Course Descriptions

DSO 8000 Doctoral Studies Orientation

Research Core Courses (9 credits total)

ARC 8411 Research Design and Methods (3 Cr)
ARC 8412 Statistical Methods (3 Cr)
ARC 8413 Program Evaluation and Policy Analysis (3 Cr)

Please see the important announcement regarding the phasing out of ARC courses.

Research Elective Courses (3 credits total)

ARC 8414 Psychoeducational Assesment (3 Cr)
ARC 8415 Survey Research (3 Cr)
ARC 8416 Qualitative Research (3 Cr)

Core Courses

Please see the important announcement regarding the phasing out of EDL courses.

EDL 8431 School Finance (2 Cr)
This course provides an overview of practical principles and functions involved in the generation and distribution of revenue within an educational environment. Course content focuses on resource-based decisions for the financial, political, demographic, governmental, and other influences in making educational judgments. Also considered are the potential financial implications of curricula, personnel, accreditation, accountability, and other similarly complex issues.

EDL 8432 School Policy (2 Cr)
This course is an advanced survey of the development, implementation, and definitions applied to education-based policy. Course content addresses the design, intent, analysis, function, and effect of policy within an educational environment. The roles of political forces, various levels of stakeholders, political organizations, and other entities involved in policy development and implementation will be considered.

EDL 8434 School Law (2 Cr)
This course is a study of constitutional, statutory and judicial law and current legal issues affecting school personnel. Course content focuses on the legal principles and seminal case law that provide guidance to personnel in the educational area. Special consideration is given to topics of currency such as search and seizure, religion, speech, disabilities, due process and equal protection under the law.

EDL 8441 Leadership and Change (3 Cr)
This course recognizes the need to know oneself, to appreciate leadership theory, and to apply leadership principles to influence educational decisions. Students will be required to distinguish between problems and solutions, between preferences and principles, and between fads and researched strategies. Students will gain an understanding of the complexity of educational environments and the conditions that motivate individuals to contribute their best.

EDL 8442 Ethics and Social Responsibility (3 Cr)
This course will focus on the role and responsibilities of an educational leader as an ethical role model, decision-maker, and teacher. Students will be exposed to an overview of current ethical issues for learning communities. Through the use of case studies and a problem-based approach to learning, students will have an opportunity to analyze and develop their decision-making skills within the context of an ethical and moral framework. The course will use multimedia materials and will be interactive and mediated by facilitators on the World Wide Web.

EDL 8443 Leadership Communication: Theory and Practice (3 Cr)
Leadership and effective communication are more than directly correlated; they are inseparable. Using the advantages of Web-based instruction, students will be expected to participate in a virtual learning community where they can interact with course materials in flexible ways, share questions and discoveries with others, and contribute to the community's learning through interactive sessions and posting case study materials.

EDL 8472 Human Resource Development (3 Cr)
This course provides students with an opportunity to transfer their knowledge of best practices in personnel evaluation and professional development to improvements of those systems within their own organizations. Students assess their organization's personnel evaluation system, develop a plan for improvement based on their findings, analyze their personnel based on developmental needs, and structure a model for the enhanced professional development of staff. The course will use multimedia materials and will be interactive, mediated by facilitators on the World Wide Web.

EDL 8481 Leadership Appraisal (3 Cr)
The focus of this course is on procedures for the observation and depiction of leadership behavior in terms of its principle dimensions. The purposes here are to encourage students to monitor their own leadership behavior. From these perspectives, students will systematically observe and categorize leadership behavior; apply this process to develop a detailed self-assessment; and generate a personal agenda for continual professional growth.

EDL 9472 Professional Learning Communities (3 Cr)
This course is based on the premise that professional development is ultimately personal development. The learning conditions that should exist for students must also exist for educators. And it is educational leaders who set the tone for achieving these conditions. Thus, students must understand learning theory as it meets the unique needs and motivators of both K-12 students and the adults who work with them.

EDL 9480 Reflection and Vision Portfolio (6 Cr)
Students will produce an in-depth and integrated analysis of their leadership activities and growth throughout the program. Based upon their course experiences, their leadership experiences on the job, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), and the standards of the Educational Leadership Constituent Council (ELCC), this course will document how workplace activity compares with research about leadership and change. The reflection and vision portfolio will be a comprehensive and developmental project during all phases of the program that will conclude with a personal vision for the future of education, a mission statement, future career plans, and a personal plan for improvement.

Specialization Courses  

Please see the important announcement regarding the phasing out of EDL courses.

Specialization courses are subject to change and minimum enrollments.

EDL 8301 Issues in Special Education Administration (6 Cr)
EDL 8302 School Law (6 Cr)
EDL 8304 Technology Trends and Issues (6 Cr)
EDL 8307 Leading and Managing Systems (6 Cr)
EDL 8308 Leading a Learning Organization (6 Cr)

Applied Dissertation Services and Benchmarks

ARC 8466 Applied Dissertation Service 1: Concept Paper (2 Cr)
ARC 8467 Applied Dissertation Service 2: Proposal (5 Cr)
ARC 8468 Applied Dissertation Service 3: Dissertation (5 Cr)
ARC 8469 Continuing Services

Course descriptions are also located in WebSTAR > Course Catalog.
(Select any term, then select Subject = EDL - Educational Leadership AND Course Number Range from 8000 to 9999.)