As a teacher I have to be in favor of the educational process. It just so happens that I really like higher education and learning about things I am passionate about. I realized a few years ago the while I do have a Master’s Degree it is not in a field that is helpful to me in education. With that in mind, and my family’s full support, I began investigating the possibility of going back to school for a Master’s of Education.
The fundamental question for me was: What degree should I seek? When I set out, I had one of two ideas in mind, either Educational Leadership or Educational Counseling. I did a lot of research including talking with counselors at the school I work at and contacting various graduate schools to ask about those two majors. What I kept coming back to was that I was not passionate about either they just seemed like the next iteration of the education lifestyle. I was hoping for someone to change my mind, but that never happened.
At this point I was at a bit of a crossroads. If not either of these two options, what was I left with? I began looking at the universities that I had a connection to and I saw a major that intrigued me, a Master’s of Education in Instructional Technology. I began to research the program and look at the coursework and I liked what I saw. I was nervous though because the degree did not lead to a specific job in education. At least with Educational Leadership or Counseling I had a specific job that I was qualified for as soon as I attained my degree.
More difficult discussions lead to a revelation; while this degree does not lead to a specific job it is valuable to a larger audience. Technology is not going away in education both in a school environment and outside of schools. With this in mind I submitted my application to Texas A&M’s distance program and I start in the Spring. I am really looking forward to it. So much so that I am going to catalog my process here to help with reflection and implementation in my classroom.
A few other thoughts:
- I forgot what a pain the financial aid process is. I have complicated the process by applying for grants, but it is still more than I remember it being when I originally went through the process.
- Textbooks are expensive, although renting digital textbooks is awesome.
- I feel so old logging into the online portal. The had nothing like this “back in my day” but it is nice that everything is all in one place.