Bilingual Education (MED)
A central goal of educators is to provide equitable educational opportunities to all children, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, language, culture, or socioeconomic status. One of the most controversial school programs, bilingual education, is committed to this goal. UTRGV’s innovative and unique Master of Education in Bilingual Education is designed to develop master teachers and advocates with a thorough understanding of effective enrichment bilingual education and practices that not only meet the educational needs of Spanish speakers, but also provide bilingual/biliterate/bicultural enrichment opportunities for all children. Students in this degree program take coursework in language development, second language acquisition, and models of effective practice, linguistics, and assessment.
While all students take core courses, the program features three specializations. Each student chooses the area they are interested in: Dual Language Education, ESL, or Educational Leadership.
- In the Dual Language Specialization, coursework is in Spanish and focuses on dual language Spanish/English settings.
- In the ESL Specialization, coursework is in English and prepares English as a Second Language teachers who have a strong understanding of bilingualism across PreK-12 settings.
- In the Educational Leadership Specialization, coursework is in English and focuses on building expertise about emergent bilinguals among campus and district administrators.
Unique among master’s degrees in bilingual education, our degree program prepares "dual experts" in various areas to promote and support enrichment bilingual education.
Students completing the degree will be able to provide expert instruction, advise administrators, participate in program development, and lead professional development for schools and districts. Above all, students will become agents of change by advocating for bilingual learners and equitably implementing education policy for bilingual and their communities.
The M. Ed. in Bilingual Education is a 36-hour degree consisting of 27 hours (including bilingual education core and research methods and evaluation) plus 9 hours in the selected Specialization.
Admission Requirements
To be admitted to the graduate program in bilingual education, prospective candidates must first meet all requirements for graduate admission to UT Rio Grande Valley, as well as the other requirements listed below:
- Undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0 in the last 60 semester credit hours. If applicant does not meet the minimum undergraduate GPA criterion, GRE general test with minimum scores of 150 Verbal, 141 Quantitative, and 4.0 Analytical are required for conditional admission
- Two letters of recommendation from professional or academic sources
- Personal statement essays (complete both a and b)
- Write 250 words in English explaining your interest in graduate studies
- Write 250 words for your chosen specialization:
- Dual Language Specialization: En español, explique su interés en ambientes y aulas bilingües
- ESL Specialization: In English, explain your interest in students who speak languages other than English.
- Educational Leadership Specialization: In English, explain your interest in leadership for bilingual environments.
- Resume which includes educational and background and work experience
- Documentation of one of the following:
- Teacher certification in the U.S. or
- Licenciatura or equivalent from another country, in a field related to education or language, or
- Employment in a charter school, private school, or a community college,
- For applicants without teaching certification or experience, conditional admission may be considered.
Application for admission must be submitted prior to the published deadline. The application is available at www.utrgv.edu/gradapply.
Program Requirements
Required Courses (27 Credits)
| EDFR 6300/EDFR 6301 | Research Methods in Education | 3 |
| EDFR 6388 | Introduction to Historical and Sociocultural Foundations of Education | 3 |
| EDBE 6322 | Bilingual/Multilingual Critical Issues | 3 |
| EDBE 6324 | Dual Language Enrichment Education | 3 |
| EDBE 6335 | Bilingual Content Area Across the Curriculum | 3 |
| EDBE 6350 | The Bilingual Reading Process | 3 |
| EDBE 6351 | Research on Language Development in Bilingual Environments | 3 |
| EDBE 6365 | Action Research in Dual Language and ESL Education | 3 |
| EDBE 6367 | Assessing Emergent Bilinguals | 3 |
Designated Electives
Choose one of the following areas of specialization: (9 Credits)
Dual Language Specialization (These courses are taught in Spanish)
| EDBE 6363 | Literatura Infantil | 3 |
| EDBE 6364 | Principles and Practices of Biliteracy Development in Spanish and English | 3 |
| EDBE 6366 | Academic Spanish Across the Content Area | 3 |
ESL Specialization
| EDSL 6323 | Approaches and Current Practices in Second Language Instruction | 3 |
| EDSL 6325 | ESL for Bilingual and Multicultural Settings | 3 |
| EDSL 6351 | Linguistics for ESL | 3 |
Educational Leadership Specialization
Select 3 of the following courses:
| EDUL 6300 | Data Management for School Improvement | 3 |
| EDUL 6320 | Curriculum Leadership for School Improvement | 3 |
| EDUL 6325 | Instructional Leadership | 3 |
| EDUL 6330 | Instructional Leadership for Diverse Learners | 3 |
| EDUL 6335 | Instructional Leadership and Supervision | 3 |
Capstone Requirement
Choose one of the following:
Capstone Requirement Non-Thesis
Written Comprehensive Exam
Capstone Requirement Thesis
Note: With the thesis option, students must complete the thesis sequence instead of 6 hours from the degree plan with the guidance from the graduate advisor and /or thesis committee chair.
Total Credit Hours: 36