B.A./M.A. in Educational Innovation — Elementary Education
Degree Requirements
In addition to the requirements below for the B.A. in Educational Foundations, students need to satisfy the general requirements for a bachelor’s degree.
For a B.A. in Educational Foundations, 32 credits are required:
- ED 400 Theory and Practice of Consciousness-Based Education
Consciousness-Based Education is the approach developed by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi to restore knowledge of the knower as the foundation and the goal of education. The course introduces the principles, practices, and a broad overview of the research on this approach to education. (2 credits)
- ED 420 The Neurophysiology of Learning and Development
This course has two parts: the first deals with theories of human development; the second deals with theories of learning, both introduced in the context of neurophysiological development. The first part of the course looks at theories of both cognitive and affective development and deals with topics such as factors influencing development, endpoints of development, and the nature of intelligence. The second part of the course focuses both on cognitive and behavioral views of learning. Topics include classical and operant conditioning, social learning, information processing, problem solving, creativity, and constructivism. (4 credits)
- ED 430 Technology in the Service of Learning
Introduces students to the range of educational technologies being used in schools today and a number of technologies that have not yet made their way into common use. Technologies studied include the interactive whiteboard, video capture of lecture or student presentation, podcasting, social media, and various Web 2.0 resources. Students add technologies to their existing repertoire and learn to evaluate the appropriateness of technologies for educational goals. (4 credits)
- ED 407 Stability and Change in American Education
Explores the history of American Education, its traditions and its efforts to reform and improve. Students also learn about Consciousness-Based Education as a part of this reform effort. They study research on educational innovations with promise for improving school performance. Other topics include school law, structure of American education, major legislative initiatives, basics of reading educational research.
- ED 440 Building Community
Introduces the sociology of community life and the factors that affect the health of communities. Students learn about strongly and weakly cohesive communities and strategies that schools can adopt to strengthen a community and support students and their families. Topics include the indicators of stress and health in a community, service learning, ecology of learning, and coherence of collective consciousness. (2 credits)
- ED 460 Consciousness-Based Curriculum and Evaluation Design
Students learn to plan a unit of instruction using the approach of “backward design,” in the context of Consciousness-Based Education. The primary tools of CBE learned are the Unified Field Chart, the main point chart, and the course overview chart. The course also introduces the fundamental principles and methods for creating classroom assessments. (4 credits)
- ED 470 Mastering Classroom Management
Students learn the fundamental principles and strategies of classroom management in the context of American schools. Students learn to respond quickly and intelligently to common dilemmas of classroom life, both in written form and in role playing scenarios. Topics include the rationale for classroom management, building relationships, getting organized, planning the first month, motivation, addressing minor and major infractions, and addressing chronic behavior problems.
- ED 493 Elementary Reading & Language Arts
- ED 426 Teaching with Learner Differences in Mind
Several kinds of differences are introduced in this course, but the two explored in most depth are differences of gifted and handicapped students, and differences due to ethnic and social backgrounds. The course meets the Iowa topics to be covered as part of a Human Relations component, including the values, life styles, history, and contributions of various identifiable subgroups in our society; federal and state civil rights legislation, and legislation protecting the rights of exceptional children. (4 credits)
For the M.A. in Educational Innovation (Elementary Education Track), students must complete an additional 36 credits:
- ED 527 Children’s Literature
Students learn to evaluate children’s books and to develop a comprehensive reading program for the elementary school classroom. Topics include criteria of selection, story telling, reading warm-up and follow-up, motivating children to read, and designing a reading program. (2–4 credits)
- ED 573 Teaching Elementary Social Studies
This course presents an introduction to social studies, including methods and materials. Topics include designing units and lessons, aligning curriculum with national standards and the Iowa Core Curriculum, project-based learning, and assessment. (4 credits)
- ED 5741 Arts Integration in the Elementary School
Intelligence through Art, Music and Drama This course develops the concept of the arts as fundamental to enhancing learning, thinking and creativity. It gives elementary teachers a foundation in art methods and materials, music methods and materials, and projects and performances in drama. Topics include: the impact of the arts on student learning, how to integrate the visual and performing arts with other subjects, how to design successful art, music and drama projects. Course participants will design and teach art, music and drama lessons to elementary students. (3 credits)
- ED 575 Teaching Elementary Health and Physical Education
This course introduces teaching methods for elementary physical education. Topics include strategies for teaching physical education in accordance with the stages of children’s motor development, classroom management, lesson planning, and holistic health and fitness. (1 credit)
- ED 560 Teaching Elementary Science
This course provides the teacher with research-based strategies to develop a scientific approach and scientific problem-solving abilities in elementary school children. Topics include novice and expert science concepts, cognitive development, and science methods and materials in the elementary school. (variable credits) Prerequisites: ED 548, ED 526
- ED 554 Teaching Elementary Mathematics
This course introduces teaching methods for arithmetic, computation, and basic mathematical concepts. Topics include strategies for teaching mathematics in accordance with the stages of children’s cognitive development and for teaching pre-number and number concepts, place value and numeration, whole numbers, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. (variable credits) Prerequisites: ED 548, ED 526
- ED 568 Student Teaching in the Elementary School
This course develops effective teaching skills through daily observation, planning, teaching, and evaluation in the classroom. Course work includes weekly seminars, regular observations, written and oral analyses of teaching, critiques by supervising and cooperating teachers and by the student teacher. (variable credits — may be repeated) Prerequisite: consent of the department
The content of this page was reviewed in February 2011.
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