What’s the difference between the Master’s and the Master’s plus K-12 ESOL certification option?
Students who plan
to teach in ESL and EFL programs at community colleges, university ESL language
programs, and for ESL/EFL institutes, schools, companies, and government
agencies, both in the U.S. and abroad, need only take the Master’s program.
Adding the K-12
ESOL certification option to the Master’s allows the student to do all of the
above plus be eligible to teach in K-12 ESOL programs where public school
teaching certification is required. Our
program meets all State of Maryland Department of Education requirements for
K-12 ESOL certification. It is an
approved certification program and is reciprocal in many states. It is also valid in international K-12
schools where U.S. accredited certification is required.
There are 12
courses (36 semester hours) plus a final comprehensive exam required for the
master’s degree (non-thesis).
The Master’s plus
K-12 ESOL certification option adds two more courses plus one semester of
student teaching to the program. These
two courses (e.g., linguistics, English grammar, language learning) can be
waived if the student has previously taken them either for graduate or
undergraduate credit at another institution.
Students in the K-12 ESOL certification track also need to have 6
semester hours of undergraduate foreign language study. And finally, the student must take the
PRAXIS Core Battery Tests.
Is it possible
to be in the certification track and not in the master’s program?
No.