Master of Arts in Teaching TESOL Course Descriptions
The MAT TESOL coursework includes core MAT courses and several courses in TESOL pedagogy and content. Courses prepare teachers to move from understanding theories about learning to applying those theories in the classroom. The coursework is structured to prepare teachers to be successful with all levels of students in a range of contexts.
Term 1
- Required Electives(Choose One)
This course is best suited for candidates seeking ESL/EFL teaching positions abroad or those who wish to teach domestically and work with adult studentsThis course focus is similar to EDUC 516, but emphasizes the nature and issues of global education rather than domestic. This course will engage candidates in a critical reflection cycle and an examination of the social context of schooling and learning from an international perspective. Candidates will explore various aspects of schooling and learning in different cultures and explore connections between different features and prevailing cultural beliefs and societal values. Candidates will also examine issues of social stratification and marginalization, which reflect the nature of schooling worldwide as a contested space and a means of status and power attainment. The aim of this course is to prepare candidates to be more successful and knowledgeable international educators, who are able to effectively promote student learning in any context.Close Course
EDUC 510The purpose of this course is to prepare MAT-TESOL candidates to understand and effectively apply what we know about how humans learn and acquire languages in order to design classroom-learning experiences for their English language students. Candidates will address the primary theories and perspectives related to second language acquisition and learning, including behavioral, developmental, cognitive, social cognitive, socio-cultural, and constructivist learning theories. Candidates will also examine how these different theories relate to theories of second language learning and to student assessment, motivation, self-regulation, and classroom management in the TESOL classroom.Close Course
EDUC 506New Media Literacies in High Needs Schools is designed to provide candidates with the opportunities to explore an emerging body of literature where media and communication studies converge with educators, researchers, and public policy makers. This course attempts to facilitate the convergence of students’ interests in communications, cultural studies, media production, and literacy education. Candidates will examine curricular materials, as well as apply learning theories, content knowledge, and the pedagogical repertoire of skills acquired in concurrent courses and threaded throughout the program as the basis for decision-making to positively affect student participation, learning, and outcomes.
Term 2
EDUC 561The purpose of this course, the first in a two-course sequence, is to provide an introduction to methods of teaching English as a second/foreign language that can be used to design lessons appropriate for student ages, English abilities, and backgrounds. This first course provides a comprehensive overview of the history and development of methods for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) along with a critical examination of the underlying principles of these various methodologies. Included is an examination of the theory and practice of teaching the four skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) along with grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. Attention will focus on how various approaches and techniques can be realized in practice, in a range of contexts or educational settings, and for a variety of different learners.
Throughout the course, we will be looking at examples of different teaching methods in classrooms, both on video and in your live observations of teachers. In addition, participants in the class will demonstrate the use of specific methods while being videotaped, and these videos will be analyzed and discussed.
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EDUC 501TThis course includes systematic study of effective ways to structure learning opportunities for diverse student populations. An understanding of the instructional needs of language minority populations is developed and an awareness of the appropriate programs and services to meet those specific needs is presented. The course is intended to engage graduate students in exploring a variety of theories, issues, procedures, methods and approaches for use in bilingual, English as a second language, and other learning environments. It provides an overview of the historic and current trends and social issues affecting the education of language minority students. It also provides candidates with practical experience in the implementation of instructional strategies addressing the needs of a diverse student population. Major units of the course include: language learning theories; socio-cultural contexts of language development, principled selection of instructional strategies for teaching language and non-language subjects; a focus on the development of academic language, assessment of language and non-language competencies; and selected issues in teaching language minority populations.Close Course
EDUC 505This course prepares candidates to integrate literacy with their secondary students’ construction and development of content area enduring understandings. Candidates will become ongoing decision makers across instructional contexts through the application of theory and promising instructional practices for diverse student populations. This course highlights facilitation, mediation and intervention in the development of literacies and language integrated within the content areas. The course foregrounds the connection between language and literacy as a vehicle for developing content knowledge and articulating one’s thinking and learning.Close Course
Term 3
EDUC 562The two-part TESOL series Pedagogy A/B provides candidates with an introduction to methods of teaching English as a second/foreign language. This second part is designed to introduce students to the micro-components of effective teaching. These include curriculum and lesson planning, details of lesson sequencing and delivery, and creating a classroom environment conducive to learning. Classroom management issues are addressed, including how to teach mixed-level classes, large classes, and addressing student diversity.
EDUC 521This course introduces candidates to relevant research and practices in facilitating effective assessment in the language classroom. This course reviews concepts of reliability and validity and examines a range of assessment strategies relevant for English language teachers. The course also approaches this topic from an equity and diversity perspective, keeping in mind learning environments, issues in teaching special populations, and beliefs about how people learn.
- Field-based Experiences (Experienced Teachers Choose Capstone, Novice Teachers choose Practicum)
These courses are designed for novice teachers.The Capstone in TESOL is a two-part course designed to provide current and experienced teachers with the opportunities to apply theory to improve an aspect of their teaching practice in the TESOL classroom. MAT- TESOL candidates will apply learning theories and the repertoire of skills acquired in previous courses to improve their own instruction or another aspect of their professional practice. To do this candidates will carry out an action research project under the guidance of a faculty member and in the collaborative atmosphere of a seminar style class. The capstone experience is a developmental process that continues for20 weeks in both parts A and B during the final terms of the program.Close Course
These courses are designed for novice teachers. The Practicum in TESOL is a two‐part course designed to provide novice teachers with the opportunities to apply theory in the TESOL classroom and gain understanding of the teaching‐learning process in varied contexts. MAT- TESOL candidates will apply learning theories, content knowledge, and the pedagogical repertoire of skills acquired in previous courses and threaded throughout the program as the basis for decision‐making to positively affect student learning and outcomes in a live classroom. The building of teacher expertise in this practicum is a developmental process that continues for
20 weeks in both parts A and B.Part A requires 40 hours of work with a mentor teacher who will monitor the candidate’s progress as they begin the process of teaching, designing lessons, and assisting with curriculum building. Part B requires 60 hours of teaching with an assigned mentor teacher. The mentor teacher will monitor and evaluate the candidate’s progress as he/she demonstrates their ability to design, develop and deliver effective instruction to students in the classroom.
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Term 4
EDUC 571This course engages students in a study of the systems of the English language and of how they can utilize this knowledge to enhance the practice of teaching English as a second or foreign language. Students will first review the origins of English and then be introduced to the fundamental systems of the English language. These systems include words (vocabulary, morphology, lexicon), sounds (phonetics and phonology), sentences (grammar systems and syntax) and language in use (discourse). Throughout the course, students will also compare English to other languages and identify similar and contrasting features in other languages commonly encountered by teachers. Through this course participants will acquire background knowledge of the English language systems in order to better guide English language learners.
- Field-based Experiences (Experienced Teachers Choose Capstone, Novice Teachers choose Practicum)
The Capstone in TESOL is a two-part course designed to provide current and experienced teachers with the opportunities to apply theory to improve an aspect of their teaching practice in the TESOL classroom. MAT- TESOL candidates will apply learning theories and the repertoire of skills acquired in previous courses to improve their own instruction or another aspect of their professional practice. To do this candidates will carry out an action research project under the guidance of a faculty member and in the collaborative atmosphere of a seminar style class. The capstone experience is a developmental process that continues for 20 weeks in both parts A and B during the final terms of the program.Close Course
This course is best suited for candidates seeking exclusively domestic ESL teaching positionsFraming the Social Context of High Needs Schools (Social Context) prepares candidates to understand the relationship between the actions of the teacher and the extent to which students are enabled to learn in the classroom and school context. Candidates will engage in a process of critical reflection and inquiry to adjust their teaching based on student outcomes. This course introduces candidates to content and skills that will be built upon throughout the remainder of the MAT, and focuses on the “how” of facilitating learning at the classroom level.Close Course