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Student Handbook

Welcome to the M.Ed. in Environmental Education!  The M.Ed. in Environmental Education Program adheres to CEHSP College Graduate Program policies.  Specific procedures and policies are outlined in this handbook.    This student handbook is designed to provide a resource for you as you progress through your program. 

Master of Education Degree Requirements

Minimum degree requirements are established by the CEHSP Graduate Programs Office. Exceptions must be recommended by the graduate committee and approved by Graduate Program Council.  Specific application of these requirements to the Environmental Education program are indented following relevant criteria. 

  • Candidates must complete a minimum 30 semester credits, 5000-level or above, which have not been used to fulfill an undergraduate requirement, or 4000-level that have been approved for graduate credit through the Graduate School. All courses toward a graduate degree must have been taken after the awarding of the baccalaureate degree and must have been registered for graduate credit.
  • At least 20 credits must be completed at UMD including core courses as specified by the program.
  • No more than 12 semester degree credits may be taken prior to admission in the program, and such credit must be earned within five years prior to admission to the program.
  • Use of credit earned more than five years prior to admission must be (1) validated (see credit validation process); (2) recommended by the Committee; and (3) approved by the Collegiate Graduate Program Council. 
  • All credit must be completed within seven years of admission. Any course completed more than seven years before completion of the program must be validated by a CEHSP / UMD faculty member in the content area, recommended by the Committee, and approved by the Director.
  • A minimum of 20 credits must be taken for A-F grades.
  • A minimum 2.8 cumulative grade point average is required for the M.Ed. to be conferred.

Academic Progress Standards

 

Continuous Enrollment

Once admitted, students must maintain continuous enrollment in every fall and spring semester until the degree is conferred.   There is no minimum number of credits, but you must be enrolled in at least one course.  To implement this policy for students who have already registered in all required courses, or who elect to stop out for a term, students can maintain continuous enrollment with EHS 0799, CEHSP Masters Active Status.  This is a zero-credit class; no tuition will be charged.  However, you will be assessed the internet/email access fee.  UMD email is the official mode of communication for the University, you should check it regularly so you don't miss important deadlines.

In order to avoid late registration fees, you must register in course work, or EHS 0799, BEFORE the first day of the semester. Initial registration on or after the first day of a semester results in a late registration fee.

You must be enrolled in regular course work, or EHS 0799, by the end of the second week of the semester or you will be discontinued from the program.  If you become inactive, re-entry to the M.Ed. program will require a new application, application fee, and new program plan.

Advising

Upon acceptance into the program, you will be assigned an advisor who will work with you to register for classes and advise you on final project topics and selection of a committee.  The chair of your committee may or may not be your initial academic advisor.

Program Plan

The Program Plan needs to be submitted to the Graduate Programs Office by the end of the second semester in the program.  The Plan is signed by the student, your committee, and the M.Ed. Director indicating final approval.  The Program Plan outlines all course work that will be completed for the degree. If independent study is part of the program, at least a general topic area must be indicated in the program plan. Failure to file a program Plan will result in a hold on registration.  Any changes to the program must be approved by your committee and the M.Ed. Director on a Plan Addendum. 

Recommendation for Degree

A Recommendation for Degree must be signed and filed in the Graduate Program Office for degree clearance. This must be the original form with signatures, not faxed or emailed; this is the only form that is permanently archived. The degree clearance process verifies that all credits approved as the student's program plan (or addendums) have been completed, the minimum g.p.a. has been met, all independent study has been documented, and official transcripts for all transfer work are on file. Student will be advised of any discrepancies that must be resolved before the degree is cleared with the Registrar.

Other Forms

Pre-Approval of Electives

Students applying to the program whose matriculation depends on whether transfer credit is accepted, or students who want to enroll in elective courses before the graduate committee is formed, may seek pre-approval of electives.

Program Plan Addendum

Any changes to the Program Plan (Addendum), prior to or at the time of submission of degree clearance papers, must be documented by addendum, signed by the student, and approved by all members of the Committee.

Independent Study Contract

An Independent Study Contract must be filed for any independent study or readings course that is part of the program plan for a CEHSP graduate degree. It must be submitted before permission numbers (from the Graduate Program Office) for registration are released.

All of these forms can also be accessed by going to:

http://www.d.umn.edu/cehsp/gradprograms/forms.html

 

Final Project Guidelines

The options available to candidates for the final project depends on the degree program. M.Ed. candidates in the Environmental Education concentration must complete a thesis, field or curriculum project, or a research based journal article. These options are described below.

A written proposal describing the planned project must be developed by the candidate and must be approved by the M.Ed. committee members and the Director before the project is started. An approved proposal must be on file in the M.Ed. Degree Program office before the candidate can register for the credits for the field project. Please note that many types of field projects require approval from the Committee on the Use of Human Subjects in Research.The quality of the project must meet the expectations routinely required for graduate study. It is the responsibility of the candidate and the committee to ensure that the project meets these standards.

Projects must be submitted bound in black, hard cover bindings (http://www.d.umn.edu/cehsp/gradprograms/ee/documents/eethesisbinding.htm).
A title page (format guide) must accompany all projects. Papers must be formatted using the latest edition of Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association and must be printed on at least 20 lb., good quality office paper.

 

Final Project Examples

Thesis

A thesis is the most traditional format for investigation of a project by means of data gathering and analysis. Student must enroll for six (6) credits of EHS 5990 on approval of the project proposal. American Psychological Association (APA) format is required. The following sections are required:

  1. Cover page, dedication (optional) table of contents, table of appendices.
  2. Chapter 1: Statement of the Problem: Informs the reader what research topic you are studying, the significance of your project or research, the scope of the study, and describes the setting and participants.
  3. Chapter 2: Literature Review: Provides an overview of what other researchers have determined in relation to your topic.
  4. Chapter 3: Research Design: Describes everything you did to conduct your research.
  5. Chapter 4: Results and Discussion: Presents your data and discusses your data´s relevance in the context of the literature you reviewed.
  6. Chapter 5: Summary and Conclusions: Summarizes all aspects of the research project, discusses the educational implications or your results, and suggests topics for further study.
  7. References

A minimum of 60 text pages (chapters and references) is required, plus appendices.

Chapter descriptions. Helpful ideas about the focus of each chapter.

Field Project

A field project may be investigation of a problem that requires data gathering and analysis, but on a smaller scale than a theses; or it can be a creative project in writing, web development, video, program evaluation, etc. Students may enroll for four–six (4–6) credits depending on the scope of the project. American Psychological Association (APA) format is required. The following sections are required:

  1. Cover page, dedication (optional) table of contents, table of appendices.
  2. Chapter 1: Statement of the Problem or Purpose Statement: Informs the reader what topic you are studying and its purpose or intended outcome, the significance and scope of your project or research, and describes the setting and participants (or audience).
  3. Chapter 2: Literature Review: Provides an overview, background, and/or foundation for your topic. For example, if your project is on poetry writing, the literature review might cover what others have written about the creative writing process–how the art and skill are developed in a person, how the process evolves over time, the significance of the art in cultures, etc. The purpose of this section is to give the reader a broader foundation from which to read, view, or listen to your contribution.
  4. Chapter 3: Depending on your project, this may take the form of a compilation of poems or stories, a video, a website, etc. When appropriate, include a written description of people or participants involved and a description of the IRB (informed consent) process.
  5. Chapter 4: If your project has an audience, include a description of how you evaluated the intended outcomes of the project with this audience (or with a smaller pilot group); include the results of this evaluation. If it´s more of an internal process such as creative writing, without an identified audience, include a reflective piece, e.g., tie your experience of this process to the background you´ve provided in the literature review. Conclude the paper with a brief summarizing section.
  6. References

Chapter descriptions. Helpful ideas about the focus of each chapter.

Curriculum Development

Curriculum development projects include designing new courses or units of instruction. They may include new instructional techniques and/or teaching materials. These projects must be described, evaluated, and documented in such a way as to be useful to other teachers or practitioners. Curriculum development projects usually include a statement of desired outcomes, specification of objectives, criteria for assessment of learning, teaching materials, and teaching strategies. A pilot test of the curriculum materials must be carried out with an appropriate target population, an evaluation plan implemented, and revisions made based on evaluation results.

A curriculum development results in lessons that can be utilized in a classroom or training environment. American Psychological Association (APA) format is required for the first three chapters. The following sections are required:

  1. Chapter 1: Statement of the Problem (3–5+ pages): Informs the reader what research topic you are studying, the significance of your project or research, the scope of the study, and describes the setting and participants.
  2. Chapter 2: Literature Review (10–12+ pages): Provides an overview of what other researchers have determined in relation to your topic. In addition, include literature that supports the educational methods you incorporate into your curriculum design.
  3. Chapter 3: Describe the steps you took to develop and pilot your curriculum. (3–7 pages) Suggestions:
    1. Include an advisory group in the definition of your curriculum content and process; ask for input initially and for feedback during the development phases.
    2. Build in a pilot of some aspect of your curriculum; describe who is in the pilot, the results, and any additions or revisions you make as a result of the pilot.
    3. Describe any other steps you took to build/design the curriculum.
  4. Curriculum. The curriculum should be created as a stand–alone product, with enough information and content for a person with your background and experience to use it. It should include a brief introduction, a table of contents, and a series of lesson plans with content and teaching processes outlined, as well as the resources needed to teach the material (e.g., PowerPoint slides, handouts, detailed descriptions of activities).
  5. References. You may want to do two separate reference lists – one in APA format listing the references you used in the first 3 chapters, and one at the end of your curriculum, formatted in a more user–friendly manner. There should be a minimum of 30 references between the two lists.
  6. The curriculum should consist of enough content for a minimum of 12 contact hours of instruction. (This is a guideline only, and will vary depending on the topic and the audience.) The margin needs to be 1 ½ inches on the left due to the binding requirements. Other than that, the curriculum should be as user friendly as possible, and you need not adhere to APA guidelines for citations or references. It is recommended, however, that you include a Resource list, or list of Recommended Readings.

Chapter descriptions. Helpful ideas about the focus of each chapter.

Refereed Journal Article

The refereed journal article may provide an opportunity to investigate and write an article about a problem that includes data gathering and analysis using a specific journal's authoring guidelines. The refereed journal article may also be a writing project for a journal that addresses curricula, pedagogy, program evaluation, etc. The scope of the problem is expected to be in line with a thesis, but the results are written in the format of a journal article. Students will enroll for 6 credits. The format for the project is dictated by the specific journal selected. The following sections are required:

  1. Cover page.
  2. An abstract of your article following author guidelines of specific journal. This is typically a ½ page single-spaced overview of your article which may include setting, participants, and results. If there are no author guidelines, then you will be required to use APA format for your project.
  3. The article which includes:
    1. An introduction which informs the reader about your topic and the purpose of your article. The introduction provides an overview for your article and rationale.
    2. A review of literature pertinent to your topic. This may include background and/ or significance. For example, if your article is on a specific pedagogy, your literature review might address the historical perspective of the pedagogy, what has been written about the pedagogy, and the significance to practitioners. The purpose of this section is to provide the reader with a foundation from which to read your journal article.
    3. The main section of your article may take many directions. It may include a description of methodology, setting and participants of a field based project, a summary of results and implications if a study was done, or a description of a curriculum development project, or full literature review or other topic pertinent for publication. This will be guided by your committee chair and the author guidelines.
    4. Each journal article will include a summary and conclusion section. This section is brief and typically is a reflection of the content of your article and recommendations for future study.
  4. Author guidelines from the targeted refereed journal. (See list below for examples of author guidelines.)