Online Masters Degree and Certificate Programs

Course Information and Descriptions

All courses are required and 3 credit hours each. Course descriptions subject to minor modification.

CI7001 – Educational Research for Masters Students (3 credit hours): Through this course, students will develop the proposal for their final master’s project while learning how to develop an action research question, perform a literature search to read and synthesize relevant research, develop a methodology and research plan, and write the proposal using APA style guidelines. Students are expected to draw upon what they have learned in the program coursework, apply it toward a real-world project, and write a publishable paper. The actual research, data analysis and final paper will be completed with guidance from the student’s master’s committee and credited under CI7090 Master’s Project: Curriculum & Instruction.

CI7080 – Curriculum Development & Evaluation in Medical Education (3 credit hours): This course will provide an overview of evolving concepts and principles of curriculum development and evaluation for medical and other healthcare professionals. The course considers the philosophy and theory of curriculum design and development. Special emphasis will be placed on the analysis and application of principles for resolving problems with curriculum and curriculum improvement. Each participant will develop and share a curriculum document that supports a program within his or her discipline. The development and writing of this document leading to presentations and critiques at the end of the term will be our primary focus. All elements of the course will relate to this effort. The professor's role will be as facilitator, consultant, discussion leader, and critic with the hope that each participant, at the end of the course, will have produced a substantial document ready for implementation or for further study and development.

CI7081 – Attitude Formation and Change in Medical Education (3 credit hours): This course focuses on attitude formation and change theories in terms of the goals and objectives in medical educational settings. Theoretically sound ideas for influencing student attitudes, and the value decisions which medical educators must make when deciding to influence attitudes, will be introduced and studied. Reactive and unobtrusive measures for assessing student attitudes will be examined.

CI7082 – Human and Adult Learning in Medical Education (3 credit hours): This course provides an introduction to cognitive theories of human learning and memory with an emphasis on the application of this approach to the understanding and improvement of learning in instructional settings, particularly in medical education settings.

CI7083 – Application of Instructional Design and Technology in Medical Education (3 credit hours): This course is designed to provide fundamental knowledge about instructional design, including relevant learning theories, in conjunction with the computer technology tools that impact the teaching and learning in medical education. Course participants will explore and evaluate how, when, and why technology should be infused into education. Experience will be gained in the development and use of instructional applications including computers and educational software. Emphasis will be placed on creating collaborative teaching environments, eLearning courses and media-enhanced presentations using specific software and/or Web 2.0 tools (e.g., Blogs, Wikis, Social Networks, Social Bookmarks, Podcasts, RSS Feeds, and Photo Sharing). In addition, this course will address potential legal and ethical issues regarding computer-based technologies.

EDST7010 – Statistical Data Analysis I (3 credit hours): This course introduces students to the fundamental techniques of statistical data analysis, such as descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, correlation and regression, and chi-square tests, that are commonly used in the social and behavioral sciences.

EDST8034 – Measurement and Assessment (3 credit hours): The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to the development of tests, assessments, questionnaires, and other methods of measuring psycho-educational variables. The goal is to enable each student to develop reliable assessments, which includes prescient design, standardized administration, and quantitative analysis to ensure that assessments are psychometrically sound. The class covers the entire test development cycle: conceptualization of a test, test design, item writing, pilot testing, standard setting, and psychometric analysis. Discussion of psychometric analysis is focused on classical test theory, but concepts of item response theory, a much more advanced paradigm, will also be explored.

EDST8051 – Qualitative Research Methods I (3 credit hours): This course introduces graduate students to the fundamentals of qualitative research. Students will be introduced to various approaches to qualitative research (e.g. holistic ethnography, critical ethnography, case studies, qualitative evaluations) and learn how to 1) develop a research design; 2) select research sites and negotiate entrée; 3) construct a purposeful sampling plan; 4) assemble and submit an Institutional Research Board (IRB) packet; 5) collect data through participant observation, interviews, and archival materials; 6) establish trustworthiness (validity and reliability); 7) assume effective and ethical researcher roles; 8) analyze data; and 9) write up findings.

CULMINATING WORK

CI6075 – Field Experiences Practicum - Parts I, II and III (each 1 credit, total 3 credits): The goal of the Practicum course is to document your growth as medical educator, scholar, and leader through the development of an evidence-based educator portfolio. Through active teaching, collection of program artifacts, reflection, and completion of course related activities, you will produce an electronic educator portfolio that showcases your core knowledge, skills, and dispositions as a medical educator, scholar, and leader over time.

This course is divided into 3 parts, each approximately 5 weeks in length, and taken throughout your program as follows:

Part I (Educator) is to be taken in your first semester with your first course and will run the first 5 weeks of the semester and will covers topics around practical teaching application and reflection as well as introduce the educator portfolio that is developed throughout the program.

Part II (Scholar) is to be taken mid-way through your program and will run the middle 5 weeks of the semester. It will cover topics related to academic scholarship and professional growth planning.

Part III (Leader) is to be taken at the end of your program prior to graduation and will run the final 5 weeks of the semester. It covers topics around mentoring and leadership in medical education. The educator portfolio is submitted at the end of this section.

CI7090 – Master's Project: Curriculum and Instruction (3 credit hours): This course involves the independent work of completing the research and writing the final paper for the final master's project proposal completed in CI7001 – Educational Research for Masters Students.