Issues and Trends in Curriculum and Instruction – EDUC 735

Course Description

An overview of the current issues and trends in the field of education, specifically targeting the area of teaching and learning.

Rationale

The purpose of this course is to provide a knowledge base concerning issues and trends in the field of education, specifically the areas of teaching and learning. The candidate should have a sound knowledge base of the issues as well as a plan to research these issues and should begin to develop a network with other educators in the field to discuss and make recommendations concerning these issues.

Course Assignment

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (4)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, there will be four Discussions throughout the course. The candidate must post a thread in response to the prompt. The candidate is encouraged to read other candidates’ threads. For Discussions, the candidate is required to post one thread of at least 500 words. The candidate must post 2 replies of at least 200 words each. (CLO:  B, C, E)

Research Paper Outline Assignment

The candidate will create a short, working, and informal outline of how he/she plans to formulate his/her Research Paper. The outline must follow the provided Research Paper Outline Template. This includes a Historical Summary, Current Research, and a Biblical worldview of the topic. (CLO: A, B, D)

Annotated Bibliography Assignment

The candidate will create an annotated bibliography of at least 10 sources that will be used in developing the research paper for the course. The sources should be formatted according to current APA formatting and are to include a description of at least 150 words for each source. (CLO: A, B, D)

Journal Article Critique Assignments (2)

The candidate will complete two Journal Article Critiques in this course. Each Journal Article Critique must follow the specific instructions provided as well as adhere to the Journal Article Critique Template. Articles chosen must be current (published no more than 5 years ago). (CLO: A, B)

Field Expert Interview Assignment

For this assignment, the candidate will conduct an interview of 8-10 questions with a specialist in his/her school division (or one nearby) that has a sound knowledge base of the candidate’s topic for his/her research. It is preferred that the interview be conducted in person but by phone or video conferencing will work also. While the candidate is conducting the interview, he/she must focus on obtaining insight into the issue he/she has chosen and learning to network and collaborate with a colleague to discuss educational issues. The candidate must not focus on employment opportunities. The interview must be submitted in Canvas and follow the specific instructions located in the Assignment Instructions. (CLO: B, C, E)

Research Paper Assignment

The Research Paper for this course will be based on the topic chosen in the beginning of the course concerning teaching and learning. The paper must be written in current formal APA style. The minimum number of required resources is 10. All resources must be scholarly articles (published no more than 5 years ago) or peer-reviewed journals (usually found from databases such as ERIC, EBSCO Host, or Info Trac). Resources must be diverse in nature and can include books and/or professional websites. The research aspect must be from diligent work in ascertaining current, scholarly resources to support writing about the topic/issue. No original research may be conducted for the Research Paper. The research paper must follow the specific instructions located in the Assignment Instructions. This assignment must be submitted through Turnitin and Canvas. (CLO: A, B, D)

Action Plan Assignment

The candidate will create an action plan that is designed to address the issue that is identified as the topic of the research paper. The action plan will delineate the specific timeline, steps and resources needed to implement the initiative. (CLO: B, C, D, E)

Presentation Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is to help the candidate gain experience with a realistic topic/issue in a future position the candidate hopes to obtain. Before beginning, the candidate must think about an issue in teaching and learning that would fall under his/her jurisdiction in this future (or current) position. This topic can be the same as the one for the Research Paper Assignment, but it is not required to be the same topic. (CLO: A, B, C, D, E)