The Master of Arts in Education and Professional Development provides a comprehensive professional development program with four distinct areas of concentration:

1. Early Childhood Education
2. Elementary School Teaching and Learning
3. Reading
4. Teaching at the Middle Level

The Master of Arts in Education and Professional Development is designed to enhance the knowledge and skill of reflective practitioners for a variety of educational settings.  It is our belief that teachers ought to be developed as leaders, change agents, intellectuals, researchers, and learners.  They should be passionate learners who embrace diversity, actively inquire and reflect upon their own practice, nurture the development of new knowledge and skills, and weave the complexities of modern society into the learning process.  This is accomplished through a process of continuous professional, intellectual, and social growth within an interrelated spiral of academic content preparation, professional knowledge, pedagogical skill, and guided practice.  The Master of Arts in Education and Professional Development is predicated on the assumption that theory, research, policy, and practice must be integrated on an equal plane to provide innovative models that lead to the improvement of teaching, learning, and reflective practice.

Reflective practice suggests that teachers should be able to demonstrate professional expertise appropriate for their level of experience.  They need to have the ability to analyze their own teaching, inquire into how teaching can be improved, and develop strategies to improve teaching that build on individual strengths.  Reflective practitioners must also be able to situate their practice within the social, cultural, and economic dimensions of relationships among schooling, society, and the natural environment.  It requires teachers to examine, interpret, and evaluate the teaching-learning process using the best practices described by research and experience as the referent for reflection.

Admission Requirements

1. Undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 = A); graduate grade point average may be accepted upon review of recent and relevant course work completed at an accredited institution.
2. A written statement of purpose (1,000 to 1,500 words) outlining the applicant’s philosophy of teaching and professional goals.  The statement of purpose should indicate the candidate’s career expectations and reasons for seeking admission to the program.
3. Congruence of applicant’s goals and requested program concentration.
4. Two letters of recommendation from persons able to judge the applicant’s potential to succeed in a graduate program.
5. Experience working in a professionally related setting.

Additional requirements, such as possession of a valid Michigan Teaching Certificate or equivalent at the appropriate level, may be required for some areas of concentration.

Candidates who meet all admissions criteria will be considered for admission to the program by the appropriate departmental unit.  Because admission to some areas of concentration is governed by the number of available openings, the admission criteria listed above should be considered as minimum standards.

Upon admission, each student will be assigned an advisor who will assist in the preparation of a program of study.  The program of study should be completed during the first semester of enrollment.

A maximum of nine appropriate Western Michigan University graduate credits taken before admission may be applied to the Master of Arts in Education and Professional Development with advisor approval.