USING MASTER'S EDUCATION TO IMPROVE EARTH SCIENCE TEACHING

Many secondary students are unable to take an Earth Science course because their schools do not offer one. When Earth Science courses are available, they are more likely to be taught by teachers lacking in-depth training than are any other science courses. These are concerns because there is substantial evidence that students learn most when they take courses taught by teachers who are well-versed in their subject and are prepared to teach it effectively.

Despite their lack of subject-area preparation, many current Earth Science teachers are considered highly qualified because they are teaching within the limits of their certification (e.g., K-8 or 6-12 with appropriate subject-area endorsements). In Michigan, many practicing Earth Science teachers possess the Integrated Science endorsement. This requires completion of a total of 24 credits of undergraduate coursework drawn from across the life, physical, and Earth sciences. In addition to these teachers, there is a currently untapped reservoir of potential Earth Science teaching talent among teachers who are currently endorsed in one of the other sciences (i.e., Biology, Chemistry, or Physics) and who has interest in the Earth.

To produce more Earth Science teachers and improve the quality of current Earth Science teachers, we developed a master’s program that has been approved in Michigan as a path to subject-area endorsement in Earth Science. The program is designed to serve teachers who are already certified and endorsed in science or math. The program leverages teachers’ prior education and experience, focuses entirely on Earth Science content and content-pedagogy, meets teachers’ needs for ongoing professional development, and can be completed in two years. Courses are taught online during the academic year and face-to-face during summer sessions. Teachers who have completed the program have been successful in passing Michigan and other states’ Earth Science endorsement test and are therefore licensed to teach Earth Science as well as any other disciplines for which they have appropriate subject-area endorsements.