Graduate Teacher Program, Master of arts

The Education department at Austin College is committed to preparing the next generation of teacher leaders. This  five-year Master of Arts program  allows students to receive their BA degree in any of the liberal arts majors or minors offered by Austin College and continue their studies with graduate education courses, resulting in both a Master’s degree and a teaching certification. This highly respected program, known for preparing educational leaders, gives students hands-on experience in local classrooms as early as their freshman year and continues through the last course.

Students will learn

Classroom management -  Students learn how to effectively work with children in a seven-week teaching placement by building relationships through a Love and Logic framework.

Putting it all together -  Dr Julia Shahid and Dr Sandy Philipose’s “Learner, Teacher, & Curriculum,” the final undergraduate course in the ATP series, teaches students how to successfully fuse instructional planning, classroom management, and effective teaching practices into their nine-week teaching placement.

Reading and writing across the curriculum -  In “Development of Literacy,” students understand that reading and writing are not limited to the English classroom and learn how to implement literacy into each academic discipline.

Engage students through Thinking Camps -  Dr Julia Shahid’s annual “Thinking Camp” gives graduate students an opportunity to work with area students in a two-week summer integrated social studies and science program. The 2018 Thinking Camp will focus on  The Built Environment: Then and Now !

Intentional leadership development -  All education students will participate in the new LEAP (Leadership Education through Application and Pedagogy) program. Professors will integrate leadership opportunities to develop skills such as communication, how to effectively work in professional learning communities, problem-solving, and addressing diversity.

Austin College is a private, residential, co-educational college dedicated to educating undergraduate students in the liberal arts and sciences. Also offered are select pre-professional programs and a graduate teacher education program. Austin College continues its relationship with the church. It is committed to a heritage that values personal growth, justice, community, and service. An Austin College education emphasizes academic excellence, intellectual and personal integrity, and participation in community life. Thus, Austin College affirms the importance of a community that, through its size, diversity, and programs fosters lively intellectual and social interaction among persons of different origins, experiences, beliefs, accomplishments, and goals; a program that does not discriminate with regard to religion or creed, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, physical disability, age, or economic status; a faculty that acknowledges teaching, sustained by an active commitment to professional growth and development, as its primary responsibility; a student body of committed learners, actively involved in the programs of the college and service to the greater community; a climate of civility and respect that encourages free inquiry and the open expression of ideas; a non-sectarian education that fosters the exploration and development of values through an awareness of the world’s religious, philosophical, and cultural traditions.

The mission of Austin College is to educate students in the liberal arts and sciences to prepare them for rewarding careers and for full, engaged, and meaningful lives.