Children’s Literature (MA) / Teaching (MAT)
Faculty
Please see Children’s Literature and Teaching programs for faculty lists.
Description
This dual degree program combines a love of literature with the calling to teach. Students can become certified at the elementary level.By studying the art and illustration of a children's book, students are introduced to some of today’s great works to build tomorrow’s readers. As they examine the roots of fantasy for young readers and consider touchstones of young adult realistic fiction in the Children’s Literature MA, in the MAT program they use these texts in shaping their own curriculum. As nonfiction continues to integrate common core standards, students find ways to share these books with young readers through their own inventive teaching.
Whether in a public school classroom, an experimental charter school, or on a private school campus, the MA/MAT dual degree positions candidates to bring together the child and the book in deeply engaging ways and to release the power of literature to change lives.
Learning Outcomes
Students leave Master of Arts (MA) in Children’s Literature with an extensive theoretical context and a broad knowledge of contemporary literature for children and young adults. In graduating, they have:
- Developed a critical voice and demonstrated the capacity for original argument;
- Analyzed literature for children and young adults;
- Assessed and interpreted scholarship in the field of children’s and young adult literature;
- Applied critical perspectives across genres in children’s and young adult literature;
- Understood historical works, contexts, and influences in the field;
- Valued the diversities of human experiences (re)presented in literature for children and young adults and in the scholarship in the field; and
- Demonstrated individual and collaborative leadership.
Requirements for entry into program
Please refer to the admission requirements for the MA in Children’s Literature and the MA in Teaching in this catalog.
Delivery Mode or Modes Available (full-time, part-time, locations, technologies, etc.)
Simmons offers the M.A. in Children's Literature on campus and at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA.
Graduate students in the M.A./M.AT. dual degree program typically carry 12 credits in the fall and spring and a range of credits in summer semesters. Students considering registering for more than 12 credits per term must consult with the graduate program directors. Dual degree students must take a course in each program during each semester of enrollment. Most typically, students begin with one Children’s Literature course and two Graduate Education courses.
Weekend and Intensive Courses: Two (2) credit Children’s Literature course may be scheduled to occur during a weekend, during which students may meet up to eight hours daily to engage in coursework. Similarly, some four (4) credit courses in summers, weekends, or other times of year may follow an intensive, immersive format.
Degree requirements
60- to 68-credits (depending on the length of student teaching)
Master of Arts in Teaching course requirements (32-40 credits):
| GEDUC 460 | Teaching Strategies for the Inclusive Classroom | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 445 | Educational Psychology | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 461 | Social Studies, Science & the Arts For the Elementary Classroom | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 464 | Reading & Language Arts for the Elementary Classroom | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 467 | Math for the Elementary Classroom | 4.00 |
| TESL 417 | Sheltered English Instruction | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 400 | Pre-Practicum Seminar | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 488 | Pre-Practicum | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 401 | Seminar in Teaching and Learning at the Elementary Level | 4.00 |
| GEDUC 480 | Practicum: Elementary Education (1-6) | 4.00 |
GEDUC 400, GEDUC 488: Fall
GEDUC 401, GEDUC 480: Spring
The pre-practicum and practicum provide students with a year-long teaching experience. The MAT program has developed relationships with a variety of communities in Massachusetts in order to provide our students with the best practicum experiences possible.
Please note that acceptance into the MAT program does not guarantee automatic acceptance into the prepracticum/ practicum. Students must be recommended by the department before moving into the practical portion of the program.
Masters of Arts in Children's Literature course requirements (28 credits total):
| CHL 401 | Criticism of Literature for Children | 4.00 |
| CHL 403 | The Picturebook | 4.00 |
| CHL 413 | Contemporary Realistic Fiction | 4.00 |
| CHL 414 | Fantasy and Science Fiction | 4.00 |
Four credits in the history of children’s literature, selected from courses with a chronological focus
Four credits to be selected from general electives
Licensure, certification, etc.
The Simmons College Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program is approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (DESE) to lead to initial teaching licensure in Massachusetts.
Dual (and other) degree options
For related dual degree programs:
Children's Literature (MA)/Library Services To Children (MS)
Children's Literature (MA)/ Writing for Children (MFA)