Master of Education in Teacher Leadership (M.Ed. Teacher Leadership)
master’s
Online / Live, Online / Asynchronous, Face-to-Face, Assignments, Practical
August 2024
4 semesters (or 2 semesters if PGDE was previously completed)
CAA Level 9 Degree
English, Arabic
The Master of Education in Teacher Leadership, developed by the University of Helsinki, incorporates the Finnish approach to teacher education, renowned for its excellence. This program offers innovative teaching methods, specialized content, and faculty expertise, providing participants with unique resources and exclusive opportunities for internships and research projects. Completers are well-prepared to lead and inspire within their educational communities, driving positive change.
The goals of this program are to shape dynamic educators who make school-level decisions based on evidence, research, and theoretical soundness. The program aims to enhance the education profession in the UAE and the region by equipping teacher leaders with the advanced skills and knowledge necessary for high-quality teaching and learning across schools. It creates flexible pathways for in-service teacher development, addressing the needs of candidates, schools, and stakeholders. This program supports teachers in achieving their licensing requirements and empowers educators in Sharjah and the UAE with world-class qualifications, enabling them to lead initiatives that improve the quality and range of learning opportunities for students. Additionally, it enables teacher leaders to plan, track, and deliver personalized learning and effective teaching, as well as communicate effectively with parents and engage them in supporting their child's learning. An emphasis on classroom-level action research equips completers with the skills to systematically investigate classroom challenges, offer solutions, monitor results, and provide high-quality reporting, thereby enhancing their ability to foster effective and innovative teaching practices.
(1) Explain, apply and analyze the foundations of human learning, motivation and social interaction in complex familiar and unfamiliar educational contexts.
(2) Demonstrate life-long learning competencies and entrepreneurship, including basic research and scientific literacy in the field of education, and promote thinking skills, metacognition, and self-regulation in their students.
(3) Develop and implement strategies for motivating students to engage in constructive dialogue and practices in the school context to participate in building a sustainable society together.
(4) Design innovative learning environments based on contemporary educational research.
(5) Problem-solve curricular issues and actively participate in curricular reforms collaboratively.
(6) Apply knowledge of evidence-based educational practice to the implementation, evaluation, and leadership of complex and innovative teaching strategies.
(7) Act as innovative practitioner-scholars, formulating and analyzing practice-based solutions in unpredictable contexts.
(8) Use the tools of educational research to engage the knowledge base, execute a study, and modify their practices based on their developed scientific literacy.
(9) Apply collaborative knowledge creation and professional communication skills for school and learning improvement projects within organizational contexts of differing capacities, knowledge bases, and structures.
(10) Demonstrate leadership in ethical and evidence-based decision-making practices among teams of educational professionals and school stakeholders.
Building on the PGDE, this level-9 CAA accredited program delves deeper into the development of scientific and innovative thinking in educational leadership. The program can be taken as a two-semester addition to the PGDE, or it can be taken on its own as a two-year (four semester) program. The first year curriculum is the PGDE. The second year focuses on advanced research methods, contemporary educational psychology, and an “action research” thesis. The curriculum emphasizes research-based teaching practices and collaborative knowledge construction. Completers will be prepared to lead educational innovations, influence policy, and foster the holistic development of their schools and communities.
Per credit hour in an academic course (total 18 credit hours): 45 hours of directed learning, divided between face-to-face instruction (18%), online/live instruction (36%), online/asynchronous instruction (46%); plus assignments completed individually. Practicum and thesis are more independently-managed by the candidate, however, there is instructor guidance and mentoring, with occassional meetings, both online and face-to-face.
"Possess an earned bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution. Have attained a minimum cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) or equivalent. Language proficiency for the English track: Score of at least TOEFL 79 iBT, 6.0 IELTS Academic, or EmSAT 1400 or equivalent. Language proficiency for the Arabic track: Arabic EmSAT score of at least 1100 + English 4.5 IELTS."
University City, Sharjah
United Arab Emirates
