The Literacy and Language Education faculty in the School of Teaching and Learning (STL) in the College of Education at the University of Florida (UF) is pleased to announce the availability of the online master’s degree (MEd) in reading and literacy education for practicing teachers.
The program is framed by core principles of reading and literacy and is CAEP and state-approved.

Developed to support practicing teachers in promoting the literacy growth of all K-12 students, program curriculum is focused on the knowledge and methods teachers need to promote literacy and learning. Teachers will not only gain expertise in addressing reading difficulties but also will learn how to support students’ growth as learners who can decode, use, and create many different kinds of texts, such as textbooks, primary source documents, literature, and media.

Practicing teachers will be guided in their learning through online forums, discussion groups, and collaborative assignments. Prospective students should already hold a Florida (or other state) certification, temporary or professional, in a subject area. We expect to admit a cohort of 25-30 candidates per year, with the first cohort starting in Fall, 2012.

Admission into the program requires submission of UF graduate application form, to be completed online at http://www.admissions.ufl.edu/start.html. Additional materials, listed below, must be submitted to STL (stlgradadmiss@coe.ufl.edu), where the Literacy and Language Education program in housed. The application deadline is May 1.

  • A statement of purpose explaining why you want to pursue the degree
  • All official transcripts from institutions of higher education you attended
  • Three letters of recommendation (recommendation form is downloadable at UF Graduate School website above)
  • Resume or curriculum vitae
  • A sample of academic writing
  • Score on the general test of the Graduate Records Exam (GRE)
  • Evidence of professional certification or temporary certification
  • A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university

These application materials are evaluated holistically, using the guidelines established by STL. The guidelines can be accessed at https://education.ufl.edu/school-teaching-learning/admissions/.

Candidates admitted into the program will follow a 2-year program of study that consists of 36 hours of graduate coursework in foundations of reading, corrective reading, reading practicum, language arts, literature, media, and ESOL.

Graduation from the program requires satisfactory completion of coursework (with a GPA of 3.0 or better) and a satisfactory literacy portfolio.

For additional information about the program, please contact Dr. Zhihui Fang at zfang@coe.ufl.edu or 352-273-4231.

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