Teaching and teacher education is the core of the educational enterprise. The development of young people in our society depends on the skill, knowledge, and caring of practicing professionals. Attending to the quality of schooling is fundamental to concerns for equity, opportunity, and the growth of human potential. In recent years, both teaching and the professional education designed to develop it have come under fire. Graduate study in teaching and teacher education at the University of Michigan seeks to prepare accomplished scholars, teachers, and leaders with the knowledge and skill to develop and improve practice in disciplined ways. Distinguished by our close connections to practice in schools and in programs of teacher education, our faculty works closely with graduate students to prepare them to contribute to the quality of professional practice and policy at the K- 12 level, as well as in the education and development of practicing professionals.
The doctoral specialization in Teaching and Teacher Education prepares graduate students as scholars for work in practice, research, and policy. Students develop their own research questions and emphases, while working collaboratively with other students and faculty. The program is an intensive one in which students engage in practice and scholarship alongside nationally recognized specialists in their field.
Doctoral students in teaching and teacher education take a common set of core courses, dealing with the practice and scholarship of teaching and teacher education (broadly defined to include professional development across the lifespan), and policy contexts of professional education. They also select electives from other areas, and from programs and departments outside the School of Education. While some focus on teaching and teacher education in particular school subjects, others consider issues common across subject matter boundaries. In addition, we engage our students in a practicum experience in teacher education –– on campus on in schools –– to provide focused opportunities to learn to use what they are learning in programs of teacher education. Our faculty is engaged in a wide variety of projects, both within the School, and nationally and internationally. Hence, myriad opportunities exist for graduate students to gain professional knowledge and skill through their involvement in these projects.
Teachers are central to the quality of students’ opportunities to learn in schools. Teaching is a complex practice, requiring substantial knowledge and skill, and involving relationships not only with learners, but with other professionals, parents, and community members. Debates over professionalism of teaching and about the challenges of equity and diversity shape teacher education as a field today. Central to this doctoral specialization is attention to these contemporary issues with a particular focus on the work of teaching, on learning to teach, and on the ongoing development of teachers and teaching across the lifespan. The study of teaching and teacher education is rooted in close attention to the demands and nature of practice. Faculty members also investigate a variety of contexts for teacher development, from formal programs of teacher education and professional development, to the organization of schools and teacher networks and groups. Opportunities to learn more about teaching, about teacher learning and teacher development, and about professional education are the cornerstones of our doctoral program in Teaching and Teacher Education.
This degree specialization is housed within the Educational Studies program, which fosters links among students and faculty in a number of specializations sharing a commitment to the integration of theory and research on teaching, learning, and educational access in P-12 settings.
It is also worth noting that, as a unit within Michigan's Educational Studies Program, the Teacher Education PhD program is a national partner in the Carnegie Initiative on the Doctorate, sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of teaching.
To assist those interested in the various concentrations, here are the names of faculty members, student ambassadors, and recent graduates involved with the Teaching and Teacher Education specialization. If you have a general question about the program please visit the Teaching and Teacher Education contact page.
Faculty: To view a faculty member's research interests, click on their name (links open up a new window).
Ambassadors are students who have agreed to answer your questions about the program. We know there are times when you really want to hear about the program from a student's perspective, and these students have agreed to share their experiences. If you have general Teacher Education questions, please contact the program directly here. Remember: To help us alert you to recruitment events and the latest admissions updates, be sure to also fill out a graduate program inquiry form
.
Ambassadors:
Amy Bacevich abace@umich.edu
Ruchi Bhatnagar rbhatnag@umich.edu
Emily Douglas edouglas@umich.edu
Imani Masters Goffney: imasters@umich.edu
Lauren McArthur lsmcarth@umich.edu
Tamara Shreiner tlknowlt@umich.edu
Majoring in Teaching and Teacher Education at the University of Michigan gives you many opportunities to work with faculty members who are leaders in the Teacher Education field.
Here is a list of some of the projects that Teaching and Teacher Education faculty and students are working on now, or have been involved with in the past.
School of Education Teacher Certification Programs
Undergraduate Elementary Teacher Certification
Undergraduate Secondary Teacher Certification
Center for Proficiency in Teaching Mathematics
Center for Highly Interactive Computing in Education
Study of Instructional Improvement
Teacher Education Program Assessment Activities (Adobe PDF 1300 Kb)
Listed below are the major course offerings related to Teaching and Teacher Education.
EDUC 776: The Practice of Teaching
This course examines what is known about teaching through different efforts to study and communicate about it. Knowledge of teaching is important to many other fields of inquiry–– for example, policy, teacher education, curriculum, learning, and schools as organizations ––and is also valuable in its own right. Consequently, the course is designed to be of interest to doctoral students from a variety of interest areas and programs. Topics may include: developing knowledge about the practice of teaching, exploring classic and novel approaches to the study of and writing about teaching, comparative studies of teaching practice historically and cross-nationally.
EDUC 774: The Practice of Teacher Education
Explores instructional and pedagogical approaches to the preparation of prospective teachers, or to the continuing education of practicing teachers. Topics may include instructional processes, curriculum, organizational structures, relations of theory and practice, subject matter learning for teaching, strategies for inquiry and reflection.
EDUC 775: Research on Teacher Education
Examines scholarship relevant to the professional development of teachers. Considers relations between different approaches and what teachers learn. Topics may include teacher knowledge and beliefs, teacher socialization and development, research on teacher education programs, measurement of teacher learning, and program evaluation and self-study, historical perspectives on the development of teacher education, programmatic elements of teacher education, preparation for specific aspects of the practice of teaching (e.g., attention to issues of equity and diversity, subject matter instruction).
EDUC ___: Research on Teaching
Traces the history of the field of research on teaching, examining the evolution of the field. Topics may include process product research, studies of instructional decision making and teacher thinking, and different approaches to the study of instructional practice and the factors that influence it, as well as the effort to study its effects, tools and measures for the study of teaching.
EDUC 772: Policy and Contexts of Teacher Education
Examines institutional, social, cultural, and political contexts n which teacher education takes place, and policy that affects teacher education contexts. Explores historical and contemporary debates about the appropriateness of those contexts, examines current research and positions regarding those contexts, and investigates new directions and alternatives. Topics may include the place of teacher education in different institutional contexts, teacher certification, program accreditation, history of teacher education, current policies in teacher education (e.g., standards movements), recruitment and who goes into teaching (social context issues), how the structure and contexts of teaching as a career shapes professional lives, international comparisons.
EDUC 657: Practicum in Teaching and Teacher Education
The practicum provides a guided opportunity in learning to teach a specific teacher education course, including field instruction and the supervision of student teaching. For the first two units of the internship, the student works with a faculty member/instructor who is teaching a section of the specific course. The student works with the instructor to develop the syllabus, and to plan individual class sessions, gaining access to the instructor’s thinking about and practice in the course.
In a subsequent semester, students take a one-unit seminar that will focus on teacher education practice. This seminar will provide opportunities to discuss teaching, to share artifacts, to show portfolios. Most students will assume responsibility for a course, discussion section, or supervision of student teaching/field instruction during this term. The practicum may be taken before or following candidacy.
Are you interested in applying to our program? If so, you've come to the right place. Just follow the steps below. Links will open up in a new window, close the window to return to this page.
1. Do you have any questions you would like answered before you
apply? If so, view the School
of Education Frequently Asked Questions or contact
the program. If not, continue on to item 2.
2. Fill out a Rackham program inquiry form to get you into our
system, so we can inform you of the latest recruiting events and other admissions
updates. You can fill
out a program
inquiry form by clicking here (be sure to close the new window to return
to this page).
3. Application Process: You will need to complete an application
to the Horace H. Rackham Graduate School,
which is the overall administrative unit for graduate programs. It is mandatory
that you use the Rackham Web application to apply to our programs.
You also need to send us a statement of purpose, official transcripts from every institution you have attended, three letters of recommendation, and your GRE scores. International students should also send in their TOEFL scores.
We created an application checklist for your use in keeping track of where and when you sent application materials. We recommend that you download and print up an application checklist.
Application Checklist
Fee waivers are available through the Rackham Graduate School for prospective students who qualify for Specialized Fee Waiver Groups. Please check Rackham's fee waiver Web page to see if you are eligible for one of these groups.
Note: The Office of Student Services matches documents to an application using the name appearing on the Rackham application. If the name on your documents, i.e., transcript, letter of recommendation, etc., is different from the name appearing on your application, please be sure to indicate all former last names or other first names on the Rackham application. Contact the Office of Student Services if you have information about your name that you did not include on the Rackham application.
For the latest deadline, please see our deadlines page
5. We hope you will get acquainted with us through our web materials,
e-mail correspondence, and when possible, a personal
visit. Be sure to
check out the University of
Michigan Web site, the Rackham
Graduate School Web site, and the rest of the resources in this program
site along with the School of Education Web site. In addition, you may want
to view the SOE
Bulletin.
There are opportunities through both the School of Education and the Rackham
Graduate School for merit and need based fellowships. To find out more, we
encourage you to review the
Graduate Financial Aid Resource Guide.
The Office
of Fellowships and Recruitment
is the contact for the Rackham Graduate School (734-764-8119).
We are delighted to learn of your interest in the University
of Michigan and this program. We encourage you to visit the campus to
discuss your interests with faculty and students. Visits are most helpful if
made prior to or during the application process. In addition to arranging individual
campus visits, you are encouraged to attend the annual Graduate Information Day. This is a great opportunity
for you to meet with School of Education faculty and staff, some of our current
students, and other prospective students. We wish you the best of luck in pursuing your
graduate studies and encourage you to contact us (above) if you have any questions
about the University of Michigan or your program.
Still have questions? If so, please visit the School
of Education Frequently Asked Questions, or contact the Office
of Student Services.
Questions about the status of your application? Check your application data and status online, via Wolverine Access. Please allow 7 days after submitting your application before checking your web application status on Wolverine Access. To do this you will need to use a login ID and password, and confirm some personal data before viewing your application:
For applicants who are current students or employees
1. Log into Wolverine Access using your existing UMICH uniqname login and click "New and Prospective Student Business."
"For applicants who are new to the University you will
need to create a secure login using a UM Friend Account and then log into Wolverine
Access at https://friend.weblogin.umich.edu/
1. Create a Friend Account by clicking on the following link: Create a Friend Account.
NOTE: If you have questions about creating a UM Friend Account you may go to http://www.itd.umich.edu/itcsdocs/s4316
2. Log into Wolverine Access at https://wolverineaccess.umich.edu/ and click "New and Prospective Student Business."
If you have any further questions, contact the Office
of Student Services at
(734) 764-7563 or
ed.grad.appl@umich.edu.
If you are interested in other School of Education programs, return to the "Academic Programs" home by clicking on the tab above or by clicking here.
