Master of Education

MEd in Educational Practice

Method of delivery:
In-person
Applications open:
February 1, 2024
Applications close:
May 1, 2024
Next start date:
September 2024

Maîtrise sur la Pratique Éducationnelle (MEd EP)

Method of delivery:
Online
Applications open:
February 1, 2024
Applications close:
May 1, 2024
Next start date:
September 2024

Take a deeper dive into educational theory, research, and practice to bolster your teaching approach. This 12-month, part-time professional degree enables you to build on your SFU Graduate Diploma in Advanced Professional Studies in Education (GDE).

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Designed for

Students who have completed the SFU Graduate Diploma in Education (GDE) who are seeking to pursue further inquiry into their practice.

Program Structure

  • 12-month, 37-unit program*
  • In-person classes
  • Evening or weekend classes at either Burnaby or Surrey campus, or other locations in B.C. depending on proximity to eligible applicants

*Applicants admitted to the program within five years of completing a GDE can apply up to 15 units of advance credit from their GDE.

Intake Schedule

The MEd in Educational Practice is offered each Summer and Fall term. Delivery mode varies between in person (typically at SFU’s Surrey or Burnaby campuses) or online, depending on demand and other considerations. Details of current and upcoming offerings are posted on this website as they become available.

Applications are accepted biannually.

Next Start Terms
Summer 2024
Fall 2024 (applications open soon)

PROGRAM DESIGN & COURSES

Program Design

The MEd EP provides opportunities for teacher-learners to extend the work undertaken in a GDE program by broadening and deepening their understandings of educational theory, research and practice. This program is designed to support teacher-learners to:

  • Situate themselves as educators within educational theories and practices
  • Develop understanding and capacities related to teacher-inquiry
  • Undertake inquiry in educational practice
  • Synthesize and represent their learning to a community of practitioner-inquirers through a written paper and a summative presentation

Courses

The MEd EP consists of coursework (30 units) and a comprehensive exam (7 units) for a total of 37 units. The program must be started within five years of completing a Graduate Diploma in Education (GDE).

EDUC 718-5 LANDSCAPES OF PRACTITIONER INQUIRY

This course introduces teacher-learners to various landscapes of practitioner inquiry, including diverse dispositions, worldviews, paradigmatic assumptions, and approaches affiliated with this methodological approach. Working collaboratively, teacher-learners will situate themselves personally, professionally, theoretically and methodologically, locating their inquiry practice within communities of scholarship. The course aims to acquaint participants with a broad spectrum of ethical considerations, issues, and methods, with an eye toward being able to thoughtfully draw from theories, practices, and perspectives in developing their own inquiry projects to be conducted in the following term.

EDUC 807-5 INQUIRY INTO PRACTICE

Building on the philosophical and methodological foundations developed in the previous semester, this course supports teacher-learners in engaging in ethical inquiry practices within their specific professional contexts. Participants will undertake an inquiry project during the term, engaging in spirals of action and reflection, to extend, enrich and theorize professional practice. As a community of inquirers, we will critically and creatively investigate our practice as teachers, re-imagine teaching and learning relationships, and reconfigure lives in schools.

EDUC 811-5 FIELDWORK I

The goal of this course is to support teacher-inquirers in explicating, synthesizing, interpreting, and evaluating their key learnings in the Master of Educational Practice Program. Through dialogue, writing, and arts-based practices, we will explore what we have learned through conducting our inquiries, engaging with theory, exploring our own autobiographies, and examining critical moments in our journey(ies). We will work towards crystalizing our learning and deepening our understanding of our practice as educators. This inquiry project will form the basis of the ‘comprehensive examination’ to follow.

EDUC 888-7 MED COMPREHENSIVE EXAM

Although formally referred to as the ‘Comprehensive Examination,’ this is not an ‘exam’ as such, but a summative presentation by each teacher-learner of their now-extended understandings of the relationship between theory, practice, and teacher-inquiry. There will be two components: (1) teacher-learners will write a paper summarizing their inquiry projects, their understandings, and their further questions; and, (2) they will present their work to a community of inquirers consisting of cohort colleagues and instructors.

Note: Program courses and order of delivery subject to change.

LOCATIONS

At SFU, campus life is rich with opportunities to engage with people, ideas and activities that contribute to personal development and a better world.

Burnaby

Perched atop Burnaby Mountain, Simon Fraser University's original Arthur Erickson-designed campus includes more than three dozen academic buildings and a flourishing sustainable residential community.

Simon Fraser University respectfully acknowledges the unceded traditional territories of the Coast Salish peoples, including the səl̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations, on which SFU Burnaby is located.

Surrey

Our Surrey campus is a vibrant community hub in the heart of one of Canada’s fastest-growing cities. With easy access to transit, the modern campus is conveniently situated between Metro Vancouver and communities south of the Fraser River.

Simon Fraser University respectfully acknowledges the unceded traditional territories, including the Semiahmoo, Katzie, kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem), Kwantlen, Qayqayt and Tsawwassen Nations, on which SFU Surrey is located.

In B.C. Communities

At times, the MEd EP may be held off-campus and in various B.C. communities depending on proximity to eligible applicants.

FACULTY

MEd EP faculty members are recognized for their work in developing, advancing and enacting knowledge that makes a difference in public education. We follow a rigorous research program to investigate theory and provide innovative leadership in issues of educational pedagogy.

FUTURE PATHWAYS

This program can help you become a more rounded and effective educator through developing a deeper understanding of your practice and how to align it with your values and purposes. You will also be better equipped to articulate your educational approach and to inspire and support your fellow practitioners to engage in professional development through collaborative inquiry.

Occupations

  • K-12 teachers
  • School and district support roles
  • Administration and leadership

TQS Upgrades

  • from TQS 5 or TQS5+ to TQS6

Further Studies

STUDENT EXPERIENCES

Meet some Master of Education in Educational Practice alumni.

  • "Pursuing a single field study for the MEd EP helped me consider what my "life work" might be, and what I am truly being called to discover about teaching, about learning, and about myself."

  • Dr. Katherine Mulski, Doctor in Educational Practice graduand, shares her experiences as a student in the education faculty and the process of reconnecting with herself and fostering resiliency, telling her story through photography.

  • "It's worth it, both personally and professionally."

  • "I had heard a lot of great things about the Education Program at SFU."

"The faculty in the MEd program are extremely knowledgeable, professional and most importantly they model the techniques they speak on."

Trevor Mills, 2015 Graduate

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS PROGRAM

Curious to know more about the program?

UPCOMING INFORMATION SESSIONS

QUESTIONS?