Masters in Education

Brice,

I believe Dallas Baptist University has an online M.Ed. with a few different concentrations.

 

You might be right ... I couldn't resist the pun, you are right.

web page

 

I am considering attending Regent online for leadership studies. I do know that they have a really good online system with a few education degrees for online basis only. I have been told by my many that bob Jones has a really good education department but that is only by word of mouth. I don't think you could go wrong by picking DBU either, great school ... gotta love Texas Schools.

 

I just checked out the website. The M.Ed. is going to cost $19,278 just for the tuition. Again, how do people pay for this? That doesn't graduation and other fees.

 

Brother Ian,

I wondered the same thing about most of the seminaries and grad schools that charge 400 to 500 dollars per hour for their degrees. How in the world could I ever pay for it? I honestly believe if God is going to call me to do something then he is going to pay for it or provide a way for the schooling to be covered. My undergrad work has been paid totally for by a family member who said she would pay for my schooling only if I went to a ministry school. Also, I am thinking about pursing a degree plan which my job would pay for part/some of the classes ... the tuition per hour by the way is 550 ... yikes. It has been said to me that I am allowing the money factor to determine my choice of school. Not the case ... I would not attend the cheapest seminary in the nation just because their prices are the lowest. For the money that will be spent I want the best education for the dollar that will be spent. If you are southern baptist and want to go to a SBC seminary then you would end up paying half the normal cost of most seminaries. I believe SEBTS, SBTS, NOBTS and SWBTS are all about 150 per hour if you are a SBC member. I do know if I seek God totally and I desire that his will be done in my life and my families then he will direct me to the right seminary/school and he will make a way for provision.

 

I do believe SEBTS looks like a good deal compared with other schools. Unfortunately, I am in service to the United States Navy and am not able to attend on campus. I didn't see an option for distance learning.

 

My principal got her MEd through Regents. She was happy with their program.

On the payment -- they have lots of aid. I was surprised at how much she got when she told me. I don't remember what the amount was now, but I do remember being surprised at it.

 

Brother Ian,

"I just checked out the website. The M.Ed. is going to cost $19,278 just for the tuition. Again, how do people pay for this? That doesn't graduation and other fees."

==Education is expensive but, in general, you get what you pay for. There are many "aids" out there that can assist you in paying for school. If you are in the military you should check to see if they can help you with school. I know Liberty has a distance education program for active military. They offer tuition discounts in their non-seminary programs. Their seminary programs (MAR, MDIV) are already discounted. I would encourage you to look into that if you have not already.

You can find info here:
http://www.liberty.edu/distancelearning/index.cfm?PID=326

I pray that helps.
Martin.

 

You're right Martin. Unfortunately, I have only about nine months left before I retire and would not benefit from tuition assistance at this point. 22 years ago, I declined to contribute to the G.I. Bill which is one of the greater financial mistakes of my life.

Looking back, I think it would have been beneficial for me to go to Liberty. It would have been nearly free for a B.A.

It makes me sad if I think about it for too long.

 

I graduated from both a secular university and seminary. I found the seminary in the educational area to be way behind in its research and practical aspects. I am far better off for having attended a secular university in education when I compared it to the seminary. The seminary did not teach curriculum development whereas the university did. All the seminary taught was to evaluate an exisiting curriculum by the denomination. The university taught how to develop a curruculum and evaluate it.

 

Do try Regents but I must advise that if you go for a Masters in Education it is not worth the money. I have one from a secular school.
Don't just pay for the bible study. Find a cheap
Secular Ed program and study the Bible with Liberty's 700.00 bible study. My opinion.

 

Brice,

I agree with gb3433 and Praise Him's advice. You have a solid Bible foundation at LU. Find a good state-supported school close by and do your M.Ed. there.

Bill

 

Thanks Broadus,
I think we gave Brice the right advice.
Thanks for concurring!

 

The experience of one is too narrow to make generalizations across the board. My experience is decidedly opposite. After acquiring a master’s in education from a Christian school, I returned for additional work in education at a major secular research university. I had previously done graduate in the sciences at this university that was well known for its science, engineering and mathematics. However, the school of education was a different story.

In my first upper level graduate course, the students greeted the announcement of a course paper with cries of dismay. Its seems that these students, who were for the most part finishing their master’s degrees, had not written any course papers for their entire program. They did files, projects, oral presentations, group discussions, teacher-made materials, etc. Although these things can be useful in a classroom, they are lacking in academic rigor and certain requisite skills such as research methodology, academic writing, knowledge of the literature, etc. The College of Education under criticism, it seems, was trying to tighten up their academic standards by requiring course papers.

Except for one course, I had been required to write a minimum of three papers plus other academic requirements of reading, etc. for my master’s degree in a Christian college. In the one course (Materials and Methods) without an academic paper, I developed a method for producing teacher-made filmstrips (now outdated), wrote the script, designed a story board, did the visual layout and design, shot the filmstrip and produced a manual outlining the method.

Being human, I did not knock myself out doing the paper for this course at the secular university since I sensed most others were doing much less. One student received a B+ for a 5-6-page paper with 7-8 sources. If my memory is correct, I wrote a 20-25-page paper with 40 cited sources and over 100 sources consulted. This was less than standard fare at the Christian college.

At another large secular university, I was somewhat embarrassed at the incompetence of my peers. They were for the most part working teachers. Since I traveled fifty miles one way to take the course in the evening, I wanted to stay the full four hours. They constantly begged to get out early and the professor would dismiss halfway through. They made so many mistakes that I was discomfited. Making a class presentation, one gal stopped reading and asked the professor to explain what she had just read because she didn’t understand it. Another guy, who had a masters plus 30 hours, asked the prof how to pronounce a word in his presentation. They make dictionaries for this sort of thing, you know.

On the other hand, I did matriculate in a Christian college that was much easier than the two other Christian colleges and the several secular schools I attended. Conclusions from my personal experience are these:
1. Quality or the lack thereof cannot be generalized as belonging exclusively to either Christian or secular schools.
2. Quality between schools and departments within the same college or university may vary considerably.
3. Since I did learn a great deal on my own even while taking a less than wonderful class, I conclude that learning is highly individualized and depends a great deal on the student.

 

to Brice,

what do wish to do with your degree?

 

Brice,

When you say "Christian education," do you mean as in a Christian day school or the teaching ministry of a local church. If the former, you want a Master of Education (which can be obtained through a Christian or secular institution); if the latter, a Master's degree in Religious Education.

Bill