for more information.)