Masters in Education - Teaching Culturally & Linguistically Diverse Students

The M.Ed in Teaching Culturally and Linguistically Diverse students prepares educators and administrators to collaborate, effectively work with, and educate culturally, and linguistically diverse (CLD) students by providing learner-centered field-based opportunities. We foster academic excellence, community engagement, and cultural enrichment by developing a comprehensive understanding of global and local policies, and best practices as guided by our accrediting agencies; TESOL, Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GPSC), and the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).

A fully online program, the Master of Education in Teaching Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students (TCLD) will enable candidates:

• to develop cultural and linguistic responsitivity which acknowledges that teaching and learning are inextricably embedded in students’ language, culture, and identities.
• to design and implement instructional practices and models of advancing students’ linguistic, cultural, and academic identities in public school classrooms.
• to acknowledge students’ home cultures and languages not as deficits, disadvantages, or problems but rather as resources to be leveraged for academic learning and mainstream cultural success.

The program is approved by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (PSC) and meets the PSC’s certificate upgrade requirements.

Specifically, in our program:

• You’ll learn 100% online in a flexible learning environment
• English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Endorsement classes are built-in to the TCLD program.
• You may gain eligibility for a teaching certificate upgrade while earning your degree.

1. Complete the requirements for a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution or the equivalent at a recognized international university (see Graduate Admissions for international students).
2. Teaching certification is not required for admission. A teaching certificate and/or professional experience working with historically underrepresented populations is strongly preferred. Candidates who possess a Georgia level four teaching certificate in an eligible concentration area will qualify for a level five certificate upgrade upon program completion. This program will not certify candidates to teach in the state of Georgia.
3. Present a cumulative 2.50 (4.0 scale) grade point average or higher on all undergraduate and graduate work combined.
4. Submit a completed “Disclosure and Affirmation Form” that addresses misconduct disclosure, the Code of Ethics for Educators, and tort liability.
5. Submit a personal statement of purpose, not to exceed 250 words, that identifies the applicant’s career goals, professional aspirations, and experiences or goals for working with historically underrepresented populations.

Applicants may be approved for provisional admission based on the quality of the admission material presented. Provisional students must earn grades of ‘B’ or higher in their first nine (9) hours of coursework after admission and meet any other stipulations outlined by the department to be converted to regular status.

*International transcripts must be evaluated by a NACES-accredited evaluation service and must be a course-by-course evaluation and include a GPA. (naces.org)

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation