Master of Education in Curriculum
The Master in Curriculum and Instruction: Teaching English Language at Dhofar University is a two‐year program that aims to prepare effective teachers and practitioners according to international standards and contemporary thought in the field. In addition, the program aims to equip its graduates with the requisite skills and competencies for conducting action research as well as utilizing modern technology in their teaching and professional practice.
Graduates of the program will understand the theory and practice of language education pedagogy, curriculum planning and delivery, classroom supervision, materials and techniques, and student learning and assessment in language education.
Detail
The program of study consists of a series of specialization courses in language acquisition, second language teaching and learning, assessment and evaluation, and designing and producing educational materials. In addition, students are required to complete core courses in educational psychology, research design and methodology, and the foundations of language education. The program is composed of the following components.
Students will follow the program of study that is described below under the supervision of their academic advisors. That program is made of a set of nine required courses and another set of elective courses from which the students should select two.
Students will be required to carry out field investigations, conduct interviews and have opportunities to discuss and apply the concepts covered during the course work. There are practical components in most courses which should take place in schools to get first hand experiences about designing and implementing lesson plans to teach the various skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing as well as language rules and mechanics, as well as communicative English use.
The students should make field observations, collect, and analyze data from the field. The nature, scope, and content of the final project/thesis will be determined by the student in consultation with the faculty advisor.The project/thesis work should be presented in the form of a comprehensive report that follows international standards in reporting scientific research in human sciences.
Admission to the Master in Curriculum and Instruction: Teaching English Language is competitive and requires the candidate to:
- Have a bachelor degree in English language, English literature, translation (English‐Arabic), or Education (English emphasis) recognized by the Ministry of Higher Education; with a minimum average of 75/100 or equivalent.
- Submit official transcripts for all undergraduate and/or graduate course work.
- Pass an English entrance exam that includes all English language skills, or present an official certificate of passing IELTS level 6 or higher, or a paper-based TOEFL score of 550 or higher, or equivalent, and
- Succeed in the admission interview conducted by the Graduate Studies Committee of the college.
It is preferred that students would follow the specified study plan, which distributes the courses on four semesters. However, students may select to take a reduced load of no less than six credits per semester if they are employed while studying. The maximum course load is 12 credits per semester.
To graduate with a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction: Teaching English Language, a student must:
- Complete successfully the specified program of study with a minimum CGPA of 75%.
- Present official evidence of passing IELTS level 6.5, or TOEFL with a minimum score of 600, or equivalent.
- Complete a Master’s project/thesis
Program
This set consists of the following 9 courses encompassing 27 credit hours:
- EDUC 502: Advanced Topics in General Instructional Methods of Teaching
- EDUC 506: Instructional Methods in Teaching ESL/EFL
- EDUC 508: Computer Assisted Language Learning
- EDUC 585: Assessment and Evaluation in Teaching ESL/EFL
- EDUC 590: Research Methods in Education
- EDUC 605: Advanced Topics in Instructional Strategies in ESL/EFL
- EDUC 625: Curricula and Pedagogical Issues in Teaching ESL/EFL
- EDUC 690: Project/thesis (3 or 6 credit hours)
Two or three courses encompassing 6 or 9 credit hours are chosen from the following list (nine for project choice and six for thesis choice):
- EDUC 500: Learning and Developmental Psychology
- EDUC 504: Advanced Topics in Education Systems in Oman and the GCC Countries
- EDUC 505: Foundations of Education
- EDUC 530: Cross‐Cultural Communication
- EDUC 550: Guidance and Counseling
- EDUC 557: Advanced Study of Educational Organization and Administration
- EDUC 570: Theories of Intelligence and Learning Styles
- EDUC 573: Instructional Design and Applications
- EDUC 587: Standardized Measures for English Language Skills
- EDUC 611: Models of Second Language Acquisition
- EDUC 615: Program Curriculum, Materials, and Syllabus Design
- EDUC 630: Designing Digital Media for Educational Applications
- EDUC 510: Statistical Analysis Methods for Research in Humanities
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EDUC 500: Learning and Developmental Psychology (3 credits)
The essential concepts of the theories which explain learning by humans such as behaviorism, cognitive learning, observational learning (modeling), and meta cognition. The general concept of developmental psychology with focus on the importance and relation to education. An introduction to individual differences among learners and learning styles.
EDUC 502: Advanced Topics in General Methods of Teaching (3 credits)
Advanced study of cognitive learning and models of teaching, advantages of cognitive models over behaviorist models, instructional planning, teaching strategies, classroom management, and evaluation procedures. Detailed discussion of essential thinking skills and the teaching of thinking with emphasis on conceptual understanding in teaching. Teaching/learning models such as: Social Interaction Model, Inductive Model, Interactive Model, Problem‐based Learning Model, Cooperative Learning, differences and characteristics of Direct and Indirect models of instruction will be covered.
EDUC 504: Advanced Topics in Education Systems in Oman and the GCC Countries (3 credits)
Study and analysis of the educational systems of the Sultanate of Oman and the GCC Countries along with comparisons with relevant international systems. Students’ field trips to educational institutions will be organized and reports will be discussed in class. Course may be offered in Arabic.
EDUC 505: Foundations of Education (3 credits)
Detailed study of the history and development of education and pioneers in education. Selected educators from Greece, Italy, China, Egypt, India, and the Islamic world will be studied and their theories will be analyzed with focus on their effect on the modern education.
EDUC 506: Instructional Methods in Teaching ESL/EFL (3 credits)
A survey of the theoretical principles and techniques of various methods of Teaching English Language. Focus is on linking theory to practice through the preparation and implementation of instructional units and lesson plans both in simulated and actual classroom setting. The course includes practicum field experience of about 30 classroom sessions in schools.
EDUC 508: Computer Assisted Language Learning (3 credits)
Study of the state‐of‐the‐art of information and communication technologies (ICT) applications in enhancing language teaching and learning with focus on English language applications. Students will develop ESL/EFL teaching materials and conduct classroom activities using ICT with special attention to the use of the internet.
EDUC 510: Statistical Analysis Methods for Research in Humanities (3 credits)
Coverage of data types, the statistical analysis methods that are commonly used in education such as descriptive statistics, tabulation methods, measures of central tendencies, correlation, and basic inferential statistics. Students should practice data collection and perform statistical analysis for the collected data, and present the results to the class.
EDUC 530: Cross‐Cultural Communication (3 credits)
Study of social, ethical and cultural effects on oral and written communication across cultures. Topics include body language, stereotypes, titles and respect, turn taking, narrative structuring, intonation, request, disagreement and criticism and their educational implications. Case studies of different speech communities will be discussed and compared with the Omani culture.
EDUC 550: Guidance and Counseling (3 credits)
A study of the role of college and high school counselors in guiding and helping students academically and in all other areas affecting their academic and social life. Prerequisite: EDUC 500.
EDUC 557: Advanced Study of Educational Organization and Administration (3 credits)
Study of the administrative and organizational theory and its application to the operation of educational organizations. The role, functions, and responsibilities of the educational administrator will be covered.
EDUC 570:Theories of Intelligence and Learning Styles (3 credits)
This applications‐focused course will be based on theories of intelligence, including those of Howard Gardner, Daniel Goleman, and other classroom based approaches for understanding intelligence from multiple perspectives. The course will also help students to distinguish between knowledge domains (such Bloom’s Taxonomy, as well as others that have been introduced in the last 20 years), learning styles, and concepts of intelligence, with an emphasis on how such distinctions can serve in the development and implementation of student‐centered classroom activities.
EDUC 573: Instructional Design and Applications (3 credits)
This course focuses on the application of instructional design principles to the development of instruction. Topics include issues, trends, foundations, instructional design stages, and technology. Students are expected to produce original samples to demonstrate the implementation of instructional design principles.
EDUC 585: Assessment and Evaluation in Teaching ESL/EFL (3 credits)
Principles and procedures of assessment. Focus is on evaluating learning, and behavior changes among learners, observation techniques, and performance measures; alignment of assessment and instruction; norm‐ and criterion referenced assessment; standardized tests, current issues and controversies. Significant attention to applications in language skills and communication. The course includes practicum field experience of about 30 classroom sessions in schools.
EDUC 587: Standardized Measures for English Language Skills (3 credits)
This course covers the history and application of standardized measures that are used to evaluate English language skills internationally such as TOEFL and IELTS with their variations. Students will have hands‐on experience with those tests, analyze their components, discuss cultural significance of those tests, and produce reports about them with focus on the relation between cultural and linguistic issues.
EDUC 590: Research Methods in Education (3 credits)
Coverage of the steps needed in planning for a research in education. The types of research design: quantitative versus qualitative research. Sampling techniques. Data collection methods. Designing data collection and measurement tools. Critical reading of empirical research in the varied areas of education. Students should produce samples of research designs for educational use and present them to the class.
EDUC 605: Advanced Topics in Instructional Strategies in ESL/EFL (3 credits)
A study and application of the modern communicative approaches to the teaching of grammar, speaking, listening, reading, writing, culture, and testing. Students prepare instructional materials and complete a series of lesson plans and apply them to a teaching context. The course include practicum field experience of about 30 classroom sessions in schools. Pre‐requisite: EDUC 507.
EDUC 611: Models of Second Language Acquisition (3 credits)
This course introduces students to the study of second language acquisition and provides them with training in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of representative learner language data in second language contexts. Course topics include universals of language acquisition, major theoretical models of second language acquisition, and individual differences in second language acquisition. Implications for language teaching are also addressed.
EDUC 615: Program Curriculum, Materials, and Syllabus Design (3 credits)
Basic competencies in curriculum planning, material adaptation, course development, task design, and lesson planning. Participants will design sample programs, instructional units, determine objectives, develop materials, and plan lessons and assessment tools.
EDUC 625: Curricular and Pedagogical Issues in Teaching ESL/EFL (3 credits)
Critical exploration of current issues in Teaching English Language curricula and pedagogy. Students explore, conceptualize, and formulate informed positions regarding current issues in curriculum design and implementation, teaching and assessment of learning, psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics, and language and communication more generally.
EDUC 630: Designing Digital Media for Educational Applications (3 credits)
This course focuses on the study and application of instructional design principles to the development of multimedia materials. Students are expected to design and develop a multimedia project using the discussed techniques.
EDUC 690: Project/Thesis Implementation (6 or 3 credits)
Students implement the design of their final projects that were developed in EDUC 590. They should demonstrate abilities to conduct and report research about teaching English language in an Omani educational institution. The completed project/thesis should be presented to a special panel of experts. The project work should be presented in a standard research report format that includes sections about definition of the problem, literature review, research design, study implementation, results, data analysis, discussion, and conclusion. Pre‐requisite: All core and elective courses.
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