Program Overview

Education Coordinator Latanya Brandon, (845) 257-3118, brandonl@newpaltz.edu
Geology Coordinator John Rayburn, (845) 257-3767, rayburnj@newpaltz.edu
Program ID 102R
Credits 39
Program Length The MAT Residency program must be completed within 5 years.
Modality In-person
Full-time/Part-time Part-time
Transfer Credits 9
Capstone Portfolio and Practicum
Certification/Licensure NYSED Initial/Professional Earth Science 7-12

Program Description

The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) Adolescence Education: Earth Science Residency is a 39-credit program designed specifically for school district employees holding an appropriate liberal arts degree in Geology who have not had a formal background in education and who wish to prepare for a teaching career in adolescence education grades 7-12. 

Upon successful completion of the program, candidates will be recommended to the New York State Education Department for Initial/Professional Certification in Earth Science grades 7-12. 

Apply to a SUNY New Paltz graduate programAdmission Requirements

  1. Applicants must be working within a school district and have the support of the district.
  2. A 3.0 or better GPA in all undergraduate course work and in an appropriate undergraduate major.
    1. The undergraduate major should be comparable in breadth, depth, and rigor to the New Paltz undergraduate major in the same field. including course work that includes a broad and rigorous general education and general science component.
  3. Write an admissions essay responding to the following prompt:
    1. Reflect on a time when your idea or belief was questioned or challenged. Or, conversely, reflect on a time when your idea or belief was validated. What happened? In what way(s) could this time be considered a learning experience?
      1. As you reflect, please include at least one reference to the School of Education's Conceptual Framework and discuss how it speaks to your experience
  4. Three academic or professional recommendations are required. 
    1. One letter should be from school district leadership acknowledging support for your participation in the residency program.
    2. The remaining recommendations should be from professors with whom you have taken courses, preferably in your major field. 
  5. Applicants who graduated from college more than 5 years ago should make every effort to obtain such references and/or equivalent professional references (e.g., job supervisor). We will not accept references from friends or family members. 

Application Deadlines

 
March 1 Fall Admission
October 1 Spring Admission
Accepting on a rolling basis until the program is full. However, students who submit after the deadline may get news of acceptance after advanced registration and some classes may be full.

Curriculum Requirements

SED540Graduate Foundations of Adolescence Education Seminar1
EDS539Social Foundations of Education 3
EDS730Adolescent Development in Middle & Secondary Schools3
SED703Curriculum: Designs for Literacy, Learning, and Assessment in Adolescence Education3
SED551Field Experience I 1
SED591Inquiry Learning in Science Education3
SPE565Teaching in Inclusive Classrooms 3
SED525Digital Literacies and Learning in Secondary Education1
SED543Science in the Secondary School 3
SED552Field Experience II 1
EDI798Principles of Research3
GLG599Comprehensive Exam Workshop0
SED553Field Experience III 1
SED604Practicum in Secondary Ed 7-96
SED605Practicum in Secondary Ed 10-126
SED606Practicum Seminar1
Total Credits39

Graduation Checklist 

  • Resolve any pending admission conditions (outlined in your acceptance letter) and/or missing documents if applicable.  

  • Review your progress report via my.newpaltz.edu to ensure that you have completed all program requirements.   

  • Remember that only two grades below a B- may be applied to your plan of study. 

  • Contact your advisor if you need to amend your plan or process transfer credit.  

  • Ensure that you are in good academic standing with a GPA (Grade Point Average) of 3.0 or higher and that you are making satisfactory academic progress towards your degree completion.  

  • Pass your capstone or culminating assessment.  

Program Requirements 

This program requires a minimum of 1000 hours in an educational setting.  As a result, part of your teacher preparation program will be conducted in the professional field under supervision while working with students and cooperating teachers. The required practica are offered during the spring and fall. This is important to consider in planning your program since working in the field demands that you have time available to spend in schools, clinics, and classrooms. This may necessitate an adjustment to your daily schedule.   

Residency Experiences 

To ensure candidates acquire the competencies to perform various teaching/leadership roles and implement a variety of instructional strategies, all candidates accepted into the Adolescence Education: Earth Science Residency graduate program will complete 1000 hours of clinical experiences across two practicum experiences (SED604 and SED605) and three fieldwork experiences (SED551, SED552, and SED553). Residency candidates will complete a minimum of 15 hours in clinical experiences related to teaching students with disabilities during Fieldwork 1 and Fieldwork II. 

The fieldwork experiences in the MAT Adolescence Education Earth Science Residency program help teacher candidates connect coursework with school and classroom settings. Each course during the residency integrates field experiences with course assignments, discussions and/or readings. As part of residency placement, teacher candidates are expected to visit a variety of classroom settings and grade levels within their content area to ensure they experience the full range of developmental levels required by the certificate sought. 

Requirements for Completion of Degree 

Candidates are required to: 

  • Develop a plan of study with an advisor upon matriculation; 

  • Complete prescribed coursework and other requirements within five years of matriculation; 

  • Deficiencies in the candidate’s undergraduate preparation in the subject area or major shall be remedied by early advisement with the Adolescence Education Advisor. 

  • Maintain a cumulative average of 3.0 or better, with no more than two grades below B-. 

  • Successfully complete student teaching and residency requirements. 

Additional Requirements 

  • Students must attend four state-mandated workshops: 

  1. Recognizing and reporting symptoms of child abuse 
  2. Prevention of school violence (SAVE).
  3. Dignity for ALL Students Act (DASA)
  4. Health and Safety Education (EDI095)

  • These workshops can be taken at SUNY New Paltz campus. 

  • Students must have good moral character. Applicants for certification are asked to provide information about past convictions, misconduct, etc., on the application for a certificate, and the New York State Education Department is authorized to investigate complaints regarding an applicant’s past convictions or any acts which raise a reasonable question as to the individual’s moral character. 

  • Students must receive satisfactory scores on the New York State Teacher Certification Examinations. More information on these tests may be obtained at http://www.nystce.nesinc.com 

Students are responsible for their own transportation to the field and student teaching placements and must be prepared to commute up to 45 miles, one way, to these placements. 

Upon graduation, students will receive the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree. Students will have completed all academic requirements for both initial and professional certification and will be recommended for both certifications. Students will receive their professional certificate after they have completed three years of satisfactory secondary teaching experience in their discipline and notification of such to the State Education Department. 

For information on obtaining a teaching credential in New York State, please visit the New York State Education Department website at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/. 

MAT Adolescence Education Earth Science Residency  

Candidates who successfully complete all required components of the Adolescence Earth Science Residency program will: 

  • Content Knowledge: Enhance content area through synthesizing scientific conceptual understandings with pedagogical practice and implementation.  

  • Planning: Be able to plan lessons in science that are NYSP-12SLS standards-based, are clear and organized, rely upon a variety of appropriate pedagogical practices, include appropriate technologies, and differentiate instruction that provides opportunities to promote appreciation of diversity, tolerance, and inclusion in safe, democratic, and equitable learning environments.  

  • Assessment and P-12 Learning: Be able to choose, design, and implement authentic and appropriate formative and summative assessments to evaluate student learning, consider assessment data when making instructional decisions, and identify effective or problematic teaching moments as they are occurring in order to facilitate student growth in specified content, cognitive skills, and/or social skills.  

  • Pedagogical Practice: Demonstrate the ability to maximize student learning by incorporating content with pedagogical knowledge, utilizing appropriate and effective technology, and implementing a variety of developmentally and contextually appropriate evidence-based instructional strategies to make learning meaningful and relevant for students while teaching.  

  • Dispositions: Exhibit the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to practice an ethically informed and self-reflective philosophy, participate effectively in institutional change, and develop respectful relationships with students, families, communities and colleagues.  

  • Critical Thinking and Reasoning: Clearly articulate an issue or problem; identify, analyze, and evaluate ideas, data, and arguments as they engage in planning, assessing, and teaching; and acknowledge limitations such as perspective and bias as they develop well-reasoned arguments to form judgements and/or draw conclusions that support pedagogical decisions.  

  • Information Literacy: Locate appropriate resources effectively using appropriate tools; evaluate information with an awareness of authority, validity, and bias; and demonstrate an understanding of the ethical dimensions of information use, creation, and dissemination as they relate to the field of education.