Master of Arts in Teaching

Overview

Offered at all USF campuses

The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) in Elementary Education is designed for those who have a bachelor's degree in a field outside of education and who wish to become certified teachers in grades kindergarten through six.

Our program includes both the state of Florida English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Endorsement and Reading Endorsement for all program graduates.

Program Highlights

  • A part-time practicum and full-time internship
  • Summer semester place-based instruction with integrated instructional planning and social science coursework, with class sessions held at local museums, libraries, and other local centers
  • Building relationships and connections while learning to teach in one of three partnership schools
  • Working alongside an experienced elementary mentor teacher as well as a university field-supervisor
  • In-depth exploration of core curricular areas, including math, science, language arts/reading, and social studies, with meaningful connections to clinical experiences.

CALL ME MiSTER

The Call Me MiSTER Program is a USF St. Petersburg campus initiative that partners with Pinellas County Public Schools. We are recruiting men of color to get their undergraduate teacher certification or a Master鈥檚 of Arts degree in Teaching.
 
The mission of the USF鈥檚 Call Me MiSTER (an acronym for Mentors Instructing Students Toward Effective Role Models) initiative is to increase the pool of available licensed teachers from a broader, more diverse background. Individuals desiring to teach and serve as role models in urban elementary schools are encouraged to apply.

For further details or to apply to this specific MAT cohort, please contact the program advisor, Arleyna Loss, at arleyna@usf.edu or the Project Coordinator, Dr. Sandra Vernon-Jackson, at sajackson@usf.edu. 

Features of the Program

ENGAGING CURRICULUM

Students complete coursework in areas including:

  • Content areas and writing
  • English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) instruction
  • Instructional planning and creating a productive and community-focused learning environment
  • Assessment

Courses are held during the day so that they can include experiences in elementary schools. Some courses may be taken online. 

Please take a look at this article describing the integrated summer course experience. 

FIELD EXPERIENCES

Field experiences are designed to facilitate theory to practice connections and include experiences within specific courses, a one-semester part-time practicum, and a one-semester full-time internship. Our program partners with three schools in Hillsborough County Public Schools. In most cases, students  will complete a field experiences in both a primary grade (k-2) and an intermediate grade (3-5) classroom in two different settings. 

With a focus on quality clinical experience and the need to maintain compliance with stringent state mandates governing these experiences, our students must conduct their practicum and final internship within our designated service area.