EdM in Language & Literacy Education

The non-licensure master’s degree program is designed for professionals who wish to study the theoretical and empirical knowledge of language and literacy education that informs policy, practice, and research in home, schools, and communities. Students choose one of the three specializations: (a) Language Education, (b) Literacy Education, or (c) American Sign Language (ASL) and Deaf Studies. The program of 32 credits comprises study of literacy development and language acquisition, with a strong emphasis on building on students’ linguistic and cultural backgrounds and on students’ development of bilingual/multilingual competence. This program does not lead to a teacher license. It is best suited for graduate students who have a clear sense of what they want to learn in their master’s program and wish to tailor their program of study to fit their educational needs and intellectual interests.

Unlike the Reading Education, TESOL-Licensure, Modern Foreign Language Education, and Deaf Education programs, the Language & Literacy Education program does not offer students the opportunity to meet state licensure requirements for teaching in public schools. Therefore, although there is substantial overlap with these licensure programs in the course of study, students in Language & Literacy Education are not required to complete the field experiences required to meet licensure requirements.

Learning Outcomes

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of representative language/literacy/deaf studies research and theory and the ability to critically analyze the literature.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of effective practices in language/literacy assessment and instruction.
• Demonstrate knowledge of new and multimodal texts (including ASL texts, when applicable) and their effects on language/literacy learning in school, family, and community contexts.
• Demonstrate knowledge of cognitive, sociocultural, socioemotional, economic, and political components of language/literacy learning in school, family, and community contexts.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of role of language and culture in the literacy development and learning of children and adolescents.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the evidence-based approaches to educating bilingual and multilingual learners.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of strategies for building on students’ linguistic and cultural backgrounds as assets in the learning process.

Program Requirements

Coursework (32 cr)

All Specializations

• SED RS 600 Introduction to Research (4 cr)

In consultation with an academic advisor, students design a program of 28 additional credits selected from the following course offerings:

Literacy Education

• SED BI 620 Educational Issues in Bilingualism (4 cr)
• SED LR 782 History of Reading Research (4 cr)
• SED LS 627 Critical Analysis of Children’s and Young Adult Literature (4 cr)
• SED LS 628 Exploring Picture Books for All Readers (4 cr)
• SED LS 629 Looking at YA Literature through Multiple Lenses (4 cr)
• SED LS 670 Multicultural Literacy Pre-K-Grade 12 (4 cr)
• SED LS 690 Classroom Discourse as a Teaching and Learning Tool in Diverse Classrooms (4 cr)
• SED LS 725 Discourse, Narrative, and Literacy (4 cr)
• SED LS 727 Topical Seminar in Literacy and Language (Variable cr)
• SED LS 750 Culture, Language & Cognition (4 cr)
• SED LS 762 Literacy Acquisition and Development: Addressing Strengths and Needs (4 cr)
• SED LS 763 Clinical Intervention (2 cr)
• SED LS 780 Reading Processes (4 cr)
• SED LS 781 Processes of Writing (4 cr)
• SED LS 790 Literacy Assessment to Inform Instruction (4 cr)
• SED LS 792 Teaching Adolescent Readers and Writers (4 cr)
• SED LS 793 School-Based Intervention (2 cr)
• SED LS 902 Seminar in Early Literacy (4 cr)
• SED LW 736 Teaching Writing in Elementary, Middle, and Secondary Schools (4 cr)

Language Education

• SED BI 515/TL 508 Methods in Bilingual Education/Methods in Teaching English as a Second Language (4 cr)
• SED BI 535 Literacy Development for English Learners: Instruction and Assessment (4 cr)
• SED BI 620 Educational Issues in Bilingualism (4 cr)
• SED LS 560 Introduction to Language and Language Acquisition (4 cr)
• SED LS 565 Applied Linguistics: Language and Linguistics Survey (4 cr)
• SED LS 610 Applied Phonology (4 cr)
• SED LS 626 Intercultural Communication (4 cr)
• SED LS 658 Second Language Acquisition (4 cr)
• SED LS 725 Discourse, Narrative, and Literacy (4 cr)
• SED LS 726 Discourse Analysis: Theoretical and Methodological Approaches (4 cr)
• SED LS 750 Culture, Language & Cognition (4 cr)
• SED TL 509 Foundations of TESOL Pedagogy (4 cr)
• SED TL 511 Methods of Teaching Modern Foreign Languages (4 cr)
• SED TL 512 Computer-Assisted Language Learning (4 cr)
• SED TL 520 Teaching English Language Learners (4 cr)

American Sign Language & Deaf Studies

Prerequisites (Note: Students will complete an ASL proficiency assessment prior to the first semester, which will be used to determine appropriate placement in ASL courses.)

• SED DE 581 American Sign Language I (4 cr)
• SED DE 582 American Sign Language II (4 cr)

Required Coursework

• SED DE 572 Social Psychology and the Deaf World (4 cr)
• SED DE 575 ASL Development in Deaf Children (4 cr)
• SED DE 583 American Sign Language III (4 cr)
• SED DE 584 American Sign Language IV (4 cr)
• SED DE 585 Academic ASL (2 cr)
• SED DE 586 Applied ASL (2 cr)

Additional Coursework

• SED DE 551 Teaching Deaf Literature and Visual Arts (4 cr)
• SED DE 573 Topics in Speech, Language, and Hearing for Deaf Educators (2 cr)
• SED DE 576 Bilingual ASL/English Development, Assessment, and Planning for Deaf Children (4 cr)
• SED DE 577 ASL/English Bilingual Instruction (4 cr)
• SED DE 578 ASL/English Literacy Instruction (4 cr)
• SED DE 672 Sign Language Structure (4 cr)
• SED DE 691 Advanced Seminar: Learning and the Deaf (4 cr)