Science in Education Program
Master's Degree Program

Delivered entirely online, Lesley University's M.Ed. in Science in Education is designed for classroom teachers, curriculum specialists, and instructional resource persons responsible for K-8 science education. This program aligns with National Science Education Standards that call for inquiry-based learning and innovative teaching paradigms. This Master's Degree program is recognized by the Massachusetts Department of Education as an approved Master's Degree program for Massachusetts teachers seeking certification at the professional level.

Accomplishments

• the creation of an asynchronous on-line learning environment where technology enables learning, rather than obstructs it.
  • ability to work at home
  • flexible time frame for working
  • time to think before responding
  • access to a range of instructors
• the creation of a rigorous on-line course that models the inquiry process
• Students reported an increased:
  1. understanding of what inquiry means and how students learn
  2. understanding of the properties of ice and water, floating, and density's effect on the behavior of liquids
  3. confidence in teaching science

This program was created in collaboration with TERC, an educational research and development organization in Cambridge, MA, with grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the US Department of Education, Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE). Initial planning for this project was funded by a grant from the Sloan Foundation.

The 33-credit program is comprised of an introductory 3-credit course, Try Science, and five 6-credit modules. Each module focuses on a particular science domain. Students build science knowledge and pedagogical skills through a combination of on and off-line learning and colleague to colleague learning. Participants engage in doing science to extend their understanding of concepts and skills, rethink teaching and assessment strategies, and implement ideas in their own classrooms.

There are three main learning components in each online module.

Approximately 50% of the module is devoted to learning science content by doing science. Twenty-five percent of the module is devoted to considering issues of pedagogy, curriculum, and assessment. Twenty-five percent of the module is devoted to trying ideas in the classroom and reflecting on these experiences with other program participants. Thus classroom implementation is embedded into each module.

Program participants build their understanding of core science concepts while engaging in the same learning paradigm of inquiry-based science that they will bring to their classrooms. Using materials and equipment commonly found in K-8 classrooms and in the environment outdoors, students carry out hands-on investigations supported by the use of technology and online communications. They test out their own ideas, make predictions, gather evidence from a variety of sources to test these predictions, analyze and interpret data, generate explanations and communicate their findings. Through such experiences their own understanding of scientific concepts will be extended, their inquiry skills strengthened and their understanding of science as a key human activity enhanced.

Each module is taught by two instructors: (a) a scientist well versed in the science domain of a given module who guides participants in their acquisition of key science content, skills and values; and, (b) a science educator who supports participants as they consider pedagogical strategies for bringing science inquiry into their classrooms.

Participants will rely on a web-based environment for online communication, collaboration, reporting scientific research results and accessing electronic science resources. Participants use threaded discussions, an electronic meeting place, images, videos, text, and current online data and information. Instructors track learners' progress through an online archive of participant portfolios.

Interested?
Contact the Graduate Admissions office by telephone at 888.537.5398 or via email at info@lesley.edu.

You may also want to visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.

The Science in Education M.Ed. program was created in collaboration with TERC, an educational research and development organization in Cambridge, MA, with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, The Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, FIPSE, and the National Science Foundation, NSF.