When the Commencement ceremony ends, the last student has fled the campus, and the dust has settled, the work for the faculty continues. All teachers participate in a week-long in-service session where they collaborate with colleagues both within and outside of their divisions on varied projects. Most recently, the initiative focused on our biblical worldview alignment. After this week, many professors will continue to teach, but through our online SCOPE programs.
This past summer, the School of Education and Human Services offered 23 courses with a total enrollment of 155 students. Eight of these were undergraduate courses which can also be taken on campus during the school year, while the other 15 were graduate-level courses for working educators available only through SCOPE. Class size ranged from 2 to 19 with an average of 7. Most of these courses are condensed into 7 weeks, so the pace is challenging. Many students, nevertheless, prefer this online format as they can focus on just one or two courses with fewer distractions. Our graduate-level courses are especially popular with teachers and administrators as they can earn a degree without leaving their homes. The 13 students I taught this past summer were from 10 different states in addition to 2 foreign countries—India and Japan.
In total, 17 faculty members facilitated these education courses, though some were taught by partners serving in Christian schools. Six of our own professors taught one or more courses last summer, and I spoke with two about their experiences. Dr. Scott Buhr facilitates Foundations: Educational Technology each summer, an undergraduate course he also teaches on campus each semester. Because the course is rich in technology, it translates well into our online learning platform, Canvas. A majority of the students in this practical course earn the Google Level One Educator credential in addition to completing a technology portfolio that provides skills and confidence as they enter classrooms of their own. Dr. Sharon Wilkie teaches Personnel Administration & Supervision in our graduate-level Educational Leadership program. She enjoys sharing her practical experiences as an educational administrator with these working professionals. A recent student commented, “I learned so much from this course and I am excited to use that knowledge in the future.”
We are especially excited about the interest in our Teaching and Learning and Educational Leadership programs. Currently, we have 165 educators enrolled in our online programs and are seeing steady growth. The School of Education and Human Services is able to reach across the country and around the world by equipping faithful and committed educators.
