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Ed.D. in Middle Grades Education

Lay the foundation of a successful transition

Young adolescents are undergoing profound change, and anyone who has taught middle-grades students knows this change can impact their academic performance and future trajectory in high school and post-secondary life. Help contribute to emerging trends for supporting middle-grade student growth and develop the skills you need to act as an educational leader with Brenau University’s Online Ed.D. program concentration in middle grades education.

Building on the foundation of the Ed.D. core, this program examines subject specific innovations designed to meet the unique needs of the middle school student. You may also choose to work with a faculty member to design an independent study course focused on a relevant issue.

Potential career paths after graduation

After completing your Ed.D. with the middle grades education concentration, you may qualify to take on leadership roles in:

  • Public or private schools
  • Private or non-profit youth enrichment programs
  • Local, state or federal government agencies serving adolescents and their families
  • Public or private research firms

Core courses

In our core curriculum, you’ll be challenged to understand the theory behind how education is practiced and critically explore the evidence for those theories. Regardless of your concentration, you will progress through the following 12 credits with your cohort:

  • ED 900 Doctoral Seminar—This seminar is intended for students beginning their doctoral plan of studies to meet certain objectives within their first semester of entering the program.
  • ED 845 Curriculum Design, Theory, & Evaluation—Explore research-based practices for designing, evaluating, implementing and continuously improving curricula.
  • ED 860 Leadership in Education—Explore models of leadership and leadership development while building your own capabilities for creative problem solving through communication and interpersonal relationships.
  • ED 865 Academic Program Assessment & Evaluation—Take a holistic perspective of program and student evaluation, learn strategies for planning and evaluating assessment methods, and more.
  • ED 870 Educational Issues & Policy—Reflect and discuss current policy issues impacting the field of education and complete a research project based on an issue you feel is critical to the field.
  • ED 901 Ed.D. Comprehensive Exam—The comprehensive exam will allow doctoral students to identify, analyze, and synthesize selected areas of educational topics.

Research and dissertation advising

You will take 24 credits focused on advancing your research skills and developing the capstone of your degree—your doctoral dissertation.

  • ED 930 Advanced Research Methods—Build skills for analyzing data sets, evaluating research design and technique and designing research.
  • ED 935 Intermediate Qualitative Research—This is an intermediate research course focusing on quantitative methods including ANOVA, MANOVA, regression analysis, non-parametric statistics including chi-square, and introductory clinical trial design in a practice setting.
  • ED 940 Qualitative Research Methods—Comparisons and critiques of the major forms of qualitative research methodology and assessment of credibility, trustworthiness, reliability, and validity of studies that use qualitative designs are topics covered in this course. It will include development of research designs that can be used to inform therapeutic decision making and to assess intervention outcomes.
  • ED 945 Qualitative Procedure and Analysis—This course focuses on the practical application of qualitative research methods.
  • ED 960 Dissertation Advisement 1: Literature Review—Begin developing the dissertation by posing questions and reviewing existing content to find a specific issue or problem to address.
  • ED 965 Dissertation Advisement 2: Proposal—Build skills for designing the research for your dissertation, hone your proposal and begin developing the first chapters of your dissertation.
  • ED 970 Dissertation Advisement 3: Collection of Data—With advisor approval, enter the main phase of research for your proposed topic and continue producing chapters for the dissertation.
  • ED 975 Dissertation Advisement 4: Research Conclusion—Analyze your data, complete writing and revisions and prepare for oral defense of your dissertation.

Courses: Middle Grades Education

You may choose between one of the three concentrations below.

  • English Language Arts (ELA) Concentration
    • ED 801: Study of the English Language
    • ED 840: Innovations in Language Arts – MG/SEC
    • ED 832: Theory Foundations of Teaching & Writing in MG/SEC
    • ED 851: Literature through Multimedia
    • ED 804: Special Topics in ELA
    • ED 837: Instr. Leadership in the MG/SEC Classroom
  • Mathematics Concentration
    • MS 801: Essential Mathematics for Teachers
    • ED 833: Innovations in Mathematics – MG/SE
    • ED 838: Psychology of Learning Mathematics
    • ED 839: Seminar in Mathematics Education
    • ED 837: Instr. Leadership in the MG/SEC Classroom
    • ED 800: Integrated Math-Science in MG/SEC classroom
  • Science Concentration
    • ED 834: Innovations in Science – MG/SEC
    • BY 803: Ecology for Teachers
    • ED 841: Special Topics in Science
    • ED 847: Science Leadership
    • ED 837: Instr. Leadership in the MG/SEC Classroom
    • ED 800: Integrated Math-Science in MG/SEC classroom

Help young students thrive while furthering your career. Earn your Ed.D. in middle grades education with Brenau University! Get in touch today to start the conversation with us.