Instructional Design for Learning Certificate

College of Education

Dr. Nicole Ennis, Interim Dean

Program Advisor: Dr. Richard Whitehead, Program Director richard.whitehead@westliberty.edu

West Liberty University offers a 30 credit-hour course of study leading to a Master of Arts in Education degree (M.A.Ed.). The M.A.Ed. program is open to graduate-level students and is designed to provide masters-level work in an accelerated format for individuals who wish to advance their professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions in the areas of Reading Specialist, Multi-Categorical Special Education, Innovative Instruction, Leadership in Disability Services, Leadership Studies, Community Education Research and Leadership, Sports Leadership and Coaching (online), Leadership in Educational Administration (online), Visual Arts Education (online) and Instructional Design for Learning (online).

Coursework to prepare licensed teachers for endorsements through the West Virginia Department of Education are also offered in the areas of Autism and Gifted.

Coursework includes 12 credit-hours of required Education Common Core courses and 18 credit hours concentration emphasis courses. Courses are scheduled in two eight-week terms during the fall and spring semesters, and two six-week terms during the summer. Courses are either in an online format or at the WLU Highlands Campus once a week typically at 5:00 p.m. However, students at a distance can join the Highlands courses via WebEx (Zoom), which is a video conferencing system accessible by personal computer. During the last semester of coursework, all M.A.Ed. students will complete a semester-long capstone experience of an approved topic, which incorporates the Education Core courses and relates to the selected area of emphasis.

Accreditation

The teacher education programs at West Liberty are nationally accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) merged into CAEP and as of 2016 CAEP has replaced NCATE as the national accrediting body for teacher education. In 2019, continuing full accreditation was awarded by CAEP. West Liberty was one of the first institutions accredited by NCATE in 1954 and celebrated 66 years of continuous national accreditation in 2020. In addition, all teacher education programs at WLU have been approved by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and by the West Virginia Board of Education.

Graduation Requirements:

The 18-credit hour certificate requires:

18 credit hours in a concentration area
Complete coursework with at least a B in each course