LOYOLA COLLEGE IN MARYLAND’S graduate program in Curriculum and Instruction are designed to expose students to critical perspectives on improvement and reform in K-12 education. Through a strong focus on questions of equity and social justice, Loyola’s program will prepare leaders who will be at the forefront of meaningful debate and effective change. Framed by an interdisciplinary approach, the program provides students with new perspectives on the causes of and solutions to problems such as achievement gaps, sub-par academic performance, and unsafe schools. Through the study of state-of-the-art education theory and practice, students will learn ways to transform student learning and improve schools.
Classes are offered at Graduate Centers in Columbia or Timonium in the fall, spring, and summers, making the program highly flexible and accessible. Curriculum and Instruction also offers a personalized and strong advising system, providing students wtih consistent faculty access and consultation. The core program is offered in a cohort format; that is, the entire sequence of courses offered to a group of participants that begins and remains together until the completion of the core. Students will be a part of a group for the duration of the core and will be able to share similar educational goals, network with colleagues from other school systems, and study together.
The Curriculum and Instruction program is structured as follows: CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION CORE (21 credits)
These eight courses, required of all students, establish a foundational set of concepts. • ED611 History of Education in the U.S.
Students will focus on pivotal moments in American history and their influence upon the development of educational thought and practice. Central questions concern: What is the purpose of education for nation-building and how have schools have been shaped by social and political forces both within/outside U.S. society? Through a reading of history students will gain a greater understanding of the contemporary condition of schools and educational policies and determine to what extent schools have been successful in fulfilling a democratic idea or complicit in maintaining the status quo. Key course topics will include: Colonial period, Common school movement, Education and democracy, Control of the Curriculum, Vocational education, Segregated schooling, American Indian Education, African American education in the aftermath of the Reconstruction era, Brown vs. Board of Education, Civil Rights Movement, Chicano Movement and Education in the Southwest.
• ED650 Curriculum Theories and Practices
The course is intended to support educators’ skills in developing curricula and assessments with a focus on developing and deepening students’ understanding of important ideas. The course helps students focus on both the goal of curriculum design work – producing a coherent design with clear alignment among instructional and assessment components and on the process of curriculum development, using a set of design standards and a peer review process. In addition the course focuses on different theoretical approaches to the curriculum and prompts students to explore curriculum policy/practice connections, attending to the ways that written curriculum is translated in to classroom practice.
• ED601 Philosophical Foundations of Diversity and Social Justice in Education
Students focus on the intersection of diversity, social justice, and educational practices. Framed within current educational controversies, students will be encouraged to develop an initial articulation of their personal philosophy of education. Readings will help provoke critical reflection around these beliefs and assumptions that will inform a further elaboration of students’ philosophy of education. In addition, this course aims to encourage students to examine educational practices, issues, and controversies in ways that promote equity and social justice. These include particular attention to critical and cultural philosophical traditions. These traditions will be explored by analyzing practices within K-12 education, providing familiar contexts for administrators who facilitate the learning of other teachers and for teachers focused on their students’ learning.
• ED608 Educational Innovations
Students examine innovation in schools, including the philosophical and psychological assumptions that underline departures from traditional schooling. Students develop an historical perspective to understand how current and future innovations can impact educational processes.
• ED652 Evaluation and Assessment Policy and Practices
Students engage in critical analysis of evaluation and assessment policies and practices and examine the extent to which mandatory assessments align with curricular aims and/or current learning theories. Course content includes an historical look at US assessment policies as well as terminology, laws, court cases, and other contextual issues that have contributed to the current policies. • ED659 Race, Class, and Gender Studies in Education
Students explore structural theories of race, class and gender in an effort to understand how these discourses impact upon unequal educational experiences and outcomes. Students unpack how schools operate as a mechanism for reproducing a racialized, gendered, and classed social order. Through this conversation students can begin the journey of working towards schools that challenge the status quo. • ED670 Teacher Inquiry and Research
Investigates aspects of action research including choosing a topic to study, examining ethical issues, planning and implementing methodologies, conducting a literature review, becoming a reflexive practitioner, and analyzing data. ED800 CAPSTONE SEMINAR (3 credits)
This course is taken as the final course in the program. Students will analyze their data from their research project or thesis or the begun in ED670. Students use and apply the lenses they gained during the initial course sequence to examine the educational implications of their research. As a summative assessment, students complete an original and empirical research study or thesis based on a conceptual or historical educational issue. EDUCATIONAL SPECIALIZATION (9 credits) Students can select an area of special interest from the following choices to provide a focus for their general studies. Alternately, students can work with their advisors for a specialized, thematic collection of courses across the disciplines • Educational Leadership
• Literacy Education
• Educational Technology
• Special Education
• Liberal Studies TOTAL: 33 CREDIT HOURS | 
