Inclusive Education Master's Degree

The Inclusive Education Master's Degree will lead to a Massachusetts initial license as a Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities PreK-8.

Program Type Graduate & Professional Studies
Degrees Offered M.Ed.
Mode of Study On Campus, Teacher Residency
School May School of Arts & Sciences
Dave Barry working with students in classroom
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Earn Your Master's in Inclusive Education

Our Graduate Teacher Education program at Stonehill College prepares teachers to be leaders and critical thinkers. Schools today are complex and diverse communities — reflecting a landscape rich with individual differences. Teachers in our program are prepared using a unique combination of theoretical and practical experiences. This approach ensures their ability to create and lead equitable spaces where difference is valued while at the same time preparing them for the realities and challenges of the classroom and the profession.

Our courses have a heavy emphasis on access to the curriculum, and cover:

  • Educational equity, social justice and democratic education
  • The Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
  • Positive Behavior Support (PBS)
  • Curricular innovations, assistive technology and accessibility
  • Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
  • Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

Why Stonehill?

  • 30–36 credits based on prior coursework
  • Experiential learning via research, partnership and community opportunities
  • Social justice mission to foster graduates who think, act and lead with courage
  • Accessible and well-resourced campus
  • Faculty with well-established expertise in field

Schools today must strive to be inclusive environments, and teachers in our program are prepared to be leaders in creating equitable spaces where difference is valued.

Rigorous Academics and the Support to Succeed

Stonehill’s graduate teacher education program recognizes the challenges graduate students face in prioritizing work, family, personal and graduate school commitments. Our Graduate Student Support, Access and Success (SSAS) Framework is designed to support students’ success from program start to finish.

Specifically, this approach provides:

  • A proactive vs. reactive framework for supporting graduate students’ variable needs within their program
  • Clear benchmarks for assessment of candidate readiness
  • Indoctrination to the field and to the profession
  • MTEL support and planning

From the admission process to graduation, students have a clear understanding of both expectations and the support available to help them achieve their goals.

Flexibility to Fit Your Life

Students can select among the following schedules for completing the program:

  • Part-time
  • Full-time
  • Stonehill Teacher Residency

Courses are offered in the late afternoon and evening during the fall and spring semesters and/or during two summer terms. Master’s students are required to complete 30 to 36 credits.

Sample Courses

Educational Equity and Inclusivity

EDU 609
This course introduces students to the reality of schools as diverse spaces encompassing a range of student needs and examine efforts to ensure equity in education. Issues of race, class, culture, language, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, and ability will be discussed and examined, especially how they intersect to reproduce inequality. Students will reflect on individual beliefs in relation to social justice education and democratic education and examine unintended consequences of policy/practice that create or perpetuate inequitable environments and opportunities in schools. Strategies for promoting educational equity and inclusivity will be discussed.

Positive Behavior Supports & Strategies

EDU 612
This course explores supportive, preventative and proactive approaches to addressing the social and academic behaviors of students with disabilities and other diverse populations. Strategies for developing a positive classroom climate to support social and emotional development, including trauma and anxiety, will be central to the learning of the course. A variety of approaches, including the connection between communication and behavior, identifying contributing factors to challenging behavior, FBA, and behavior support plans will be explored.

Language and Literacy in Special Education

EDU 620
This course is designed for pre-service special education teachers and other related service providers interested in expanding their knowledge base for understanding and supporting the needs of students with language-based learning disabilities. Both assessment and intervention issues for school-age children and adolescents with language learning disabilities (LLD) will be discussed, with an emphasis on oral language and literacy connections.

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