Education: Middle/Secondary Education, MEd with Initial Licensure

Core 1: Curriculum Core (12–15 credits)

• EDC G 606 Sociocultural Foundations of Education (This class may be taken in pre-practicum core.)  
• EDC G 630 Inclusion, K-12
• EDC G 644 Dvlp Stgs:Chld-Adlsc
• EDC G 648 New Literacies and Emerging Technologies across the Content Areas
• EDC G 660 Using Data to Plan Curriculum and Instruction

Core II: Pre-Practicum Core (6–15 credits)

Benchmark: In order to enroll in pre-practicum core courses, students apply and must meet the following criteria:

• Passing score on the Communication and Literacy Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL)
• Taken the appropriate Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL) subject area test.
• Completion of curriculum core courses with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (
  EDC G 606 Sociocultural Foundations of Education
    may be taken in pre-practicum core)

Pre-practicum report forms and reflection papers must be submitted with practicum applications to the Office of Field Experience and Licensure. Required for all middle/secondary licenses.

Core III: Practicum Core (6-9 credits)

Benchmark: In order to enroll in practicum core courses, students must apply and meet the following criteria:

• Passing score on the appropriate Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL) subject area test. (Evidence must be submitted to the Office of Field Experience.)
• Completion of curriculum core and pre-practicum core courses with a minimum GPA of 3.0
• Documentation of completion of 75 hours of prepracticum fieldwork. Prepracticum report forms and reflection papers must be submitted with practicum applications to the Office of Field Experience.
   

Core IV: Concentration Core

Students may take concentration courses at any point during their program of study subject to pre-requisites for individual courses.

Residency Programs in Elementary and Middle/Secondary Education with Initial Licensure

Teach Next Year

As an option within the MEd track with initial licensure: elementary or middle/secondary education, the Teach Next Year (TNY) course of study offers a limited number of individuals the opportunity to focus on urban education and earn the MEd in a calendar year. Teach Next Year is an intensive and highly selective full-time program. It features a full-school-year internship, with most graduate coursework completed onsite in the Boston and Randolph Public Schools. Most participants receive financial incentives provided, in part, by grants. Please contact the Department of Curriculum and Instruction for additional information.

Boston Teacher Residency Program

Aligned with TNY, the Boston Teacher Residency (BTR) program recruits talented college graduates, career changers, and community members of all ages and gives them the tools to make an immediate impact in the classrooms of the Boston Public Schools. Combining a yearlong classroom apprenticeship with targeted master’s-level coursework, the program provides every teacher resident with the practical learning, hands-on experience, and ongoing support essential to any successful career in teaching. For additional information, please contact the Boston Teacher Residency program.

Admission Requirements

Please see the general statement of admission requirements for all graduate studies programs in the “Admissions” section of this publication and the “Special Instructions for Applicants to Individual Programs” section of the application for admission to graduate study.

Please be advised that school prepractica and practica placement typically require a CORI.

The MEd Program will recommend admission for those applicants who present evidence of their ability to do graduate work with distinction. Such evidence will normally include:

• A distinguished undergraduate transcript, with a minimum overall GPA of 3.00
• Evidence of satisfactory grades in the major discipline (for middle/secondary education applicants, at least 3.00 in the discipline[s] to be taught)
• Two or three positive and informed letters of recommendation submitted by persons who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s potential success both as a graduate student and as a teacher. One such letter must be from someone who has been the applicant’s instructor in a college course. Another of the three letters should be from a person who serves, or has served, in a supervisory capacity to the candidate.
• Submission of MTEL scores, as detailed in the “Academic & Administrative Policies” section of this publication. For all Initial Licensure programs, applicants should take the Communication and Literacy MTEL
• The completion of a written statement demonstrating writing proficiency and including the following information:
  • The applicant’s specific professional goals;
  • The applicant’s reasons for wanting to become a teacher at the specific level and/or in the specific field for which licensure is being sought;
  • A statement showing the fit between the applicant and the College of Education and Human Development’s basic goal of preparing thoughtful and responsive educators committed to change for social justice. Describe experiences or values that have prepared you to become such an educator.
  • The applicant’s philosophy of education and thoughts about contemporary schools and current movements in education.