Master of Arts in Education

A master of arts degree in Education can be achieved by completing a program of study in any of the following programs: educational administration and supervision, curriculum and Instruction, multicategorical special education, reading, early childhood education, elementary education, secondary education, teaching and leadership, community counseling and school counseling. Completion of programs in community  counseling and School Counseling leads to a master of arts degree in counseling. Individual program descriptions and requirements are described below.

  1. Satisfactory completion of the number of semester-hours of graduate credit as required by each graduate program of study (see specific program requirements).
  2. Completion and approval of the required research study. Candidates enrolled in the Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Secondary Education, Reading, Multicategorical Special Education, and Educational Administration and Supervision Programs may, after consultation with the associate dean of Graduate Studies or designee, elect a two-course option in lieu of EDUG 514 to complete graduate requirements.
  3. Completion of specific program requirements including clinical experiences. All initial certification programs require a minimum of 100 clock-hours of clinical experience.
  4. Completion of general graduation requirements, when applicable.
  5. Completion of all required coursework with a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.0.
  6. Grades of D are not acceptable toward satisfying degree requirements.
  7. Successful completion of benchmark and program requirements approved by the faculty. Benchmarks for each program can be found in the Graduate Studies Handbook.

State of Illinois Certification Requirements

Upon completion of their graduate program, candidates who wish to apply for a State of Illinois certificate in teaching, administration, multicategorical special education, reading or school counseling may secure application materials from the Office of Teacher Education. Any candidate in administration and supervision and reading must present evidence of two or more years of successful full-time teaching experience.

Persons who hold master's degrees and wish to qualify for the administrative, multicategorical special education, or reading certificates without earning a second master's degree may have individual programs of study prepared for them. These students must submit the same application materials as do applicants for the degree programs.

Each person applying for an early childhood, elementary, high school, special, school service personnel, or administrative certificate must pass the Illinois Certification Testing System Basic Skills Test and the appropriate content area test. The Illinois Certification Testing System's (ICTS) content area test must be taken and passed prior to the start of student teaching. Candidates applying for teacher certification are required to pass the Assessment of Professional Teaching (APT) before they will be eligible for a teaching certificate.

Complete information on the testing program is found in the ICTS registration bulletin. Copies are available in the Office of Teacher Education, or at http://www.icts.nesinc.com.

Field Experiences

Programs offered through the School of Education provide opportunities for candidates to apply the knowledge, skills and dispositions required for effective professional practice through planned, sequenced, and assessed field experiences. The transfer of pedagogical knowledge and skill to professional practice is accomplished through pre-student teaching field experiences and student teaching at the initial certification level, and through internship and practicum experiences at the advanced certification levels.

Field experiences are intended to provide candidates with opportunities to broaden and deepen their understanding of educational theory and integrate this theory with educational practice. Therefore, these experiences:

  1. Connect candidates with the community, and provide them with learning experiences in a variety of educational environments with exposure to diverse cultures, encouraging candidates to embrace and celebrate the diversity of students in American schools;
  2. Are directly connected with professional courses, and are designed to sequentially complement and expand upon University course content;
  3. Are assigned by the Office of Teacher Education to take place in selected educational settings that have written contracts with the University, which serve to establish a professional development relationship;
  4. Are supervised by University faculty in collaboration with selected in-service certified educators;
  5. Are documented by University procedures that describe the quantity and qualitative characteristics of candidates' experiences;
  6. Are part of candidates' course credit load and are assessed commensurate with performance;
  7. Take place during typical daytime school hours;
  8. Recognize NCATE (National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education) standards and follow ISBE (Illinois State Board of Education) and the School of Education policies.

The coordinator of Practicum and Internship Experiences assigns practicum and internship experiences in community agency counseling and school counseling in collaboration with community agencies and schools.

The field experiences associated with each program are noted as part of the course descriptions. Field experiences completed at other institutions CANNOT be transferred to the professional program of study at Saint Xavier University. A minimum of 100 clock-hours of field experiences is required of all candidates prior to student teaching (clinical practice). Candidates who intend to complete their clinical practice (student teaching) in private schools must complete at least 60 clock-hours of field experiences in public school settings.

Criminal Background Investigations

Certification in Illinois requires candidates to be of good character and a U.S. citizen or legally present and eligible for employment. Certain convictions may prohibit certification by the Illinois State Board of Education and/or employment in Illinois public schools. The School of Education has made a commitment to local area schools to require federal criminal background checks for all candidates in programs leading to initial certification at strategic points during their academic career. Movement through the program may be suspended in the event that the background check reveals certain felony offenses in any candidate's background. Individuals seeking a teaching certificate are advised to examine Illinois' school code requirements regarding certification and employment (see School Code: 105 ILCS 5/21-23, 10-21.9 at www.ilga.gov), and to seek legal council concerning all convictions whereby certification and/or employment may be prohibited in Illinois public schools.

Graduate Students and CLEP Credit

Graduate students applying for Illinois state certification may elect to take the CLEP (College Level Examination Program) examinations. If a passing score is attained, these courses and the credit-hours earned will be listed on the Saint Xavier University transcript. This policy applies only to graduate students seeking certification in Illinois. CLEP credit may be earned only to fulfill general education requirements for certification.

Approved Programs

The School of Education operates the following programs approved by the Illinois State Board of Education through which graduates are certified in the State of Illinois:

  1. Early Childhood Education; Initial Early Childhood Certificate (Type 04).
  2. Elementary Education; K-9; Initial Elementary Certificate (Type 03).
  3. Secondary Education; 6-12; Initial Secondary Certificate (Type 09).
  4. Multicategorical Special Education; LBS I (Type 10).
  5. Reading; K-12 (Type 10).
  6. Educational Administration and Supervision (Type 75).
  7. School Counseling (Type 73).
  8. Spanish Education, K-12 (Type 10).
  9. Music Education, K-12 (Type 10).

Appropriate majors in the secondary program and appropriate areas of concentration in the early childhood and elementary programs are listed in the description and requirements for the respective programs.

Change of Major

Candidates whose professional goals change and who subsequently decide to switch to another program must formally request a change of program. This request must be in written form and be addressed to the dean of the School of Education.

Saint Xavier University 2008-2009 Catalog
Please visit the SXU Web site for the most recent information.