International Educational Development

EdM Program in International Educational Development

The International Educational Development Program (IEDP) at Boston University has been an intensive 40-credit program that prepared graduates to work with government and nongovernment agencies. It examined the role of education in different cultural, political, and economic settings both internationally and in the United States. Emphasis was placed on education for different segments of the population, in school and nonschool settings. Educational systems were viewed as critical to development programs in all sectors of social and economic life. The Educational Leadership and Development Cluster has recommended, and the School of Education Faculty has approved, the closure of the well-known International Educational Development Program (IEDP) at the end of the 2011-2012 academic year.

To date, approximately 58 percent of IEDP graduates have been international students; most students from the U.S. have had overseas or U.S. development experience. The program includes three semesters of study, including a fieldwork experience, writing a funding proposal, and a thesis. Generally, our students enter the program in September and complete their studies in three semesters, taking a core curriculum that examines the various perspectives (cultural, political, economic, epistemological, pedagogical) in education for development as well as fieldwork in an agency or institution. Depending on the thesis topic, some students request a fourth semester to defend their thesis.

The following courses are required:

• SED IE 600 Perspectives on Education for Development
• SED IE 601 Analysis of Education Policies and Practices for Development
• SED IE 602 Practicum and Seminar: The Practice of Education for Development
• SED IE 603 Project Analysis and Planning for Educational Development
• SED IE 604 Project Seminar: Current Educational Development Issues
• SED RS 600 Perspectives on Inquiry
• 12 graduate-level credits from anywhere in the University or area universities in the student’s field of specialization