Center Story

Master of Education Program Revisions Approved by School of Education

August 31, 2011 - Union University’s School of Education has been busily working to further enrich its degree offerings in relation to 21 st Century learning needs and contemporary educational culture. The work, formally known as the Union University Teacher Education Initiative (UUTEI), is an internal, comprehensive program evaluation aiming to make changes relevant to the needs of today’s educational environment.

On August 29, the School of Education approved and sent on to the next phase of the university’s governance structure a significantly revised and enhanced M.Ed. degree. The new M.Ed. degree models not only relevant curriculum for teachers and school leaders, but it also incorporates dynamic processes like increased technology integration, reflective teaching lessons, and standards-based performance assessment. The recent approval was based on months of work and related discussions, which most recently culminated in proposals and analysis among deans, directors, and faculty members at a departmental retreat held at the Double Tree hotel in Jackson, TN on August 15-16, 2011.

The framework for the UUTEI initiative is based on the work of Dr. Thomas R. Rosebrough, executive dean of the College of Education and Human Studies, and Dr. Ralph G. Leverett, university professor of special education and director of the Master of Education program in Jackson. Their work was recently published by ASCD and is titled, Transformational Teaching in the Information Age: Making How and Why We Teach Relevant to Students.

Underlying the revisions to the M.Ed. program are what Rosebrough and Leverett have identified as the tenants of transformational teaching: Effective teachers need to be scholars, practitioners, and relaters in their work with students. These components emphasize that teachers and today’s system of education need to embrace rigor, relevance, and relationships among students.

Dr. Stephen R. Marvin, director of the M.Ed. program on Union University’s Germantown, TN campus, is chairing the graduate education committee for the UUTEI. Dr. Marvin states, “We are very excited about the proposed significant changes to our M.Ed. program and the impact those changes will have on our students as they increasingly develop as classroom teachers and school administrators.” The changes will affect and be aligned across all three of Union’s campuses, which are located in Jackson, Germantown, and Hendersonville, TN.

The proposed changes are pending the approval of the university’s governance structure and are only the start of such proposals to be made by the School of Education and its UUTEI work.

Dr. Stephen R. Marvin, chair of the Graduate UUTEI committee, discusses proposed changes to the Teaching and Learning track of the revised M.Ed. program. Dr. Michele W. Atkins, chair of the Undergraduate UUTEI committee, presents a proposed video-integration strategy for use within the teacher education program. Dr. Ben T. Phillips, Ed.S. and Ed.D. Director on Union’s Jackson, TN campus, shares the details of a new Instructional Leadership track to the revised M.Ed. program.