Master's in Secondary Education

Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education (Type 09 certification)

LEARN FROM THE EXPERTS: "HOW TO BECOME A TEACHER"

Special Information Sessions, May 2013

Discover how NLU can make your dreams of becoming a classroom teacher a reality. Attend an information session to learn more about our Master of Arts in Teaching programs.

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National Louis University's Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education program is designed for career changers who want to work toward obtaining an  Illinois Type 09 certificate for teaching middle or high school, or their Type 10 certification to teach foreign language (K-12).

Consider getting your Master's in Secondary Education at NLU if you:

• Have a bachelor’s degree in another discipline
• Are planning to teach grades 6–12 or in the case of Foreign language, grades K-12
• Would like to get your Type 9 certificate in as few as 10 months
• Want to study at a well-established teaching institution

Why NLU for a  Master's Secondary Education Degree

NLU has a long-standing reputation for its education and teacher training programs, and is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Since 1886, we’ve trained thousands of Chicago-area teachers, and continue to graduate the majority of Illinois' Golden Apple Award winners — one of the most prestigious teacher honors in the state. Our instructors bring both academic skills and practical experience to the classroom, and our students are highly qualified — creating a unique depth to NLU's Secondary Education program.

The Master's in Secondary Education program is organized as a student-centered, standards-driven, progressive experience. Small groups of students — no more than 22 — work together throughout their program. These groups are made up of prospective teachers of English, Science, Social Studies/History, Mathematics, and Foreign Language, providing students opportunities to think beyond subject boundaries, consider a variety of instructional strategies, and gain experience planning multi-disciplinary units and programs.

What You Will Learn

• How to teach middle and high school students while taking into account their unique learning styles.
• How to teach a subject well, and connect and interweave it with other fields of knowledge so students encounter ideas that cross disciplines, replicating the 
  ways we learn as adults.
• How to work with colleagues to create experiences that invite young people to pose questions, gather information, construct meaning, share their understandings, make decisions and take action based upon what they have learned.
• How to assess and evaluate your techniques, and how to use research to 
  enhance your teaching practices.

Successful graduates of this program will earn a Master of Arts in Teaching degree, 
and Illinois secondary education certification in one of the following disciplines:

• Type 9 Certificate
  • Biological Sciences grades 6-12
  • English/Language Arts grades 6-12
  • Mathematics grades 6-12
  • Physical Sciences grades 6-12
  • Social Sciences grades 6-12
    

• Type 10 Certificate
  • Foreign Languages grades K-12

Career Outlook

According to Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010–2011 Edition, employment for teachers is projected to grow about 13 percent between  2008 and 2018. Many job openings will continue to result from the need to replace the large number of teachers expected to retire during this same period. Currently, our country’s education schools don't graduate an adequate number of qualified teachers to meet the demand, and job prospects are best in areas including urban and rural school district.[1]

NLU students are recognized by school principals as teachers who are comfortable in the classroom, can improve student performance and understand how schools are run.

Clinical Experiences

The Secondary Education department requires students to complete at least 100 hours of classroom observation in middle or high school prior to student teaching. These hours must be completed during school hours.

Prepare for the TAP with an NLU Workshop

The ILTS Test of Academic Proficiency (TAP) is one of the most important tests on the road to becoming a teacher. NLU offers a series of TAP workshops in critical content areas. All workshops are FREE to NLU applicants and students and open to everyone else for a fee.** Get fully prepared for the TAP and register for a workshop today!

Admission Requirements

All applicants must meet NLU's general admission requirements. Refer to the appropriate application checklist available online at www.nl.edu/applyonline.

In addition to NLU’s general admission requirements, applicants to the Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education program must also satisfy the following:

• Passing score on the Test of Academic Proficiency* (taken within the last five years).
• Passing score on the relevant Content Area test
• 32 semester hours of coursework in a discipline to include 12 semester hours of upper division (300 level or higher) courses
• Grade point average of 3.0 or better in the area of concentration. GPA’s between 2.5 and 2.9 will be considered for admission on an individual basis
• Applicants with a foreign language concentration must pass the ACTFL foreign language oral proficiency exam
• Applicants with a social sciences concentration must submit a passing score in at least five (5) of the six (6) categories (including the area of endorsement) on the Praxis II Social Studies Content Knowledge Examination taken within the past ten years. Students who pass more than 3, but fewer than 5 categories (including the area of endorsement) will be considered for admission on an individual basis.

¹ Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010–11 Edition. www.bls.gov/oco/ocos318.htm

* As of February 1, 2012, the Illinois Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) has been replaced by the Test of Academic Proficiency (TAP). Teacher candidates who have passed the ITBS do not have to take the TAP if they apply for certification within 5 years of successfully passing the ITBS. Teacher candidates who have not successfully completed the ITBS must take and pass the TAP prior to admission. Teacher candidates who are not certified within 5 years of taking and passing the ITBS or the TAP will need to repeat the TAP if they have not reached the maximum 5 attempts.

Per ISBE policy, an individual may attempt to pass the TAP a maximum of 5 times. Previous attempts to pass the ITBS do not count toward the limit of 5 attempts to pass the TAP.

**You must be an applicant or student at the time of registration for the workshops to be free. If you pay for a workshop and become an applicant afterward, we can’t provide a refund.