Educational Researcher Option

Objectives

Students who complete the Educational Researcher option of the Curriculum & Instruction Master’s degree are expected to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions of a professional researcher.

Program of Study

Even though the Educational Researcher option is an on-campus program, core content courses in the EDCI rubric are offered online only. 

Committees

Each MEd student's committee must consist of at least three approved members. The majority of the committee should be made up of faculty from the degree-granting department. The chair and one other approved member must be from the Curriculum & Instruction faculty. The final approved member will be selected based upon their ability to contribute to the student's studies leading up to and through the thesis research. This committee members must have academic credentials in the area of the student's program of study and be approved by the Head of the Department of Education and Dean of The Graduate School. 

Chairs

The student should carefully identify his/her chair after thorough conversations with those Curriculum & Instruction faculty members that he/she believes might have an interest in their masters research agenda and/or the ability to work with them toward generating a defensible thesis. The chair will give leadership and approval regarding the balance of the committee's potential membership. The committee, as a whole, is subject to the approval of the Head of the Department of Education. The chair will facilitate program approval, comprehensive exam planning and clarification, proposal hearing, and thesis defense. Chairs and members of a student's committee are subject to change. Revision to the program of study can be made during the course of study with the chair's approval.

Master's Thesis

Students pursuing the Educational Researcher option of the Curriculum & Instruction Master’s degree will complete a Master’s Thesis. See the Graduate School's Defense of Thesis website.

Written Comprehensive Exam - Thesis

As MEd students in the Educational Researcher option approach the end of their first year of study, they will contact their committee chair to discuss the format, content, and time frame of their Master’s Thesis. The content of the Master’s Thesis will be an original research project determined by consultation between the chair and the student and must be approved by the student's Master’s Committee. Students are required to complete the Master’s Thesis using APA format.

The completed Master’s Thesis will be submitted to the student’s committee for evaluation. Committee members will have approximately two weeks to read and evaluate the content and written competency (quality, thoroughness, and completeness of the research) of the thesis.

Oral Comprehensive Exam - Thesis Defense

When the committee members have read and evaluated the thesis, the student will give a 1-2 hour oral presentation and thesis defense. Students can be queried about all areas of program content during the oral presentation and thesis defense. The presentation will be evaluated for research content and oral competency.

The committee chair will facilitate the meeting and the order of questioning. Committee members can ask follow-up and clarifying questions in all areas. At the completion of the questioning and in the absence of the student, the entire committee will discuss their evaluation of the oral presentation and thesis defense. The chair will lead the committee to a determination regarding the passing or failing of both the written and oral components of the thesis.

The thesis defense is graded with either a passing or failing grade - determined by a majority committee vote. The student will officially pass the written and oral components of the thesis by demonstrating evidence of knowledge of pertinent literature, academic and theoretical grounding, development of professional skills, and the ability to conduct effective educational research.

A “fail” occurs when a majority of the committee determines that a student has not demonstrated sufficient evidence of knowledge of pertinent literature, academic and theoretical grounding, development of professional skills, or the ability to conduct effective educational research. A failure on either portion of the thesis is considered to be a failed exam. A failed defense may be repeated once. At least two months must elapse before the second defense takes place.

Failure to pass a second thesis defense results in termination of graduate study and dismissal from the academic program. Students who are dismissed from the program due to a failed thesis are ineligible to reapply to the same degree program at any time.