On line master degree program

ABSTRACT

The Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) graduate program has been housed in the Department of Geological Sciences since 1975. In recent years the program has undergone a renaissance due to several actors. Among these are the development of an Ohio State Department of Education science model tracking the national science education standards in content and inquiry, and the development of a series of competency tests given to all Ohio K-12 students at several grade levels that include a significant number of Earth/Space science questions. Collaboration between faculty in the Colleges of Science and Mathematics and Education and Human Services has resulted in the redesign of existing courses and the development of new courses that are aligned with the national science education standards for content, inquiry, and professional development of K-12 teachers. Restructuring of the program also included the development of on-line courses, evening hours for on campus course offerings, and summer field-based courses. K-12 educator participation in this Master's level professional development program has positively impacted departmental graduate enrollment figures, increased their understandings of science and technology, and enhanced the teaching of all sciences in their classrooms.

Keywords: Education-Graduate-Teacher Education

INTRODUCTION

In response to the call for reform of pre-service teacher education and the development of the National Science Education Standards (AAAS 1989,1994;NRC 1996) many institutions involved in the preparation of pre-service teachers have developed inquiry based courses in science expressly designed to serve future teachers. However, in-service K-12 teachers also need long term rofessional development in science content and inquiry used pedagogy if we are to make progress towards our national goal of a scientifically literate society. The national science education standards and the Ohio Competency-based Science Model (Ohio Department of Education 1994) placed Earth/Space science on an equal footing with the Physical and Life sciences. The Ohio Competency-based Science Model tracks the national science education standards in spirit and content, and suggests that Earth/Space science be taught in the science curriculum of all K-12 grade levels in Ohio. Earth/Space science questions form a significant portion of the science sections of the Ohio Proficiency Tests, and the Ohio Graduation Test. Passing the Ohio Graduation Test, administered in the Tenth grade, will soon become a graduation requirement. Passing the science portion of this high-stakes examination is difficult without a good working knowledge of Earth/Space science, and the ability to apply their understandings.

Many K-12 educators have had little Earth/Space science in their own academic backgrounds. They now find themselves in a position of having to teach a subject for which they have scant academic preparation. Short in-service workshops provide classroom teachers with much needed exposure to content and best practices in teaching science, but our experience has shown that there are limitations on the amount of material that can be covered in a short workshop. Post-workshop assessments indicate that although participants report that workshop topics have been folded into their science teaching, they perceive that without repeated, long term exposure to inquiry based science activities, they do not have the means to fundamentally change the way that they teach science. In order to meet the needs of K-12 educators for long term professional development, and to reach as many teachers as possible, the Department of Geological Sciences has restructured its Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) degree program. This restructuring has taken the form of the development of several inquiry based summer field experiences, the development of several asynchronous on-line courses, and the refinement of existing courses to reflect the content and process suggested by the national science education standards.

THE MASTER'S PROGRAM

The Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) degree program (MST) developed in 1975, is a hybrid program blending science and education. It is housed in the Department of Geological Sciences and the College of Science and Mathematics. The program requires participants to complete a total of 45 quarter hours of graduate credit. Up to 12 graduate credits can be earned by cousework taken in the College of Education and Human Services, and the remaining 33 quarter hours in the Department of Geological Sciences. As in most graduate programs, up to 12 quarters hours of graduate credit may be transferred in upon approval of the participants' graduate committee made up of faculty from both colleges. The Department of Geological Science offers the Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) degree to students possessing a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science degree from a recognized institution. The Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) program is available to teachers of all K-12 grade levels. Extensive undergraduate preparation in Earth and Space science is not an admission requirement. Because Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) students enter the degree program with widely different backgrounds and academic preparation in the scneices, programs of study are tailored to individual needs, and consider prior coursework and career plans and goals. Available courses are aligned with the National Science Teachers Association guidelines for the preparation of K-12 teachers, and include courses in Physical and Historical geology, natural resources, Earth systems, and oceanography. See Figure 1 for a typical 45 quarter hour program of study. A complete list of content courses available to participants in the Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) program is available on the Department of Geological Sciences web-site (http:// www.wright.edu/geology). Although the MST program is non-thesis, a capstone independent study project is required. This project is conceived and developed with the support of a faculty advise ent committee, and the project usually takes the form of a project combining Earth and Space science content , pedagogy, and assessment of K-12 student learning. Participants are encouraged to take education courses (e.g. in authentic assessment strategies) that support their research. A two quarter hour course taken in the first quarter of the academic year assists program participants in developing ideas for their projects, and writing project proposals that include a project synopsis, literature search, timeline, and assessment plan. Examples of recent Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) projects include the development of a stream monitoring program for middle school students, assessing the impact of techology on elementary school students Earth and Space science learning, and a classroom action research project to assess the efficacy of Earth and Space science laboratories in a high school classroom. The goal of the independent capstone projects in all cases is the development of reflective teaching practices by classroom teachers.

The Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) degree program has undergone substantial growth in the past several years (Figure 2) as a result of the convergence of several factors. These are:

* The development of distance learning courses allows teachers outside the traditional sending area of Wright State University to become MST program participants.

* The advent of high-stakes testing in Ohio now requires that K-12 teachers add Earth/Space science to every grade level.

* Increased Ohio Department of Education requirements for K-12 educator professional development, culminating in the equivalent of a graduate degree within ten years of entering the profession.

* Restructuring of the times that MST program courses are offered to make them more user friendly".

Participant feedback reveals that the focus on inquiry based learning and content focused on their needs as professional educators is a strong determinant in their choice of the MST program. To give a sense of how specific courses meet these needs, two detailed descriptions of field based courses will be discussed, as well as an overview of the distance learning component of the Master of Science in Teaching (Earth Science) program.