Master of Education in Instructional Coaching North Central College

The Master of Education in Instructional Coaching fosters teacher leaders with an innovative focus on instruction, assessment, student learning, and professional development. Upon completion of the degree, you would be eligible for the Illinois teacher leader endorsement. The program also positions you for additional endorsements beyond the master's degree.

• Twelve credits from the program can apply towards North Central’s Masters in Educational Leadership with principal endorsement, should a candidate wish to continue studies at North Central within the required time frame.
• Elective credits in the program can apply towards the 15-credit ESL endorsement program or the 9-credit Learning Behavior Specialist 1 certification if you currently hold a professional educator license (PEL) endorsed in a teaching field.

Fall Semester Start Only

• Courses offered online and in a hybrid format
• Cohort Model
• Enrolling for Fall 2022 cohort

The curriculum is designed for you to become an effective instructional facilitator: a licensed teacher leader who facilitates and coaches continuous improvement in classroom instruction. Through the coursework and faculty mentoring, you will be able to:

• provide instructional support to teachers in the elements of research-based instruction and demonstrate the alignment of instruction with curriculum standards and assessment tools
• develop and coordinate instructional programs or strategies
• develop and implement training and professional development based on best practices and curricular objectives that align with the district
• choose standards-based instructional materials
• collaborate with fellow teachers in the analysis of school-wide data (i.e MAP scores) to make instructional decisions
• serve as a mentor, site coach, curriculum specialist, or lead teacher

Degree Requirements

A total of 9 courses, 34 credit hours are required for the degree: 28 credit hours of core courses, 6 credit hours of elective cou

• 2 Elective Courses (3 credits each)

Two additional electives are selected from courses that can apply to a Learning Behavior Specialist (LBS1) or English Language Learner (ESL) endorsement or students may choose a special topic course.

• MEDU 692 - Special Topics (can be taken more than once with different topics)
• MEDU 580 – Foundational Theory: English Learners
• MEDU 530 - Characteristics of Students with Disabilities

The following courses may be substituted for one of the above electives:

• MEDU 533 – Methods of Teaching Students with Disabilities
• MEDU 582 – Cross-Cultural English Learners
• Approved Graduate Course Elective

The Instructional Coaching Master's program fosters teacher leaders with a contemporary focus on learning, leadership, and professional development. Master's candidates in the program will complete seven required core courses with an emphasis on student and teacher growth, change dynamics, professional development planning, coaching, advocacy, and teacher leadership in the school environment. Two additional electives are selected from courses that can apply to a Learning Behavior Specialist (LBS1) or English Language Learner (ESL) endorsement or students may choose a special topic course.

The program is designed to maximize the candidate's potential to continue studies for endorsements and certification beyond completion of the Master's program:

• Completion of the 34-credit Instructional Coaching Masters program will make the candidate eligible for the Illinois teacher leader endorsement.
• Twelve credit hours from the program can apply towards North Central's Masters in Educational Leadership with principal endorsement, should a candidate wish to continue studies at NCC within the required time frame.
• Six credit hours in electives can be taken towards the 9 credits needed for an LBS1 endorsement (which can apply towards a Learning and Behavioral certification) or towards the 15 credits needed for the ESL endorsement.

The program is aligned to the Teacher Leader Model Standards, the Illinois Council of Instructional Coaching standards (8.2018), and the Danielson Framework. It requires that each candidate in the program develop a standards-based portfolio that reflects their growth and development as a teacher leader as well as instructional coaching competencies. MEDU 500 is designed as the entry point for the program and Instructional Coach Capstone (MEDU 697) is designed to be the capstone course.

Core Courses

• MEDU 500 - Mission-Driven Leadership
• MEDU 535 - Supervision and Instruction
• MEDU 536 - School, Home, and Community
• MEDU 600 - Teaching Diverse Students
• MEDU 601 - Data-Driven Decision-Making
• MEDU 603 - Teacher Leadership
• MEDU 697 - Instructional Coaching Capstone

Elective Courses

Two of the following:

• MEDU 532 - Characteristics of Students with Disabilities
• MEDU 580 - Theoretical Foundations of Teaching ESL/Bilingual Students
• MEDU 690 - Topics in Education