Course Syllabus
Contact Information
Course Details
For a list of course activities, scroll to the bottom of this page.
Course Delivery
This course is mullti-modal. It contains both an online asynchronous and online synchronous component. Live sessions are Mondays from 7-8pm CST. Zoom link above.
Course Prerequisites
Graduate Standing
Course Materials
There is no required text for this course. All resources and materials will be provided by the instructor and include: Recent refereed research articles from prominent journals in education, educational leadership, and educational policy as well as excerpts from recent monographs and edited volumes in education. Also used in the course is the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th Edition, Washington D.C.: American Psychological Association. Following proper formatting conventions in academic work is an extremely important skill that needs to be learned. Online and computer-based formatting tools are helpful, but they often contain inconsistencies that compromise accuracy. You will use the APA manual frequently in the program, so we strongly recommend purchasing a copy.
More information on APA formatting is located in Library and Writing Resources.
Program Learning Outcomes (PLO)
- Graduates will demonstrate a firm understanding of core educational leadership theories, models, and concepts. They will be able to analyze and apply these theories to on-the-ground challenges in schools.
- Graduates will be equipped with the skills to make informed and effective decisions in complex educational settings. This involves the ability to identify problems, gather relevant information, and develop strategic solutions. Graduates should be capable of developing and implementing strategic plans that drive positive change and innovation in educational organizations.
- Students will apply principles of effective organizational management and leadership to educational institutions. This includes understanding human resources management, financial management, and organizational behavior.
- Graduates will develop research skills, enabling them to design and conduct rigorous educational research, including qualitative and quantitative design, analysis, and appraisal.
- Graduates will be grounded in ethical standards in educational leadership, demonstrating integrity, fairness, and professionalism in their interactions and decisions. The program will equip graduates with the skills to navigate diverse educational environments and promote cultural competence, understanding cultural differences, safeguarding civil rights, and equal educational opportunity for all students.
- Graduates will be able to engage in reflective practice, assessing their own leadership work and continuously seeking opportunities for growth.
Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs)
- Utilize a foundational understanding of the various historical, social, political, epistemological, and ethical dimensions of American schooling and leadership to interrogate and/or participate in current and past educational inquiry.
- Apply course learnings to a broader understanding of the problems and possibilities of the pursuit of “education,” and “leadership,” both writ-large and for current leadership practice.
- Acquire a knowledge of the historical struggles of diverse/special populations in education and recognize the persistent, contemporary artifacts of these struggles in the current educational system and formulate solutions that can be applied to current leadership practice.
- Apply a variety of social science theories to the study of educational problems and solutions and explain their key concepts and principles.
- Advance your problem of practice dissertation through the formulation of a theory of action to link an analysis of your problem to a potential solution.
- Read, understand, and critique scholarly literature and utilize proper scholarly formatting conventions (APA formatting).
Grades
Breakdown
| Activity | Description | Points/Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Class Participation (Synchronous meetings and online activities) |
Your level of learning is proportional to your class participation and out of class study time. Class participation is measured by Attendance and Engagement. Discussion Forums and other weekly assignments (including the Theory Identification Assignment, see below) are included in your class participation. |
35% |
| Theory Identification Assignment |
This assignment is a part of your class participation activities and is designed to be the initial development of the ideas that will become your Theory of Improvement/Framework Chapter Draft (see below). This assignment affords you the opportunity to “try on” different theories/paradigms/frameworks to your chosen problem of practice. |
n/a |
| Literature Review on Solutions | When writing a literature review, you collate, synthesize, and appraise existing scholarship on a topic. For this assignment, please review empirical studies on a potential solution to your problem of practice. If you are doing a needs assessment for your dissertation, you have the option of expanding your literature review on the problem rather than reviewing potential solutions to your problem. | 30% |
| Additional Reading Choice (and PowerPoint) | This is a group assignment. Your task in your groups is to choose ONE additional course reading from a list I provide and deliver a detailed summary of the reading to the rest of the class in a PowerPoint format to be uploaded to Canvas for class consumption. All group members will receive the same grade. | 10% |
| Theory of Improvement/Framework Chapter Draft |
For the final assessment in this class, you will develop a draft of your theory of improvement/conceptual framework chapter. This chapter establishes a theoretical basis for understanding and responding to your chosen problem of practice. |
25% |
| Total | 100% |
Scale
| Percentage | Letter Grade |
|---|---|
| 90–100% | A |
| 80–89% | B |
| 70–79% | C |
| 60–69% | D |
| Below 60% | F |
Course Components
Component #1: Class Participation (Synchronous meetings and online activities)
Your level of learning is proportional to your class participation and out of class study time. Class participation is measured by Attendance and Engagement. Each element is explicated below. You should be checking and using your OU e-mail account regularly to stay abreast of course information and developments.
- Attendance – Students are expected to attend synchronous meetings on Monday nights and to regularly visit the Canvas site to complete weekly assignments/activities. If exceptional circumstances arise, it is your responsibility to contact and inform the instructor.
- Engagement – Knowledge is not passively acquired. You learn from doing and discussing with colleagues. Thus, it is expected that you will participate in discussions, contribute to group activities, read all assigned readings independently, and work on weekly tasks.
Component #2: Theory Identification Assignment
This assignment is a part of your class participation activities and is designed to be the initial development of the ideas that will become your Theory of Improvement/Framework Chapter Draft (Part 1, of this assignment, see below). This assignment affords you the opportunity to “try on” different theories/paradigms/frameworks to your chosen problem of practice. Whether you are doing a needs assessment or full improvement cycle analysis, theory is critical to better understanding your problem and formulating solutions. There are many social science theories that are used in educational research, spanning psychology, sociology, political and organizational science, economics, etc. Your task in this assignment will be to, based on your identified problem, explore a few social science theories with the goal of landing on a particular one that seems reasonably well-suited to your PoP.
Component #3: Literature Review on Solutions
When writing a literature review, you collate, synthesize, and appraise existing scholarship on a topic. For this assignment, please review empirical studies on a potential solution to your problem of practice. If you are doing a needs assessment for your dissertation, you have the option of expanding your literature review on the problem rather than reviewing potential solutions to your problem. This assignment should be at least 750 but no longer than 1000 words in length.
Component #4: Additional Reading Choice (and PowerPoint)
Because the field of educational leadership and policy is vast and our time in this course is short, there is not enough time to read everything that, in an ideal world, I would have you read. Below, I provide a list of additional recommended readings in the field that are either seminal works or otherwise important contributions in the field of education. Your task in your groups is to choose ONE reading from this list and provide a detailed summary of the reading to the rest of the class in a PowerPoint format. Each group in class will select just one of these readings. A list of the choices will be provided and sign ups will be conducted via Canvas. Once a group is filled in Canvas, no others will be permitted to join and you'll need to find a different reading. All students in a given group will receive the same grade on this assignment.
Component #5: Theory of Improvement/Framework Chapter Draft
For the final assessment in this class, you will develop a draft of your theory of improvement/conceptual framework chapter. This chapter establishes a theoretical basis for understanding and responding to your chosen problem of practice. It will build on the work of your Theory Identification Assignment (see above) embedded within the weekly assignments early in the term. Your final draft chapter should be around 750-1000 words max. As with all papers in this course, you should follow formal APA citation guidelines.
Course Policies
Communication
Contact via e-mail is preferable. All e-mails will be returned within 24 hours of receipt. For urgent matters, you can contact me via my cell at 517-304-3279. My role is as a facilitator of your learning. You are expected to have thoroughly investigated, researched, or sought an answer to your question before coming to me.
Feedback
Because the work in this class is very high level academic work and feedback will be detailed and thorough to help you develop your ideas for the dissertation, you can expect a turn around for feedback at around 1-2 weeks on major papers, less than a week for smaller assignments.
Late Policy
Late assignments are accepted but subject to a penalty of one letter grade per week and a zero after three weeks from the original due date.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the most common form of academic misconduct at OU. There is no college-level assignment that can be satisfactorily completed by copying. OU's basic assumption about writing is that all written assignments show the student's own understanding in the student's own words. That means all writing assignments, in class or out, are assumed to be composed entirely of words generated (not simply found) by the student, except where words written by someone else are specifically marked as such with proper citation. Including other people's words in your paper is helpful when you do it honestly and correctly. When you don't, it's plagiarism.
For more information about plagiarism, watch this video and then take this short course offered by University Libraries.
University Academic Policies and Student Support
Access the University Academic Policies Document.
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|