Department of Secondary Education

Amanda Gunning, Ph.D., Chair
914-674-7399
agunning@mercy.edu

The 36-credit Master of Science in Adolescence Education, Grades 7–12, offered at Mercy College, leads to either initial or professional certification. Placement in the Initial or Advanced Teacher program is determined by a candidate’s undergraduate preparation and teaching experience. Pre-practice candidates will pursue a course of study leading to degree conferral and eligibility for Initial New York State certification. The Advanced Teacher program is open to teacher education candidates who are currently working as teachers of record in classrooms in private, parochial, or charter schools, and are seeking both a graduate degree and initial certification. A minimum of one year of teaching experience as the teacher of record is required. Candidates who do not yet have appropriate experience at both the lower and upper grade levels covered by their prospective certification area(s) will be required to fulfill this requirement during this program. This requirement will be fulfilled by completing 20 days of supervised student teaching in each area of certification(s) they are seeking, and do not already have appropriate experience.

Qualified applicants in either the Initial or Advanced Teacher program may participate in courses leading to eligibility for two certifications while pursuing the degree in Adolescence Education, Grades 7–12. Candidates complete the required courses for degree conferral and additional courses specific to the certification area(s) desired. Students pursuing additional certificates will be required to complete additional clinical and field experiences.

Degree-seeking students in all Adolescence Education programs must successfully complete the education capstone requirement specific to their degree program prior to degree conferral. Degree candidates in the Adolescence Education program leading to Initial certification must complete an e-portfolio project in the clinical practice course. Degree candidates in the Advanced Teacher program in Adolescence Education will register for the capstone course, complete an action research project, and may need to complete additional clinical experience(s) as indicated above.

All candidates in Adolescence Education are encouraged to join the national professional organization in their respective content fields: the National Council of Teachers of English, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the National Science Teachers Association, or the National Council for the Social Studies.

Adolescence Education Program Goals:

The goals of the Adolescence Education Program are predicated on the belief that teachers of students in grades 7–12 need to be grounded in a thorough understanding of one or more content fields, as well as methods of teaching that engage adolescent learners who are in their final years of K–12 education and who are preparing to enter the world of civic responsibility, higher education, and/or the job market. Thus, the program goals are:

The candidate will understand, explain, analyze, and apply the major concepts, principles, theories, and underlying philosophies of adolescence education programs that address the cognitive and psychological development of adolescent learners.
The candidate will be able to create learning opportunities and approaches to assessment that reflect an understanding of adolescent learners in ways that value and respond to the diversity of the student population and use family and community resources to extend the curriculum, while addressing the learning standards of the candidate’s content field of study.