What is a Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction?
A question you might have on your mind is: why a degree in curriculum and instruction, why not early childhood education, or middle grades? Well, this is only a question YOU can answer. One reason the curriculum and instruction degree is a great degree is because of all of the variety of learning you will obtain. The variety of classes you will receive focus on a myriad of ideas and topics related to K-12 grade levels.
The program at Thomas University gears its students to have an authentic classroom setting sitting at home on your couch. Thomas University’s master’s degree in curriculum and instruction’s purpose is to give all students across the state of Georgia and surrounding states the opportunity to learn in a non-traditional way. This non-traditional way is through online teaching.
What You’ll Learn in a Curriculum and Instruction Program
One goal that a lot of people have on their mind when they are entering into a master’s program is: how much money will I get when I receive my degree? This is not a goal; this is an advantage when earning a master’s degree. The master’s in curriculum and instruction’s goal is to help you better understand your curriculum, data, educational theorists, and technology use.
The goal of understanding your curriculum is huge. Teachers have so much going on that sometimes it can be difficult to have time to just sit and look through our school’s or district’s curriculum. Having a class that has you take your own curriculum and analyze it is extremely helpful. Not only do you get to analyze it, but others get to look at it, and you receive feedback from a professor.
DATA, DATA, DATA. This is something that all teachers hear and see. There is so much data that we drown in it sometimes. All of your classes in the curriculum and instruction program at Thomas University will help students learn how to collect and read data in a manageable way.
I will tell you, the educational theories are probably the hardest thing to learn in the program. BUT, I will tell you it is one of the biggest parts of a degree in curriculum and instruction. Not only does it help with the success of passing the GACE test for curriculum and instruction; it also helps you understand the importance of choices you make every day in a classroom.
By understanding the different theorists, teachers can make better decisions about how to face certain situations in a classroom, such as when asking questions. It is important to have the one-answer response questions, but it is essential to dig deeper with the students. By understanding Benjamin Bloom and Bloom’s Taxonomy of Hierarchical thinking, teachers can understand their students better.
My favorite part of the curriculum and instruction program at Thomas University was my technology class. One goal that you should have in mind is how you are going to stay ahead of your students in technology. This might not be something on your mind, but it is something that teachers are facing today.
Advantages of a Curriculum and Instruction Degree
Of course, the number one advantage of earning a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction is the increase in salary, but it is definitely not the only advantage. The knowledge gained from the master’s program is incredibly huge, especially the program through Thomas University. Throughout the program, I learned about how important research is, which helps you gain more professional knowledge. I grew in my leadership capabilities and improved in the way I collaborate with others.
One advantage that people receive from a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction is professional knowledge. The conversations that I had my first few years of teaching were always somewhat confusing. The more education I received the easier the conversations became. I was able to talk about good data, bad data, and reflect with others. I understand now what makes something reliable and accurate. Everything that I listed in the prior section was not only goals but advantages too. By achieving and reaching goals that I did not know might have been goals to begin with, I have gained so much knowledge for myself and to share with others.
Which leads me to my next advantage: leadership. Putting yourself in a leadership role will help to go through the master’s program of curriculum and instruction. The idea of receiving this degree is to gain professional knowledge, but it also lends itself to the students becoming leaders in education. When taking the GACE assessment to receive the certificate upgrade, the tester has to put themselves in the shoes of a leader, not a classroom teacher. In some cases, the answer a classroom teacher would give might not be the same answer an instructional coach or administrator would give.
The program focuses on all types of roles of educators. Whether it is a homeroom teacher, early intervention program teacher, English language learner teacher, special education teacher, instructional coach, or administrator, everyone can learn from this program. I have become a leader in the schools that I have worked at. I led the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) system for a whole middle school. I give all the credit to the degree I earned at Thomas University. The PBIS system I became the leader of is what I wrote about in the class in which I had to create a grant idea. I also learned so much in my instructional technology class, which has given me the knowledge to be a technology contact in my school.
The last advantage that an educator will receive from the master’s degree in curriculum and instruction is how to collaborate with others more confidently and efficiently. Even though this program is solely online, a student still receives the most authentic learning. I worked with people from more than three school districts and learned so much from them. It gave me the confidence to be able to speak with others from different schools and different districts about our struggles and successes in our own settings.
Also, Thomas University uses a program called Zoom to administer classes. This was something new that they were trying when I first started. This program was awesome and was super easy to use. The classes were able to break into small groups and work, just like if you were in a classroom. By Thomas University staying on top of new trends in technology, they were able to run their classes more efficiently, which entailed showing the students how to run their classes more efficiently.
There are so many great educational experiences that students can receive from gaining a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Thomas University. This program not only stays ahead of the curve in technology but also keeps up with the ongoing trends that we see in America’s schools today.
Want to further your education and progress your career? Explore our M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction program and enroll today!