Master of Education in Curriculum Studies with a Focus in Music Education

Teaching music has grown increasingly complex over the last number of years. Teachers today face a changing society, technological shifts, and a student body with diverse needs. Recent efforts to address these challenges through curriculum reform have met with normal resistance to institutional change.

The Acadia University School of Education, in partnership with Acadia's School of Music and Open Acadia, is offering this program as a combination of summer institute and online and blended courses. The program is designed to be course-based, but students with a strong interest in research can also consider a thesis option. Elective courses provide an opportunity for exploration of specific interests. 

Acadia’s program design is unique, and includes:

• a cohort model
• a sequenced degree curriculum, where courses are designed to build from one course to the next, culminating in a capstone experience
• a hybrid of virtual classroom, online modules, and individual/group instruction including face-to-face meetings with professors and advisors
• scheduling that is friendly to working professionals, including virtual classroom sessions and two week summer residency on campus (as opposed to usual 8 week requirements in other “four-summer” degree programs)
• rigor achieved through the hybrid design (not simply a collection of unconnected survey courses often found in other distance learning degree programs) combined with a 2-year timeline for completion
• There are 10 courses to be taken for the completion of the degree, and the courses are offered one at a time over a 2 year period.  

Two cohorts started in the Fall of 2012 - one focused on Elementary Music Education and the other on Secondary Music Education.

A new program cohort start is being planned to start in the Fall of 2013. 

The Acadia University Master of Education in Curriculum Studies with a Focus in Music Education provides teachers with opportunities to learn and share experiences with colleagues in courses that offer both theoretical grounding and practical application.  The courses are offered in a combination of online and face-to-face courses, and are sequenced to provide a balanced approach to follow the developing interests of the students enrolled.  Through this program, teachers will be able to develop as leaders in music educators, and to:

• Refine their teaching abilities with expanded knowledge of both the theories behind music instruction and the application of those theories to the classroom;
• Further their professional development and open up new career opportunities
• Allow learning from both the comfort of home and from classrooms at Acadia's historic campus;
• Provide individual attention from professors who can relate to you as an educator.

 Program Courses and Structure

Course Instructors

• Acadia School of Education Faculty
• Acadia School of Music Faculty
• Dale Lonis
• Denise Grant
• Ardith Haley
• Barbara Barter
• June Countryman
• among others...

Application Information

Applications:

Application form (PDF)

Complete Package (Application Form, Transcripts, 2 Letters of Reference and Current Resume) sent to:

Graduate Studies Officer, Division of Research and Graduate Studies
18 University Avenue, Box 70
214 Horton Hall, Acadia University
Wolfville, NS B4P 2R6

Applications for Fall 2013 Start:  May 15th, 2013

Fees: 

• Ten courses (3 credit-hours each), current per course fee: $922 (subject to change)
• Admission fee: $50.00 (one-time charge, assuming a minimum of one course per year)
• Ancillary Fees may apply to selected courses

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