M.A. Ed. Grades 6-12
Program Description
The Department of Teaching and Learning at Virginia Tech offers a Secondary Mathematics Education teacher licensure program in which students earn a Master of Arts in Education. This program is nationally accredited and prepares students for licensure in the State of Virginia.
The Mathematics Education Licensure Program includes coursework in mathematics pedagogy, mathematics, educational foundations, special education, and research methods. The program includes two field experiences in secondary schools. Students should obtain passing scores on the Praxis II (mathematics content) test prior to student-teaching during the spring semester. At the end of the program of study, students in this masters degree program will also create and present an electronic portfolio to satisfy the university’s “masters comprehensive exam” requirement.
This licensure program has been specifically designed to satisfy Virginia’s licensure requirements for teaching mathematics in the secondary schools. Students will take between 30-42 credit hours of coursework to meet the state requirements, depending on the students’ undergraduate preparation. Throughout the student’s program of study, the student and his or her advisor will work together to ensure that all state requirements for secondary licensure have been met through the student’s undergraduate and graduate-level coursework. The student is encouraged to be familiar with state licensure requirements so that informed decisions about courses can be made.
Completion of the program will take one or two years, depending on the student’s background. For instance, students graduating from Virginia Tech’s mathematics education option (Department of Mathematics) can typically complete graduate program requirements in one year (including at least one summer session). Students who majored in mathematics (or a related field) as undergraduates, but who did not complete any education-related coursework, will likely need two years to complete the program. In many cases, students need to enroll in one or more summer sessions on campus to complete program requirements.
Admission Information
Prospective students will submit materials to both the Virginia Tech Graduate School and to the Virginia Tech Department of Teaching and Learning. Deadlines are October 15 for spring admission and February 15 for summer or fall admission. Complete the Application for Admission to the MAED Secondary Mathematics Education Teacher Licensure Program.
Strong candidates for this program have undergraduate majors in mathematics, mathematics education, or mathematics-related fields. For students who have not completed a basic core of undergraduate mathematics courses, a limited amount of undergraduate coursework may be completed during the graduate program. Virginia Tech students may be considered for dual-enrollment status admission during the final semester of undergraduate coursework. Prospective students must have a 3.00 grade point average (GPA) for regular admission to this program.
For more information, please contact:
Dr. Vanessa Pitts Bannister