Florida State University Graduate Bulletin 2007-2009
College of Education
Dean: Marcy P. Driscoll; Executive Associate Dean: David Foulk; Associate Deans: Barbara Edwards, Lynn Wicker
The primary purpose of the College of Education is to prepare administrators, teachers, educational researchers, educational policymakers, human services specialists, and other professional personnel for a wide range of educational careers in both public and private settings. In support of this purpose, the faculty of the college is committed to conducting research that contributes to the science of education; to the ongoing assessment and improvement of educational practice; and to the development of theory, policy, and execution of educational practice, both domestic and foreign. In order to accomplish this purpose the college offers master's, educational specialist, and doctoral degrees.
Florida State University's College of Education's conceptual framework is based on a model that engages faculty, professional partners and candidates in a continuing process of preparing educational leaders for a global and diverse society. The University prepares educational leaders to uphold high professional and academic standards, and employs scientific inquiry and assessment as a basis for the continual improvement of student learning. These qualities are developed as candidates study and work within a community of professional partners. The needs and abilities of diverse students are addressed through the use of appropriate instructional strategies and technologies.
The following programs have curricula which enable the college to meet its purpose.
Departments and Programs of the College of Education
Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies
Adult Education
Comprehensive Vocational Education
Educational Administration/Leadership
Evaluation and Measurement Research and Evaluation
Foundations of Education
History and Philosophy of Education
International/Intercultural Development Education
Social Science and Education
Higher Education
Institutional Research
Certificate in College Teaching
Certificate in Education Policy
Certificate in Human Resource Development
Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems
Combined Program in Counseling Psychology and School Psychology
Counseling and Human Systems School Psychology
Educational Psychology Sports Psychology
Educational Research and Testing Research Design and Statistics
Instructional Systems
Certificate in Educational Technology
Certificate in Online Instructional Development
Certificate in Program Evaluation
Department of Middle and Secondary Education
English Education
Health Education
Mathematics Education
Multilingual/Multicultural Education
Science Education
Social Science Education
Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
Department of Childhood Education, Reading, and Disability Services
Early Childhood Education
Elementary Education
Emotional Disturbance/Learning Disabilities
Education of the Mentally Handicapped
Reading Education and Language Arts
Rehabilitation Counseling
Special Education
Visual Disabilities
Certificate in Early Childhood/Special Education
Department of Sport Management, Recreation Management, and Physical Education
Physical Education
Recreation and Leisure Services Administration
The College of Education offers graduate degree programs in numerous fields of study. The programs prepare students for positions in a variety of professional settings and enterprises: elementary and secondary schools, junior colleges, and universities; vocational centers; organizations that provide counseling services; career development; personnel services; adult education; leisure services; athletic training; testing; evaluation and measurement; institutional research; policy studies; organizational design and development; needs assessment for systems planning; and instructional design, development, and evaluation. Each field of study allows the student to develop an individualized program of study around a core curriculum in a chosen degree program.
Most master's level and specialist degree programs require students to take a required core of courses, course work in an area of specialization, and a comprehensive examination and/or a thesis. Most full-time students require one or two years to complete a master's degree program. The doctoral degree programs are designed to provide educational experiences that enable students to acquire a thorough understanding of theoretical and methodological foundations of the discipline and related areas of specialization. Upon the completion of core requirements, students take preliminary examinations to certify their mastery of the knowledge base undergirding the practice of the discipline. Students seeking the doctoral degree must demonstrate their capacity to do original, independent, and integrative scholarly research by completing a dissertation.
Facilities and Opportunities
The College of Education houses two college-wide centers and six departmental research and service centers that provide research facilities and support research undertaken by faculty members and students. College-wide centers are the Center for Policy Studies in Education and Center for the Study of Teaching and Learning. Departmental research and service centers are the Center of Educational Research Evaluation Services, Center for the Study of Technology in Counseling and Career Development, the Hardee Center for Women in Higher Education, Community Education Services, Florida State University School, and Institute for the Studies in Higher Education. In addition to these, a University-wide center, the Learning Systems Institute, represents an interdisciplinary group of researchers in educational and experimental psychology, communications, policy studies, and management and is the nation's leading producer of instructional systems design technology for use in a variety of educational settings throughout the world. All of these research arms frequently hire graduate students from the College of Education to assist with state, federal, and international grants and to provide invaluable resources and opportunities for applied educational research.
Admission Standards
Students considered for admission to the college must present either a 3.0 grade point average (GPA) for their junior/senior years as an undergraduate or a score of 1000 on the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE). All applicants to the college must also submit a GRE score as part of the admission process. Individual departments may have additional requirements for admission. Students should consult appropriate department chapter of this Graduate Bulletin for details. The College of Education is committed to increasing the proportion of teacher candidates who have historically been underrepresented among Florida's public school teachers, and applicants representing such groups will be considered for exceptions to the general and departmental admissions criteria.
Graduate Programs and Degree Requirements
The College of Education offers the master of arts, master of science, specialist in education, doctor of education, and doctor of philosophy degrees.
Graduate program curricula in the College of Education are governed by University-wide graduate studies regulations. These serve as minimum requirements, but College of Education and/or department requirements may exceed them. The supervisory committee is responsible for evaluating the recency and validity of all prior course work. Graduate students in education should become familiar with University, college, and department requirements soon after admission.
The progress of students through degree programs is the personal responsibility of the individual student with appropriate guidance from the major professor and supervisory committee. The Office of Academic Services, 108 Stone Building, monitors students' degree progress and checks each student's record for graduation. It is the responsibility of the student to become fully aware of the regulations set forth in this Graduate Bulletin in addition to the policies and procedures of the College of Education administered by the Office of Academic Services.
Master's Degree Program
1. Admission as a regular graduate student in a degree program is required.
2. The major professor and supervisory committee should be selected and approved during the first semester of enrollment. The committee must consist of a minimum of three members. All members must hold master's or doctoral directive status. Two members, including the major professor, must be from the major in which the student will receive a degree.
3. The program of study should be prepared, submitted, and approved during the first semester of enrollment. The program of study must also include all courses required for the degree, i.e., master's comprehensive exams and/or thesis defense and thesis hours, if applicable.
a. A minimum of thirty-two (32) semester hours of graduate credit must be completed with a 3.0 GPA in course-type programs. Twenty-one (21) semester hours of credit in the course-type program must be taken on a letter-grade basis (A, B, C). The department may require students in course-type programs to complete more than thirty-two (32) semester hours.
b. A minimum of thirty (30) semester hours of graduate credit must be completed with a 3.0 GPA in thesis-type programs. Eighteen (18) semester hours of credit in the thesis-type program must be on a letter-grade basis.
c. Work taken more than seven years prior to graduation may not be used toward the degree.
d. Only six (6) hours of transfer credit will be applicable toward the degree.
e. The maximum number of 4000 level hours that may be included in the program of study is six (6) hours.
f. Students in thesis-type programs must be registered for a minimum of one (1) hour of thesis credit in the semester that their degree will be awarded.
4. A written comprehensive examination for course-type programs and an oral defense for thesis-type programs may be required by most departments. Clearance to schedule these examinations must be obtained from the Office of Academic Services, 108 Stone Building. Students must have a 3.0 GPA in all graduate work to be eligible to register through the University Registrar and the department. Students also must have an approved program of study/supervisory committee form on file in the office of student services before clearance will be given. Students lacking these materials will not be allowed to take their examinations. The results of the examination/defense must be submitted to the Office of Academic Services upon completion.
5. The thesis prospectus (if required) must be submitted to the department chair prior to the defense.
Specialist Degree Program
The specialist in education degree is an advanced master's degree. Requirements vary by department or program specialization.
1. Admission as a regular graduate student in a degree program is required.
2. The major professor and supervisory committee should be selected and approved during the first semester of enrollment. The committee must consist of a minimum of three members. All members must hold master's or doctoral directive status. Two members, including the major professor, must be from the major in which the student will receive a degree.
3. The program of study should be prepared, submitted, and approved during the first semester of enrollment. The program of study must also include all courses required for the degree, i.e., specialist comprehensive exam, thesis hours, and thesis defense, if applicable.
a. A minimum of thirty (30) semester hours of graduate credit must be completed with a 3.0 GPA. Twenty-one (21) semester hours of credit in the course-type program must be taken on a letter-grade basis (A, B, C). Eighteen (18) semester hours of credit in the thesis-type program must be on a letter-grade basis. The department may require students to complete more than thirty (30) semester hours.
b. Half of all the course work must be in the field of education.
c. Requirements related to extension of transfer credit, residency, recency of work, supervised research and supervised teaching, thesis requirements, and satisfactory/unsatisfactory (S/U) course option are applied to the specialist in education degree in the same manner as they are to the master's degree.
d. Students in thesis-type programs must be registered for a minimum of one (1) semester hour of thesis credit in the semester that their degree will be awarded.
4. A written comprehensive examination for course-type programs and an oral defense for thesis-type programs may be required by most departments. Clearance to schedule these examinations must be obtained from the Office of Academic Services, 108 Stone Building. Students must have a 3.0 GPA in all degree work to be eligible to register through the University Registrar and the department. Students must also have an approved program of study/supervisory committee form on file in the Office of Academic Services before clearance will be given. Students lacking these materials will not be allowed to take their examinations. The results of the examination/defense must be submitted to the Office of Academic Services upon completion.
5. The thesis prospectus (if required) must be submitted to the department chair prior to the defense.
Doctoral Degree Programs
1. Admission as a regular graduate student in a degree program is required.
2. The major professor and supervisory committee should be selected and approved during the first semester of enrollment. The committee must consist of a minimum of four members. Three members must hold doctoral directive status. Two members, including the major professor, must be from the program major in which the student will receive a degree. One member represents the graduate faculty at large and holds doctoral directive status.
3. Students admitted to a doctoral program (doctor of education or doctor of philosophy degree) must, before the end of the second semester, take a departmentally administered diagnostic/qualifying examination. It will be designed to assess the student's ability to pursue the doctor of education or doctor of philosophy degree in the field and to facilitate counseling in the development of the student's program of study.
4. The program of study should be prepared, submitted, and approved after passing the diagnostic/qualifying exam. The program of study must include all courses required for the degree, i.e., doctoral preliminary exams, dissertation hours, and dissertation defense. The program must include courses designed to meet the research tool requirements, which are the basic statistics and research design skills for pursuing independent inquiry. Students seeking the doctor of philosophy degree must include the University residency requirements on the program of study (twenty-four [24] semester hours in three consecutive semesters or 12 months). Students seeking the doctor of education degree have the option of completing the University residency requirement by registering for thirty (30) semester hours during a 16-month period. Twelve (12) semester hours of the residency requirements in either the doctor of philosophy or doctor of education degree must be exclusive of supervised research, supervised teaching, and dissertation hours.
5. A written and oral preliminary examination is required. Clearance to schedule these examinations must be obtained from the Office of Academic Services, 108 Stone Building. Students must have a 3.0 GPA in all degree work to be eligible to register through the University Registrar and the department. Students must also have the following on file in the Office of Academic Services before clearance will be given:
a. An approved program of study/supervisory committee form
and
b. Departmental diagnostic examination results.
Students lacking these materials will not be allowed to take their examinations. Successful completion of the exam admits students to doctoral candidacy. Students must be admitted to candidacy at least six months prior to graduation. The results of the examination must be submitted to the Office of Academic Services upon completion.
6. A prospectus of the dissertation must be submitted to the department chair after passing the preliminary examination. It must be approved by the associate dean at least four months prior to the defense of the dissertation.
7. Students must register for a minimum of two (2) hours of dissertation credit in each semester that work is in progress on the dissertation. Not less than twenty-four (24) hours of dissertation credit must be included in the degree program. Dissertation credits may not be taken until the student is formally admitted to candidacy.
8. Students must register for a minimum of one (1) semester hour of dissertation credit in the semester their degree will be awarded.
Office of Academic Services
Director: Kenneth B. Tellis
The Office of Academic Services provides a wide array of professional and administrative services to students and faculty in the college and throughout the University. The primary responsibilities of this office are to: 1) process applications for admission and readmission to the College of Education; 2) maintain the dean's academic records for all students who are pursuing degrees in education; 3) monitor student's degree progress; 4) screen and approve students for admission to teacher certification; 5) conduct required graduation clearance and approve students for teacher certification; and 6) provide consultative and administrative services for the students and faculty in the college.
Planning Guide to Teacher Education Programs
Florida Statute 1004.04 and State Board of Education Rule 6A-5.066
Florida State University teacher education programs have been designed to address the importance of democratic values and institutions, the contributions of various ethnic groups to society and to stress character development, which encourages appreciation of diversity in a pluralistic society. Students planning to complete a teacher education program at Florida State University must meet all the conditions listed below to be eligible to have a degree conferred.
In addition to those programs offered through the College of Education, the following approved graduate teacher education programs are offered through other colleges:
Art Education (College of Visual Arts, Theatre, and Dance)
Communication Disorders (College of Communication)
Educational Media Specialist (College of Information)
Criteria for Admission and Application to a Teacher Education Program
1. Achieve a score of 1000 on the combined aptitude portions of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), or, have passed all sections of the Florida CLAST (waivers or other alternative means of meeting this requirement are not acceptable), or have passed the General Knowledge Test
2. Earned a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution
3. Complete an application for admission to a teacher education program in the Office of Academic Services, 108 Stone Building. Note: This is distinct from admission to a college.
4. Approval of the department in accordance with departmental criteria
and
5. Approval of the Office of Academic Services.
Total program length for state-approved teacher preparation programs are subject to revision based on changes in Section 1004.04, Florida Statutes, Public Accountability and State Approval for Teacher Preparation Programs and State Board of Education Rule 6A-5.066, Approval of Pre-service Teacher Preparation Programs.
Subject Area Specialization/Professional Education/Clinical Experience Curricula
1. At least thirty (30) semester hours completed in the subject specialization area as determined by the student's program
2. Professional education course work to include: a) reading-literacy acquisition for the appropriate certification level; b) integrated classroom management, school safety, professional ethics and educational law; c) human development and learning; and d) assessment to include understanding the content measured by state achievement tests, reading and interpreting data, and using data to improve student achievement
3. A series of clinical experiences in diverse settings throughout the program that culminates with a full-time student teaching experience of at least 10 weeks duration in an approved setting
Note: Students should consult with a program adviser for specific course requirements.
Continuation and Graduation Requirements of a Teacher Education Program
Students must meet the following requirements to continue and graduate from a teacher education program:
1. Maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 or above in all course work (some programs may require a higher GPA)
2. Complete standards and specific course work requirements set by the program
3. Meet all University graduation requirements, including requirements mentioned above under 'Planning Guide to Teacher Education Programs'
4. Achieve a passing score on each of the General Knowledge Test, the Professional Skills Test, and Subject Area Test on the Florida Teacher Certification Exam (FTCE) prior to completion of program requirements
5. Successfully complete the student teaching experience
6. Receive verification from the appropriate academic program of successful demonstration of the Educator Accomplished Practices at the pre-professional level, which includes the knowledge, skills and dispositions necessary to help all students learn
and
7. Obtain final approval of the appropriate academic program and the Office of Academic Services
Recommendation for a Teaching Certificate
Upon completion of an approved teacher education program and conferral of the degree from Florida State University, students are eligible to receive a recommendation for a standard teaching certificate.
Office of Clinical Partnerships (Student Teaching)
Director: Dr. Connie Gaede
The director of clinical partnerships is responsible for the assignment of students for student teaching experiences. The director works with teacher education programs in the University and the public schools of Florida in the organization of student teaching centers and the selection of supervising teachers for student teachers. Faculty members work with supervising teachers and student teachers in planning and carrying out the student teaching experience. The Office of Clinical Partnerships is responsible for the final identification and screening of all students who make application for student teaching.
Students are assigned for the student teaching experience in those counties listed below at the rate of at least two representing the same academic program. Academic programs may, at their discretion, establish a minimum group size greater than two and restrict placement to particular counties among those identified. Exceptions to this policy will be made only through successful appeal on the part of a student to the University student teaching appeals committee. Student teachers representing the programs of social work, human sciences, communication disorders, visually impaired, music, and vocational home economics education will also be concentrated in those counties listed but may be placed in additional locations should program certification requirements dictate their use.
Placement Locations
Area I—Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Madison, Taylor, and Wakulla counties;
Area II—Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Jackson, Liberty, Okaloosa, Walton, and Washington counties;
Area III—Brevard, Orange, Seminole, and Volusia counties;
Area IV—Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, and Sarasota counties; and
Area V—Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach counties.
Other areas as determined by the University Director of Teacher Education.
Academic programs are expected to inform their students of departmental placement policies well in advance of the semester of student teaching so that students may have the opportunity to plan appropriately.
Applicants are specifically not guaranteed assignment to their home county nor to the immediate and general vicinity of the campus. Submission of an application by a candidate constitutes an agreement to accept assignment in the school and county where it is determined that the candidate's academic program objectives for student teaching can best be achieved.
A candidate is expected to meet professional standards as expressed in the pertinent school laws of the state of Florida. Candidates are also informed that, consistent with applicable law, information pertaining to all matters of public record, such as arrest and/or convictions in a court of law, may be routinely furnished to public schools as well as prospective employers.
Application to Student Teaching
An application for student teaching must be submitted to the Office of Clinical Partnerships according to the following schedule:
Note: Application materials are available only online at http://www.coe.fsu.edu/student_teaching/stforms.html
Third Monday in September for Spring semester student teachers
Second Monday in February for Fall semester student teachers
and
First Monday in April for Summer term student teachers (restricted).
Criteria for Admission to Student Teaching
The following criteria are required for placement to student teach:
1. Admission to teacher education outlined above under 'Criteria for Admission and Application to Teacher Education Program'
2. Completion of at least one semester of residence at Florida State University
3. Successful completion of subject area specialization and professional education course work outlined under 'Subject Area Specialization/Professional Education/Clinical Experience Curricula'
4. Completion of departmental requirements in computer literacy
5. An overall GPA of 3.0 in all graduate program course work (a higher GPA may be required by some academic programs for particular core courses)
and
6. Successful completion of standards, specific clinical experiences set by the program or the University.
Office of Minority Affairs
Director: TBA
The College of Education Office of Minority Affairs takes the lead in assisting the College of Education at Florida State University in its efforts to becoming a wholesome environment for under-represented students. The support of educational goals for under-represented students is provided by activities that encompass the academic, social and professional realms of education.
In addition, the Office of Minority Affairs is actively dedicated to recruiting, and more importantly, retaining the students who diversify the ethnicity of the College of Education. In accomplishing this goal, we have considered national and state demographic trends in making the aggressive efforts necessary to address the demands of an ever-changing student population. Working directly with all minority students is the major intention; however, every effort will be made to be responsive to the needs of all students.