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Courses

The Middle Grades Mathematics Education (6-9), M.A. Ed. program requires 12 semester hours of professional studies, 21 semester hours of mathematics speciality courses, and 6 semester hours dedicated to a capstone experience for a total of 39 semester hours.

Course Descriptions

Professional Studies Core

EDN 5470: Advanced Classroom Management (3 credits)

This course is designed to develop graduate students’ knowledge base related to the theory and techniques of classroom management. Emphasis is placed on how those understandings can be utilized to establish a positive and respectful learning environment for all students. A variety of classroom management programs are examined and evaluated.

EDN 5480: Advanced Foundations of American Education (3 credits)

This course focuses on the multicultural 21st-century classroom and its foundations in educational philosophy and educational psychology. Course activities are designed to nurture the professional disposition for critical self-reflection and to develop the theoretical knowledge base that undergirds best practices in the classroom. Emphasis is placed on promoting positive learning outcomes for all students.

EDN 5490: Effective Educational Leadership (3 credits)

This course is designed to nurture and develop practitioners as leaders in their classrooms, in their schools, in their professions, in their communities, and in the broader society. The primary focus is on teachers as leaders in the teaching-learning process. Graduate students will begin their leadership projects in this course.

EDN 5660: Applied Educational Research (3 credits)

Emphasis is on understanding research designs and methods in education including an introduction to elementary statistics, interpreting and critiquing professional research literature, using research findings to validate and modify decisions about teaching and learning, and conducting action research in the classroom, school, and community. Field experience required.

Math Speciality Requirements

MATE 5500 - Curriculum Development and Evaluation in Mathematics Education (3 credits)

A critical study of current issues, trends, and the design and evaluation of curriculum in mathematics education. Students will develop, use, and evaluate a teaching unit as a major part of the work in this course. Required of all master’s candidates in mathematics education.

MATE 5530 - Teaching Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Techniques (3 credits)

This course strengthens the student’s mathematical problem‑solving ability by extensive work with non‑routine problems that can be solved by elementary methods. General strategies for creative problem‑solving will be emphasized. Meaningful ways of dealing with such problems in the secondary school classroom will constitute a significant part of the course. Required of all master’s candidates in mathematics education.

MATE 5990 - Professional Development and Leadership Seminar (3 credits)

A capstone experience for mathematics teachers. Candidates will successfully complete a comprehensive research-based project in mathematics education by integrating knowledge gained throughout the program into a final conceptual framework. The project may take the form of a thesis or a comprehensive portfolio and will incorporate educational research. This project will include the candidate’s plans for future professional development. Each candidate will give an oral presentation of his or her completed comprehensive project for review by the graduate faculty in the mathematics department.

MATH 5060 - Probability and Statistics for the Secondary Mathematics Teacher (3 credits)

The emphasis of this course will be on understanding various statistical concepts and techniques including measures of central tendency, correlation coefficients, hypothesis testing, analysis of variance, and inferential statistics. The fundamentals of probability that will be discussed include univariate and multivariate distributions, expectation, conditional distributions, and the law of large numbers.

MATH 5080 - Technology in Mathematics Education (3 credits)

An inservice course in the comparison and evaluation of computer hardware configurations and computer software packages for the classroom. The mechanics of setting up a computer network. A consideration of the effect that computers in the classroom have on curriculum development. A laboratory experience will be an integral part of the course.

MATH 5110 - Advanced Topics in Geometry (3 credits)

Topics chosen to improve the secondary mathematics teacher’s mastery, breadth of knowledge, and appreciation of classical geometry. Content variable, but chosen to minimize duplication with recent and current MAT 4110 classes.

MATH 5210 - Analysis I for Mathematics Teachers (3 credits)

A brief survey of the principal ideas and techniques of Calculus. Intended as a refresher course for high school teachers who feel the need for an understanding of Calculus in order to prepare their students for college work.

MATH 5220 - Analysis II for Mathematics Teachers (3 credits)

A continuation of MATH 5210. This course continues developing the principal ideas and techniques of Calculus. Advanced topics covered may include selected topics from the real number system involving open and closed sets, covering properties, Borel sets. Additional topics: measurable sets and measurable functions, Lebesque measure and integration, and LP spaces.

MATH 5410 - Advanced Topics in Abstract Algebra (3 credits)

Two- and three-dimensional linear algebra over the numbers; geometric interpretations; and topics from group, ring, and field theory that have implications to the secondary curriculum.

MATH 5420 - Special Topics in Discrete Mathematics (3 credits)

This course will cover applications of Discrete Mathematics and such discrete techniques as are currently found at the secondary level. This course will also cover content chosen from classical Number Theory that extends beyond what students learned in undergraduate courses.

Middle Grades Capstone Courses

MATE 5600 - Advanced Classroom Instruction in Mathematics Education (3 credits)

An advanced study of the theoretical bases of mathematical instruction, including philosophical and psychological concerns. Instructional theories from the field of mathematics education will be examined, together with the research that supports these theories.

MATE 5660 - Advanced Educational Research in Mathematics Education (3 credits)

Emphasis is on understanding research designs and methods in mathematics education. Students will apply statistical methods to interpret and present data in a professional research method. Students will use experience gained here to develop a comprehensive research-based project as their capstone experience.