| Program
Description |
Admission
to the Program |
Graduate College |
Course
Rotation |
| Capstone
Options |
Graduation
Information |
Contact Program Chair |
Related
Links |
The Professional Education Core is
required for all graduates and
provides a strong core of knowledge and skills that are necessary for
professional teachers. The advisor will
assess teacher knowledge and skills in consultation with the teacher
and
determine the remaining course work for the degree plan.
Below are two sample courses of study. One
is for a middle school science teacher
with an Elementary Education Degree and the other is for a high school
science teacher
who has a strong science background.
Middle
School
Science Teacher with Elementary Education Degree
In most cases the teacher, unless he or
she has taken
additional science courses, would benefit from additional science
content. A typical degree plan would
include 18 hours
of additional science content. Nine
hours from the Science Content Core and nine hours from the Guided
Electives. These courses include Investigative
Biology, Inquiry into Environmental Science, Inquiry
into the
Physical Sciences I, Inquiry into the Physical Sciences II,
Inquiry
into Geology, and Astronomy for Teachers.
These courses were designed to teach the
competencies in the Framework for the Middle Level Science Oklahoma
Subject
Area Test using reformed based methods.
The capstone experience is completed near the end of the course
of
study. (Note that this plan would also
be appropriate for elementary teachers wish to become science
specialists.)
High
School Science
Teacher with Strong Science Background
Some teachers may need to expand their
science
knowledge by taking course work in a weak science content area for some
their
nine Science Content Core hours. For
instance they may not have had an astronomy course and want to take Astronomy
for Teachers, or they may want to broaden their knowledge
concerning
environmental science by taking Environmental Biology. However, many applicants with strong science
backgrounds will expand their ability to design and guide inquiries by
taking
the Research course (which may be repeated for credit) and Data
Analysis. In Research,
teachers will participate in ongoing faculty research and will have the
opportunity to gather, analyze, and interpret data under the mentorship
of a
science faculty member. Data Analysis
focuses on how to collect, analyze, and interpret data.
The remaining course work will be selected
with advisor approval from the following courses listed under Guided
Electives:
Instructional Strategies, Advanced Educational Measurements,
Cognitive
Learning Styles, Advanced Technology in Education, and Modern
Philosophies of Education. The
selection of courses will be based on the needs of the individual
student. The credit requirements of the
program are
summarized below.
Summary of
Graduate Credits Required for M.Ed. in Science Education
|
|
Number of Graduate Hours |
|
Total Number of Graduate Hours Required
for the Degree |
35 |
|
Professional Education Core |
15 |
|
Science Content Core (with advisor
approval) |
9 |
|
Guided Electives (with advisor approval) |
9 |
|
Capstone Experience |
2 |
Schedules
for M.Ed. in Science Education
Cohorts Beginning Summer 2005
The table below has
a
recommended course of study for Graduate Students in the M.Ed. in
Science
Education. These course sequences will
enable students to complete the degree in three years plus one summer. Courses in bold should be
taken at the designated time, or graduation will
take longer. There is some flexibility
with courses that are not in bold.
However, not all courses are offered each semester.
Therefore, taking them out of sequence may
delay graduation.
|
Cohort & Track |
Summer 2005 |
Fall 2005 |
Spring 2006 |
Summer 2006 |
Fall 2006 |
Spring 2007** |
Summer 2007 |
|
Cohort 1
Track 1 (Primarily Teachers
with Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education, or Special
Education Degrees.) |
SCI
5443: Trends
& Issues in Science Education (T & BA) SCI
5413:
Astronomy for Teachers (T) SCI
5123: Inquiry
into Geology (T) Take
MAT or GRE |
EDUC
5103:
Educational Research (T, M & BA) |
EDUC 5753: Advanced Educational Psychology (T & BA) File
for Candidacy |
SCI
5513: Inquiry
Based Instruction in Science Education (T & BA) SCI
5313: Inquiry
into the Physical Sciences I (T) BIOL
5213:
Investigative Biology (T) |
EDUC 5403: Fundamentals of Curriculum Design I (T
& BA) Develop
Capstone Proposal with advice and approval of Advisor. |
SCI
5992:
Capstone (School Site) Request
Final Degree Check Submit
Capstone Documentation. Apply
for Graduation. |
SCI
5323: Inquiry
into the Physical Sciences II (T) BIOL
5232: Inquiry
into Environmental Biology (T) |
|
Cohort 1
Track 2 (Primarily Teachers
with Science Education or Science Degrees) |
SCI
5443: Trends
& Issues in Science Education (T & BA) Approved
Science Content course (T) OR SCI
5533: Science
Research (May be repeated for credit) (T & BA) Take
MAT or GRE |
EDUC
5103:
Educational Research (T, M & BA) EDUC 5463*: Instructional Strategies (T & M) OR EDUC 5823*: Advanced Technology in Education (BA) |
EDUC 5753: Advanced Educational Psychology (T & BA) EDUC 5463*: Instructional Strategies (T & BA) OR EDUC 5823*: Advanced Technology in Education (M) File
for Candidacy |
SCI
5513: Inquiry
Based Instruction in Science Education (T & BA) Approved
Science Content course (T) OR SCI
5533: Science
Research (May be repeated for credit) (T & BA) |
EDUC 5403: Fundamentals of Curriculum Design I (T
& BA) EDUC 5483*: Advanced Educational Measurement (T &
BA) Develop
Capstone Proposal with advice and approval of Advisor. |
SCI
5992: Capstone
(School Site) Request
Final Degree Check Submit
Capstone Documentation. Apply
for graduation. |
Approved
Science Content course (T) or SCI
5533: Science
Research (May be repeated for credit) (T & BA) |
Recommended course. Students may substitute an approved Guided
Elective. Please consult your individual
degree plan.
**If you are doing
National
Board Certification for your Capstone, you should take the courses
listed here
earlier in the program. Please see your
advisor.
T stands for
offered on
Tahlequah campus. M stands for Muskogee
Campus. BA stands for offered on
All applicants to the M.Ed. in Science
Education must first be admitted
to the
1.
An
earned
bachelors degree from an accredited college or university.
2.
Scores
no more
than five years old on either the Miller Analogies Test (MAT) or the
Graduate
Record Exam (GRE).
3.
A
grade point
average of at least 2.5 based on a 4.0 scale on all undergraduate
course work
attempted.
4.
Proof
of
citizenship for a
5.
A
score of 550 or
more on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) for all
applicants,
The following additional prerequisites to
begin the M.Ed. in Science
Education program also apply:
1.
Have
an earned
grade point average of at least 3.0 based on a 4.0 system for the last
60 hours
of course work attempted at either the undergraduate or graduate level;
or
attain a raw score of 383 or more on the Miller Analogies Test; or
attain a
score of 900 (verbal plus quantitative) or more on the Graduate Record
Examination.
2.
Hold
or be
eligible for a standard teaching certificate or teaching license or be
eligible
for an alternative certification program with a plan of study for
certification
on file with NSU’s Office of Teacher Certification and the
An applicant who has not met admission
requirements may be admitted for
one semester on a tentative (temporary) basis. An applicant may
continue in the
program beyond the first enrollment only if admission requirements are
met. Otherwise, any course work completed
may not apply in the program.
Note: These degrees are not structured for
the purpose of initial teacher
certification.
Admission
to
Candidacy
Students are eligible to be admitted to
candidacy if they have:
1.
Completed
all
requirements for admission to the
2.
Been
formally
admitted to the Masters of Education Degree in Science Education.
3.
Completed
a
minimum of 12 semester hours, or a maximum of 18 hours of the degrees
as
described by the plans of study.
4.
Satisfactorily
completed EDUC 5103, Educational Research.
5.
Maintained
a
grade point average of at least 3.0 in all graduate course work taken
prior to
candidacy.
6.
Completed
academic requirements for a standard teaching certificate.
7.
Filed
a plan of
study (degree plan) approved by the advisor and the Dean of the
8.
Filed
a
Statement of Understanding, signed by the student and advisor, with the
Students are advised to meet candidacy
requirements within the first 16
semester hours of their program. These
requirements must be met within the first 24 semester hours. In any event, 16 semester hours toward the
Master of Education degrees must be completed after being admitted to
candidacy.
Advisement
Upon admittance to the
Transfer
Credit
A maximum of nine semester hours of
approved transfer credit may be
applied toward the masters degree.
Students who wish to transfer credit applicable to a degree
program at
Retention
A capstone experience is an academic
activity that encourages the use of
skills learned and knowledge gained in one or more areas of field of
study. It is a culminating experience
that goes beyond the course work required of the Master of Education
degree and
should be completed near the end of the student’s program (after at
least 26
hours of course work.) Capstone
experiences for the Science Education program will have a significant
writing
component and may include satisfactorily completing one of the
following:
1.
A
teaching
portfolio that may be submitted for National
Board Certification in a science certification
area.
2.
An
applied
research project, or action research project, on the student’s own
science teaching
and a research paper discussing the project and its findings.
3.
A
science curriculum
project that requires students to apply skills and knowledge acquired
in the
program.
Dr. Adams Web Page
PASS Objectives
National
Science Education Standards
Eisenhower National Clearinghouse
Southwest Educational Development
Laboratory
National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards
Inquiry Science Lesson Plans
http://www.unf.edu/coehs/inquiry/plans.html
http://www.nhptv.org/kn/vs/scilabq.htm
http://arapaho.nsuok.edu/~vothbl/ScienceSitesActivity.htm
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fosrec/Matrix.html
http://www.altavista.com
Go to this web site and do a search for "inquiry science lesson plans".
Science Teacher
Professional Organizations
Northeastern Oklahoma
Mathematics and Science Teacher Association (NOMSTA)
Annual
Meeting is held the last Saturday of January each year at Northeastern
State University.
Oklahoma Science
Teacher Association
National Science Teacher Association
American Association of Physics Teachers
National Association of Biology Teachers
School Science and Mathematics Association
Science Education
Research Organizations
Association for the Education of
Teachers in Science
National Association for Research in
Science Teaching
Other K-12 Teacher Resources
Oklahoma Climatalogical Survey
(Mesonet Data)