MSseq

Master's Research Cohort Sequence

RESEARCH COHORT CLASS SEQUENCE: Requirements for the master's degree in educational leadership include three research courses:

Use of Research to Solve School Problems (EDLD 6720)
Research in Education (EDLD 6020)
Graduate Synthesis (EDLD 6908)

The overarching goal of this sequence is to develop the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind necessary for school leaders to utilize collaborative inquiry as a tool in school improvement processes. This includes developing capacity as a consumer of existing research and as an initiator of collaborative inquiry.

In this research cohort, candidates learn to use the concepts and methodologies of educational research, with a particular focus on action research, as a vehicle for school renewal and development.

The intent of this master's research cohort is to engage participants in an exploration of their own leadership and especially how leaders use evidence to help bring about meaningful school improvement.
Central to the learning experience is the expectation that all students will use action research methods to investigate actual school issues in their own settings.
Working collaboratively with peers at the work site and peers in the master's research cohort, students employ the tools and methods of inquiry to define issues; test ideas; collect and analyze data; reflect on the inquiry process; and create and present reports of inquiry results.

RESEARCH COHORT OBJECTIVES: Being a bold, socially responsible leader includes mustering resources (including information) and collaborating with others to engage in planning, implementing and monitoring efforts that will benefit all students. Leaders engaged in collaborative inquiry are expected to demonstrate how well they:

identify school issues and develop questions to guide the investigation into issues;
collaborate with others to develop action plans and test ideas;
collect, organize and analyze various types of information, including published research;
reflect on the inquiry process and its implications for their school, students, and role as a school leader; and
present analysis of evidence in clear and understandable ways.

RESEARCH COHORT OUTCOMES: Completion of the research cohort includes the development of a product that reports on the students' inquiry efforts and findings for a real school audience. Candidates also present their inquiry efforts and findings, their inquiry product, and their reflections about the connections between inquiry and leadership to a panel of university faculty, local school administrators and incoming research cohort students.

COHORT ENROLLMENT: Students who have completed the Preliminary (Tier I) or Professional (Tier 2) cohort classes are eligible for the master's research cohort. As with all cohorts in the Department of Educatonal Leadership at CSU Hayward, the research cohort begins in the Fall and runs through the spring quarter of the following year.

Interested students who meet the enrollment requirements should complete the on-line survey. Students will be selected for the research cohorts (one in Contra Costa and one in Hayward) on a space available basis with students closest to completing the degree accepted first.