The IslandWood-UW Collaboration
The College of Education is fortunate to partner with IslandWood, one of our
region’s most dynamic educational facilities. Each year, IslandWood enrolls a
number of graduate students (you) who take courses and work with the
hundreds of elementary age students who come to learn more about the
environment and their role in environmental stewardship. At the end of the
year-long program, you have the option of continuing on in your studies at the
University of Washington for a masters degree. You have 2 study options from
which to choose: Science Education or Teaching and Curriculum.
This document explains this relationship, but please note that it does NOT take the place of
official documents produced by the College of Education (COE) that describe the requirements of
the Masters in Education (MEd). You must read and follow all the official documents of the COE,
particularly the Core Requirements document on the C&I web site:
http://education.washington.edu/areas/ci/studyoptions/med/corereq.html
Some, but not all the courses you have taken at IslandWood fulfill requirements of these two
study options. Please bear in mind that the College of Education and Dr. Windschitl in particular
have pushed to accept all possible credits from IslandWood to count in our MEd. Program. If
there are courses from I-Wood that do not appear on these sheets, it is because the faculty, after
deliberation, will not allow them. So it is possible, then, to have accumulated 45 credits or more on your transcript, but
not have the appropriate required courses in particular “blocks” to graduate (in Foundations, for example you must have
9 credits).
The sample course outlines that I have provided you show only the courses that we will accept. If you have an advisor
other than me, you need to check with them to see which courses they will accept in various categories. Please note also
that the advisor has the final say on accepting or waiving certain classes as fulfilling requirements, or requiring additional
courses.
You can finish in one of three ways (these are referred to as the Culminating Options). One is to write a thesis. A second
option is to do a project that is negotiated between you and an advisor. The third option is to take an additional 9 credits
worth of courses, plus take a final exam. Regardless of the way you finish, you will attend one colloquium as an observer
and present your work at a second colloquium as part of the graduation requirements. The details of these are spelled out
in the official C&I documents available on-line. If you are an advisee of Dr. Windschitl, and you select a project as a final
culminating option, please note that the project will involve developing some form of instructional innovation (unit of
instruction, technology, or other kind of learning situation), testing it out with a group of learners and collecting data on
how the learners responded to/learned from your instruction.
Please note that it is not advisable, nor is it possible to graduate before the end of winter quarter. This is due to the fact
that some required courses are offered in the winter.
Any questions you have about financial aid or teaching assistantships should be directed to our Student Services Office.
Here are some helpful websites:
Curriculum and Instruction: http://depts.washington.edu/coe/programs/ci/
College of Education:
http://depts.washington.edu/coe/index.html
Student Services: http://depts.washington.edu/coe/students/
Please let me know if I can help you answer any other questions—
Mark Windschitl
mwind@uw.edu
Jessica Thompson
jjthomps@uw.edu
Note! This is not an official document, read the Core Requirements document
on the C&I Website :
http://education.washington.edu/areas/ci/studyoptions/med/corereq.html
M.Ed. Guide for Science Education
2015-2016
Minimum 45 credits
Minimum 18 graded credits
Minimum 18 credits above 500 level—300 level credits don’t count.
1) I-Wood students must spend at least 2 academic quarters taking courses at
the UW (fall, winter, spring)
2) You must file for a leave of absence if you do not take courses for any
academic quarter during the program.
3) Sign up for the Education list-serv , pay attention to the announcements.
•Note: Other courses taken at Islandwood, even though they appear on your transcript, do not satisfy any of the required course groups
below.
Foundations of Education
Minimum 9 credits
Courses
EDC&I 503 Shaping Learning through Curriculum, Instruction, & Schooling
(required at UW)
EDC&I 494 B Child Growth and Development (I-Wood)
EDLPS 479 B Social and Philosophical Foundations (I-Wood)
credit
4
grade
500
credit
3
3
grade
500
credit
3
grade
500
3
3
Science Education Study Option
Minimum 15 credits in the natural sciences
Courses
EDC&I 473 A Natural History and Ecology (I-Wood)
EDC&I 495 A Env. Ed: History, Issues and Methods (I-Wood)
Curriculum and Instruction
Minimum 6 credits
Courses
EDC&I 471 Inquiry in Science Education (required UW) If course is not offered
in Fall quarter, you may substitute a course of your choosing.
EDC&I 571 Seminar in Science Education (required UW, offered Winter)
EDC&I 473 A Science Methods: An Inquiry Approach (I-Wood)
EDC&I 494 B Curriculum & Instruction Methods (I-Wood)
EDC&I 495 B Integrating Technology Across the Curriculum (I-Wood)
4
4
3
2
Culminating Option (coursework + exam, project, or thesis)
Project or thesis worth 9 credits at 500+ level. If you take 9 credits of coursework, they don’t have to be at the 500 level, just bear in
mind you have to have a total of 18 at the 500 level across all your 45 credits of coursework.
Courses
TOTALS
required
credit
grade
500
45
18
18
1stYear at IslandWood—then to the UW (see below)
Typical timeline to graduation.
Below, if a line is marked with *C+E, then it
pertains to students who are finishing by taking
extra coursework and a final exam. If a line is
marked with *P/T then it pertains to those who
are finishing by doing a project or thesis. If you
intend to finish before Spring quarter, this
schedule will be compressed.
Summer
It is possible to start taking UW classes here.
Please note this is NOT an official document,
you must read and follow the core requirements
document produced by Curriculum and
Check with advisor via e-mail about fall classes you want toInstruction.
sign up for.
Check in with advisor, plan for Winter classes and discuss how you’d like to finish your degree.
Fall
[*P/T] Check in with advisor to talk about possible project/thesis.
Attendance required to observe one Master’s colloquium, either in Fall or Winter, before you present at a
colloquium in the quarter you graduate.
Check with advisor and plan for Spring classes.
[*C+E] Discuss with advisor how to solicit faculty to write your exam questions.
Winter
[*P/T] Continue to discuss progress of project with your advisor.
[*P/T] Complete proposal in mid-winter and make firm arrangements with (or get permissions from) any
other institutions or individuals whose cooperation you’ll need to finish your project.
Go on Grad School web site during first week of quarter and indicate that you intend to graduate this quarter.
[*P/T] Get started on actual project work as early as possible.
[*C+E] Arrange for two faculty to write you exam questions. One needs to be from COE, others can be from
IslandWood, COE or other UW department.
[*C+E] Write your exam either as a take-home or in a proctored setting. At least one week before classes are
over, have faculty who wrote your exam questions send Dr. W. an e-mail verifying that you have passed the
question(s).
Spring
Present at colloquium on your project or, if you’ve finished by taking extra coursework, present on any class
effort you have done during your degree which you would like to share with the public. Make a tri-fold poster
to display.
[*P/T] At least one week before classes are over, you arrange for your advisor and one other faculty member
(can be from I-Wood, COE, or other department on UW campus) to have a final conversation about your
project. These two faculty need a copy of your full project at least one week before this conversation.
Get final forms signed—these are described to you by the Grad School after you sign up to graduate on their
web site.