M.A. in English Education

The Master of Arts in English Education (MAEE) is an online graduate program that focuses on pedagogical content knowledge within English Education and literacy. The online modality encourages candidates to engage in graduate studies while teaching; we recognize the busy lives of professionals and build schedules and a community that respects them. Candidates interested in a more traditional graduate experience, on the Bozeman campus, are welcome to attend select seminars in person.

MAEE coursework encourages exploration of the literacies and identities that adolescents and young adults bring to the English classroom; provides space to examine and create literacy curriculum; and troubles discourses that present a challenge to creating equitable and inclusive learning opportunities. We position teachers as public intellectuals who work in complex classroom ecologies; collectively, we examine how English/literacy teachers work in educational settings and incorporate opportunities to engage with critical teaching perspectives and interrogate place. 

Additionally, the Yellowstone Writing Project—which continues to attract master teachers from across Montana—is an encouraged component to further immerse MAEE students in their own writing and study of writing/writing communities. 

The MAEE is a scholarly community committed to sustained professional development and explorations of secondary school teachers and youth. MAEE students investigate the academic field of English Education and the discipline of English through coursework: both within the department (i.e. literary and cultural studies; rhetoric and composition) and potentially outside (e.g. Native American Studies; Education). All students develop an area of study related to their teaching contexts and responsibilities.

The (MAEE) degree requires 30 credits. All graduate courses offered through the English Department can be accessed remotely through asynchronous, online courses and/or remote seminars. MAEE students local to the Bozeman area are welcome to attend select seminars in person.

MAEE students build a degree plan consisting of required courses (12 credits), electives (9-12 credits), and a culminating degree project (a scholarly thesis, 9 credits, or a professional paper, 6 credits). MAEE advisors assist graduate students in developing their degree plan to ensure that the students’ coursework and culminating project enhance their knowledge and teaching practices as well as build and sustain their research interests. 

Students enrolled in the MA in English Education program take four required, online courses, for a total of 12 credits. These four courses embed classroom-based research projects; create space for teachers to innovate their classrooms/be leaders in the field; and stretch across the domains of English and literacy teachers. Students select elective courses (9-12 credits) pursuant to their timeline and interests.