Education (EDD)

This course examines the theoretical framework for the practice of transformational leadership in organizations, leading to the application of evidence-based practices within the context of educational equity. Students will focus on strategic leadership and innovative practices, such as systems thinking, team leadership, coaching and mentoring, change management, and educational equity and access.

This course enhances students’ understanding of the myriad leadership challenges that today’s educational leaders confront. As our society becomes more complex, organizational leaders need to manage uncertainty, assess and respond to crisis and conflict with situationally appropriate strategies, and direct the process of recovery. This course merges literature on leadership with best practices in crisis management.

People are the most valuable asset of any organization, yet are frequently the most unpredictable challenging asset to manage. This course therefore explores the processes that organizations use to attract, retain, motivate, and develop the most dynamic people for their positions. The course emphasizes organizational recruitment, employee value proposition, retention, engagement, identification and development of high potential employees, and employee succession planning.

Transformative leadership demands that today’s educational leaders act with cultural competence and responsiveness. They must do so in their decision-making and practice, so the organization meets the demands of an ever-changing environment. Continual growth and personal development are imperative for leaders to be successful in a complex global economy. This course thus facilitates the exploration of self, the development of leadership values, and the process of decision-making as it relates to ethical standards and social justice in multicultural organizations and school communities.

Educational leaders strategically innovate by developing their understanding of cross-cultural perspectives and collective behaviors in a multicultural context. To that end, this course investigates global leadership practices with a focus on cultural intelligence and global partnerships. This course also includes a Study Abroad component during which students will engage in diverse sociocultural, linguistic, political, and economic contexts to better understand and address critical social theory and schooling. To achieve this goal, students will study the following key areas: race, class, nation, language, gender and sexuality in education, and international and comparative education.

This course explores some of the key themes and critical issues in international educational policy development. The forces of globalization are profoundly changing the experiences and opportunity structures for education in an increasingly interdependent world. Students will analyze the issues by investigating at least four educational systems from outside of the United States and compare these systems with a predominant American model. Students will then examine major educational policies from the selected systems to identify cultural differences in expected student outcomes as well as the expectations for education.

This course focuses on the systematic, data-driven assessment of existing programs or policies. Its purpose is to provide valid findings to determine whether a particular program or policy is achieving its goals, and whether it should be continued, improved, expanded, or curtailed. This course will also explore technology-based methodological tools used for evaluating the impact of policies and programs, and the ways in which they are used to make informed data decisions to respond to organizational needs.

This course focuses on the design of research studies in applied settings, including the formulation of research questions, sampling methods, experimental and quasi-experimental designs, threats to internal and external validity, psychometric and statistical methods, qualitative and quantitative inquiry, data analysis, and research report writing. Students will learn key principles of research, while gaining an understanding of how to design and conduct interviews, content analysis, discourse analysis, and survey design. Course aims include gaining a greater understanding of qualitative and quantitative approaches in social research to support students in choosing the methodology best-suited for their dissertation topic.

This course helps students develop a comprehensive understanding of the statistical principles used in the description and analysis of data. Students will also learn how to conduct appropriate statistical analyses, interpret findings, and compose meaningful reports while examining how these skills can lead to being a more informed and involved educator.

This course focuses on the key processes of assessment and evaluation in K-12 education, spanning from teachers’ day-to-day observations in the classroom to internal evaluations of policy initiatives and student learning outcomes. Participants will explore key concepts and case studies of educational assessment and evaluation, while analyzing the interplay between policy, research, and practice.

This course will explore theoretical models that focus on multiple aspects of student achievement, while upholding students’ cultural identities. Course participants will explore key aspects of culturally relevant pedagogy and curriculum, including student achievement and academic success, enriching cultural competencies that support students in developing positive ethnic and social identities, and fostering pedagogical approaches that recognize and critique critical perspectives that challenge societal inequalities.

This course will help students evaluate and implement technology in the classroom setting. The course will examine the current and future trends in Instructional Systems Technology. Students will also examine the most current literature in the field and instructional technology professional organization trends and recommendations. Emphasis will be placed on the theories that ground Instructional Systems Technology and how the theories inform research and practice in the field. Differentiated activities and assignments will be provided for students.

This course investigates public-school finance and legal practices of financial operation. In addition, the course covers the principal methods of monitoring and evaluating the management of school operational systems, including the welfare and safety of students and staff.

Students will learn leadership skills via the principles of community engagement in public and private school settings. Students will hone the skills necessary to engage different stakeholders dynamically, lead the collaborative design of strategic plans, promote multilevel cohesion, and communicate to different audiences.

Students will learn about the dissertation process by reading scholarship, engaging in seminar discussions, listening to the experiences of current or recent dissertators, and completing relevant writing assignments. In this first dissertation course, candidates will identify a potential area for study and identify members of the dissertation committee.

This course will guide the Ed.D. student through the Review of Related Literature stage of dissertation development. Using advanced research strategies, students will search appropriate databases and become familiar with scholarship to identify relevant research and theory related to a specific topic. Students will continue to be part of a community of researchers, willing and able to support each other in the development of research plans as the group moves through the degree program. Candidates will develop Chapter 1 or the Statement of the Problem and complete the literature review.

Prerequisite(s): EDD8000.

This course introduces students to the dissertation methodology and writing process. The focus of the course is the further development of the students’ dissertation proposal for the first three chapters of the traditional doctoral dissertation and completion of the IRRB application. The core objective of this course is to provide guidance and motivation for the doctoral student so that Chapter 3, the methodology, is completed and the entire prospectus is approved by the student’s dissertation committee.

Prerequisite(s): EDD8001.

In this course, students will collect data, analyze findings, and write concluding sections of their dissertations. Students will discuss the implications for their study and use the results to make informed conclusions. Students will also identify and discuss the limitations of their findings as well as appraise qualitative data.

Prerequisite(s): EDD8002.

This course is an extension of dissertation research beyond the third year and may be repeated for credit. Registration is required each semester for any student who has completed all coursework but who has yet to finish the dissertation. Continuous enrollment is required until the dissertation is completed.

Prerequisite(s): EDD8003.