CAGS in Developmental Studies—Literacy & Language Education
The Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS) is designed for professionals who hold a master’s degree in education or a related field and who wish to increase their knowledge of research, theory, and practice in literacy and language. A program of 32 credits comprises study of literacy and language acquisition and at least one research course. A final project that affords the candidate the opportunity to apply research and theory to practice completes the course of study.
About the Literacy & Language Specialization
The Literacy & Language Education Specialization is designed for graduate students interested in research and practice in literacy and language in public and non-public education settings. The course of study addresses research and theory that informs the acquisition, development, and use of language and literacy in home, school, and community settings. Upper-level undergraduate students may elect graduate-level courses with the approval of their advisor and Literacy & Language Education faculty.
Most of the students who enroll in the Literacy & Language Education specialization are interested in practice, research, or policy-making in public or private educational settings. Those who enter the program are diverse in background experience: some are licensed educators with experience in public-school settings; others hold undergraduate or graduate degrees in fields other than education and have had experiences in various educational settings, including private or community education settings or organizations such as Peace Corps and Teach for America. Many are international students whose experiences are in public- or private-school settings in their own countries.
Students who choose the specialization in Literacy & Language Education are also diverse in their primary area of interest, and in addition to those whose interest is literacy, the population of students also includes those with interests in TESOL, Bilingual Education, and Deaf Studies.
Unlike the Reading Education Program, the Literacy & Language Education specialization does not offer students the opportunity to meet state licensure requirements.
Therefore, although there is substantial overlap with the Reading Education Program in the course of study, students in Literacy & Language Education are not required to complete the field experiences required to meet licensure requirements. For those who do not intend to become school-based practitioners, this is an important difference in the course of study.
