The Master of Science in Education, Advanced Classroom Practitioner is designed both for practicing classroom teachers seeking to improve their skills and upgrade their qualifications or certification, and for professionals in other fields desiring a career change to teaching. This is not designed as a State of Maine teaching certification program; however, professional teaching certification may be possible through the alternative pathway route of the Maine Department of Education.

In general, this goal is reached through course enrollments by students’ assimilating the results of scholarly research, course texts, discussion board postings of peers, course notes, and interaction with instructors on teaching and learning and integrating it with their individual experiences. This methodology is intended to expand students’ perspectives and thereby expand their abilities to make well-reasoned choices on methods, content and results that would be most suitable to their individual circumstances.

Graduates will leave the program having met the following outcomes:

• Design and implement curricular and instructional strategies that prioritize intentional teaching and diverse assessment models to improve student learning outcomes.
• Demonstrate mastery in designing, planning and applying pedagogical knowledge and practice in their classroom or professional setting.
• Conduct site-based action research by identifying authentic educational challenges, collecting and analyzing data, and implementing data-driven interventions.
• Evaluate the ethical implications of educational practices.
• Engage in on-going reflection and professional growth through the “teacher-as-researcher” model.