Master of Arts in Teaching

The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program is a full-time, 48 credit- hour program that prepares students to become critical teachers of visual culture while fulfilling the requirements for the Illinois State Teachers Certificate, Art K-12. Like the MAAE program, the MAT program promotes social change by emphasizing activism, advocacy, empowerment, egalitarianism, professionalism, and social responsibility in design and visual culture.

The curriculum begins with seminars that investigate connections between experiences inside and outside of public schooling within a larger context of cultural and historical analysis. These seminars provide a common ground for students and help them understand art, education, and curricula as both products of history and potential sites of cultural change. In a colloquium that is offered concurrently, MAT and MAAE students exchange ideas, establish connections, and confront critical issues.

Later semesters introduce students to curriculum development, field experiences, and research methodologies. Students also pursue 6 credits of electives in advanced art/design history, studio, or art/design analysis. Curriculum development explores cultural production, assessment, and evaluation and pedagogical methods for elementary, middle, and secondary art education. Students gain more then 600 hours of pre-clinical and clinical fieldwork under the supervision of elementary and secondary cooperating teachers and art education faculty members. In addition, they pursue research that is relevant to their master’s theses.

The MAT thesis offers students an excellent opportunity to develop a matrix of connections between personal interest and experience, professional development and praxis, discursive and performative practices, and historical and contemporary scholarship. Students are encouraged to explore innovative approaches to research and documentation including participatory and action research, interactive and collaborative projects, and performative and new media-based presentations.

Students usually complete the program in four semesters. Students must complete the MAT degree within four years. A minimum of 42 credit hours must be completed at the School. Up to 6 hours of transfer credits may be submitted for acceptance at the time of application and are subject to approval at that time only.

The MAT program seeks mature, self-motivated students with a sound commitment to improving the public sphere and engaging young people in critical dialogue about the conception and procedure of art and other forms of visual culture. Candidates usually have completed a bachelor’s degree in studio art or its equivalent. A transcript analysis and interview are required of all applicants.

Students are required to complete the following prerequisites before entering the MAT program:

A transcript analysis and interview are required for all applicants to the Master of Arts in Teaching program. Call the Art Education Department at 312. 899-7481 for further information.

See admissions for further details.

Master of Arts in Teaching Curriculum Requirements

Area	Credit Hours
Certification Core Understanding Curriculum 3 Ethical & Pedagogical Issues 3 Histories, Theories, & Philosophy of American Public Education 3 Doing Democracy: Pedagogies of Critical Multiculturalism 3 Cyberpedagogy 3 Curriculum & Instruction 3 Psychological, Sociological, & Phenomenological Approaches 3 Cultural Approaches to Production 3	24
Pre-Clinical and Clinical Fieldwork Fieldwork: Elementary & Secondary Experiences 3 Apprentice Teaching 9	12
Thesis Research Graduate Art Education Thesis 3	3
Colloquium: Dialogues on Art & Education	3
Electives from any department including art education	6
Completion of the thesis
Total Credit Hours	48

1. Applications are required to complete all prerequisites before entering the program. See above.

2. The MAT is designed to be a full-time program completed in four semesters (two years). Students have a maximum of four years to complete the program (this includes time off for leaves of absence).

3. A minimum of 42 credit hours must be completed in residence at the School. Up to 6 transfer credits may be requested at the time of application for admission and are subject to approval at that time. No transfer credit will be permitted after a student is admitted.

4. Students applying for certification must be United States citizens or file a form of intent.

5. Students planning to teach in Illinois must also pass the Illinois State Teacher's Examinations in order to qualify for certification. The two-part examination includes both a Basic Skills and Art Education test. The exams are usually offered four times a year.

6. All MAT candidates are required to publicly present their completed thesis project to a thesis advisory committee in order to graduate.

7. Full-Time Status Minimum Requirement: 12 credit hours.

Notes:

The following information is provided in accordance with Title II of the Higher Education Act, section 207(f)(2):

The pass rate of the School of the Art Institute’s art education graduates for the program year 2000-2001 on teacher certification assessments is:
1. Basic Skills: 94%
(This pass rate reflects 15 out of 16 SAIC students passing the test)
2. Academic Content: 94%
(This pass rate reflects 15 out of 16 SAIC students passing the test)

The average pass rate for all teacher preparation programs within institutions
of higher education in Illinois is:
1. Basic Skills: 100%
(This pass rate reflects 8,596 out of 8,633 students from institutions state-wide passing the test)
2. Academic Content: 98%
(This pass rate reflects 7,306 out of 7,470 students from institutions state-wide passing the test)

For more information on the SAIC Title II report, contact the Department of Art Education.