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Professional Development Degree Program (M.S.E.)

The Master of Science Education in Professional Development (MSE-PD) provides individuals with advanced academic work focused on the improvement of teaching and learning. The program is designed to develop skills and knowledge in the three core areas of research, practice, and voice in the profession through a sequence of courses and individually guided activities that culminate in a substantial capstone project. Please note: Meeting all requirements for specific licenses or emphasis area options may necessitate exceeding thirty credits required for degree.

Emphasis areas with specific license programs might necessitate additional credits to complete.

Art Education - This emphasis is designed for students who wish to work on professional goals related to art education.

Alternative Education - This emphasis is designed for students who already have a license in another area and want to obtain the Wisconsin Alternative Education license. Applicants for admission to this emphasis area must hold or be eligible for a regular teaching license in the State of Wisconsin for teaching in a public school. Exceptions to this policy may be made by the program coordinator on a case-by-case basis.*

Curriculum and Instruction - This emphasis will allow students to identify a specific set of goals for their own professional development as a focus of study. For example, students may pursue an individualized plan related to specific educational levels (e.g., post-secondary or early childhood), teaching specific subjects (e.g., science or history), or selected Wisconsin Standards for Teacher Development and Licensure.

Educational Leadership – This emphasis is intended to provide students with some of the theory behind the practice of educational leadership. It is designed for students who have an interest in educational leadership, but do not seek an administrative license at the present time. Students who later decide to obtain the administrative license may apply to the UW-Whitewater/UW-Madison Cooperative Program in Educational Leadership (http://www.uww.edu/gradstudies/edleadership/) for licensure only. Eighteen of the units in the MSE-PD emphasis in Educational Leadership may be applied toward the co-op licensure-only program.

ESL/Bilingual Education – This emphasis is designed for students who already have a license in another area and want to obtain ESL/Bilingual licensure. Applicants for admission to this emphasis area must hold or be eligible for a regular teaching license in the State of Wisconsin for teaching in a public school. Exceptions to this policy may be made by the program coordinator on a case-by-case basis.*

Health, Human Performance and Recreation - This emphasis is designed to enhance knowledge, abilities and qualifications of professionals in the areas of Health, Human Performance and Recreation. The emphasis is offered with either a thesis option or a practicum option. Program-specific professional core courses and sections are required for this emphasis area. Consult with an advisor prior to enrolling in any course.

Health, Physical Education and Coaching - This emphasis is designed to enhance teachers’ knowledge and skill related to health, physical education, and/or coaching.

Information, Technology and Libraries – This emphasis enhances the professional development of those interested in becoming information and technology leaders in the schools. It is designed to prepare professionals who are well rounded in digital and information technology. It will allow them to complete most of the requirements for the initial school library media specialist license, or all of the requirements for the professional level license (Wisconsin 902). Applicants for admission to this emphasis area must hold or be eligible for a regular teaching license in the State of Wisconsin for teaching in a public school. Exceptions to this policy may be made by the program coordinator on a case-by-case basis.*

Reading – This emphasis is designed to prepare licensed teachers to provide special services in reading at the elementary and secondary level and to license students as reading teachers (Wisconsin 316) and/or as reading specialists (Wisconsin 17). Applicants for admission to this emphasis area must hold or be eligible for a regular teaching license in the State of Wisconsin for teaching in a public school. Exceptions to this policy may be made by the program coordinator on a case-by-case basis.* The curriculum is designed to develop an advanced understanding of philosophies, models and theories relevant to literacy development and its teaching in grades PreK-12. Students will develop skills in selecting and administering a variety of authentic instruments, interpreting the results, and planning implementation strategies for improving reading progress of students in elementary and secondary education settings.

CURRICULUM

The program consists of a common core of twelve units and an emphasis of eighteen units. Students begin with two courses taken either at the same time or one after the other (EDFOUND/CIGENRL 723 and EDFOUND 780) to gain a broad grounding in graduate study and educational research. They then start taking eighteen units of emphasis course work following a program plan developed in consultation with an emphasis advisor. After completing EDFOUND/CIGENRL 723, EDFOUND 780 and at least 9 units of emphasis coursework, students enroll simultaneously in EDUINDP 724 and one unit of supervised study (EDUINDP 726) with the emphasis advisor. This combination is designed to prepare students for their capstone experience. By the end of the semester, they will have planned the capstone experience thoroughly, started the project, and written the equivalent of the first three chapters of a capstone report. Students then finish the rest of the eighteen-unit emphasis. The semester before enrolling in The Capstone Seminar (EDUINDP 789), students enroll in one more unit of supervised study (EDUINDP 727) to finish the writing and prepare for the assessment. The program ends with a capstone experience designed to demonstrate the interconnectedness of research, practice and voice in professional development. The experience will be jointly assessed by the supervisor, their advisor, and the capstone seminar instructor.

Some emphasis areas are individualized based on the student’s own professional development goals. These individualized emphases all consist of eighteen units planned with the advisor at the start of the program. The course work in other emphases, however (ESL/Bilingual, Information Technology and Libraries, Alternative Education, and Reading) is based on specific licensure requirements set by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and may include up to twenty-four units. Students in these emphases may also need to complete requirements beyond their course work such as portfolios and examinations in order to obtain the licenses they seek. Students in the licensure emphases are advised of these requirements no later than the time of admission. Like all students in the program, they complete a program plan in consultation with the emphasis advisor at the start of the program.

Program Coordinator:

Dr. John Zbikowski
Winther 3037
Phone: (262) 472-4860
Email: zbikowsj@uww.edu

Department Program Assistant:

Winther 3035
Phone: (262) 472-1135
Email: curricinstr@uww.edu

Additional Admission Requirements:

* Some emphasis areas require eligibility for a regular teaching license in Wisconsin. Exceptions, in some programs, may be made by the program coordinator for applicants with an adequate knowledge base in education who either (1) have a minimum of two years of teaching experience in a school or (2) are employed outside of school in a position with duties determined by the coordinator to be instructional in nature. Individuals admitted as exceptions under the latter criterion may be limited to specifically designated emphases. Please check with specific emphasis area requirements and your advisor prior to enrolling in any coursework.

Degree Requirements:

1. In addition to satisfying all other Graduate School requirements for a degree, students must complete a minimum of 30 units of course work including (1) a thesis or (2) a capstone project. Students who choose to write a thesis must complete at least three units of Thesis Research; and those who choose to do a capstone project must complete the Capstone Project Seminar (EDUINDP 789) in the final semester of enrollment in the program.
2. All degree candidates will be required to complete EDFOUND/CIGENRL 723 and EDFOUND 780 within the first six units after being admitted to the program.
3. Students will submit a Capstone Project Proposal as partial fulfillment of EDUINDP 724 and EDUINDP 726. It is recommended that students enroll in these courses after completing approximately 15 units in the program. An approved proposal, signed by the advisor, must be filed with the program coordinator prior to enrolling in EDUINDP 789.
4. At least half of the graduate work in the degree program must be completed in courses numbered 700 or higher.

MASTER OF SCIENCE IN EDUCATION
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (MSE-PD)

PROFESSIONAL CORE - 12 UNITS

1. EDFOUND/CIGENRL 723
   ISSUES PERSPECTIVES & DIRECTIONS: A PROFESSIONAL SEMINAR IN EDUCATION
2. EDFOUND 780
   READING ANALYZING AND EVALUATING EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
3. EDUINDP 724
   PLANNING FOR CHANGE: SEMINAR IN RESEARCH, PRACTICE AND VOICE
4. EDUINDP 726
   CAPSTONE ADVISING I: PROJECT PLANNING AND REVIEW OF LITERATURE
5. EDUINDP 727
   CAPSTONE ADVISING II: DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
   
   AND
   
   EDUINDP 789
   CAPSTONE PROJECT SEMINAR
   
   OR
   
   EDUINDP/READING/CIGENRL/HEALTHED/PEPROF/RECREATN 799
   THESIS RESEARCH

EMPHASIS – 18 UNITS IN CONSULTATION WITH ADVISOR IN ONE OF THE FOLLOWING AREAS. SOME EMPHASIS AREAS MAY REQUIRE ADDITIONAL CREDITS FOR LICENSURE:

A. ART EDUCATION

B. ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION

C. CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION

D. EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP

E. ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE/BILINGUAL EDUCATION

F. HEALTH, HUMAN PERFORMANCE AND RECREATION EMPHASIS

G. HEALTH, PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND COACHING EMPHASIS

H. INFORMATION, TECHNOLOGY AND LIBRARIES

I. READING