Iowa State University
College of Human Sciences


Department of Curriculum and Instruction

Fact Sheet 2008-2009

bulletVision, Mission, and Core Values

Iowa was the first state in the nation to accept the terms of the 1862 Morrill Act. The four founding land-grant principles in the Morrill Act were:

  • Access regardless of race, creed, gender or economic background
  • Integration of practical and liberal education programs
  • Respect for applied and basic research and
  • Service to the state's citizens.

In 1868, Iowa State University of Science and Technology became the nation's first land grant college.

Students enrolled at Iowa State could pursue studies in the areas of mechanical arts, agriculture, arts and science, and normal studies (teacher education). In 1868 Adonijah Welch, Iowa State's first president, created a professorship in the "science and art of teaching." Iowa State was the first U. S. institution to offer ongoing teacher education courses as part of a four-year bachelor's degree program.

Virgil Lagomarcino led efforts to establish a College of Education and in 1968 became the newly created college's first dean. Several departments, elementary education, secondary education, physical education and industrial education, were housed in the new college. Other teacher education programs remained in their respective colleges. Some secondary education faculty members had joint appointments in the College of Education and in their subject-area departmental tenure home, e.g., Agricultural Education and Studies and Foreign Languages and Literatures.

In 1990, the two departments of Elementary Education and Secondary Education in the College of Education merged to become the current Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Throughout the history of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, teacher education has been a major focus on the department. In addition to teacher education programs, the Department of Curriculum and Instruction is now home for several graduate degree programs, including Master of Education, Master of Science and PH.D programs

 

In keeping with our rich traditions, the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Iowa State University is working to fulfill the following:

Vision

As the Department of Curriculum and Instruction we aspire to prepare transformative leaders in teaching, learning and curriculum within diverse pre-K-16 settings through exemplary teaching, research and outreach.

Mission

As an engaged community of scholars and teacher educators, we seek to:
  • Enhance Iowa's families, schools and communities through exemplary education and teacher preparation.
  • Provide educators and students with the knowledge, skills and experience necessary to become transformative leaders in an increasingly changing and interdependent world.
  • Support the advancement of specialized academic disciplines through exemplary research and scholarship.

Core Values

Consistent with our vision, mission and Iowa State's land grant ideals, we value:

  • Excellent teaching
  • Rigorous research
  • Effective Outreach
  • Diversity
  • Equity
  • International perspectives
  • Ethically grounded decisions
  • Academic freedom
  • Cross disciplinary collaboration.

Our Land-Grant Heritage
Iowa State University was founded on the ideals that higher education should be accessible to all and that the university should teach liberal and practical subjects. These ideals are integral to the land-grant university, a special class of university created by the Morrill Act, passed by Congress in 1862. Iowa was the first state to accept the law's provisions. Iowa State University subsequently pioneered the idea of Extension -- extending the university's knowledge to people throughout the state.

 


bullet Academic Programs

  • Undergraduate programs:

    • B.S. degree in Early Childhood Education (Pre K-3 teacher licensure)
    • B.S. degree in Elementary Education (K-6 teacher licensure)
    • Provides the majority of the pedagogical education for secondary programs
    • 14 undergraduate level teaching endorsements available
    • Undergraduate and graduate minors in instructional technology
  • Graduate Programs: (M.Ed., M.A.T., M.S., Ph.D.)
    • Degree focus areas: Curriculum and Instructional Technology; Elementary Education; Foreign Language Education; Historical, Philosophical and Comparative Studies in Education; Literacy Education; Mathematics Education; Multicultural Education, Science Education; Special Education
    • Initial teacher licensure in secondary mathematics and science education (M.Ed., M.A.T.)
    • Additional teaching endorsements in selected areas of special education and reading

 

bullet Students

  • 121 graduate students
  • 734 undergraduate students
  • Over 600 secondary education students served in Curriculum and Instruction courses of which 60 mathematics, 60 science, and 120 history majors are coordinated by C&I faculty


bullet Faculty and Staff

  • 24 tenured and tenure-line faculty
  • 11 joint faculty appointments
  • 11 lecturers/non-tenure faculty
  • 9.3 P&S staff (includes 4 undergraduate advisors)
  • 4.6 merit staff
  • 26 graduate assistants; 19 PhD, 7 MS

 

bullet Research Lab and Centers

  • Center for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Education (CESMEE)
  • Center for Technology in Learning and Teaching (CTLT)
  • National K-12 Foreign Language Resource Center (NFLRC)
  • Psychology in Education Research Lab (PERL)

 

bullet Facilities

C&I houses the departmental office, advising office, three centers, and offices for faculty, P&S staff and graduate assistants. The department has two specialized classrooms and one general classroom. One of the specialized classrooms is primarily used for science and mathematics methods courses while the other is primarily used for literacy methods courses. Both were recently remodeled and are equipped with new technology. The general classroom has also been upgraded with new technology within the past year.

 

bullet Outreach Programs

  • Fred Duffelmeyer Reading Improvement Clinic
  • The Carmen Sosa Farming Curriculum Project
  • Circle of Readers:  A Transnational Literacy Partnership
  • Project AAIMS Algebra Progress Monitoring Training
  • Sister Cities, Sister Schools: Toward Transnational Teacher Development for a Globalizing Iowa

 

bullet Examples of Faculty Funded Research

  • Alternative Technology Exploratorium & Usability Lab
  • Career: Constructing Coherence: Elementary Teachers' Strategies for Using Standards-Based Mathematics Curriculum Materials (NSF)
  • Carver Science Literature
  • Chinese K-2 Foreign Language Longitudinal Study
  • Collaborative Leadership Training Program: Early Childhood Special Education (with HDFS)
  • Dissemination of online Problem-solving Learning Portal and Diagnostic Pathfinder to Increase Students' Problem-solving Skills
  • Enhancing Education Through Technology Program (E2T2)
  • Helping Iowa Teachers Promote Critical Thinking and Inquiry in Science and Literacy in K-8 Classrooms
  • Humanizing Science to Improve Post-Secondary Science Education: Pursuing the Second-Tier
  • Improving Student Problem Formulation Skills Through Scaffolding
  • Instructional Technology Consulting Startup
  • Iowa Science Literacy Project
  • Iowa's Reading First Program State Evaluation
  • Microsoft Initiative in Iowa
  • Moodle: Open Source Management System Exploration
  • Teaching and Assessment of Problem-solving Transfer in High School Mathematics
  • Research Institute on Progress Monitoring: Mathematics
  • Seamless Transitions into and through Science Teacher Education
  • Spanish K-3 Two-way Immersion Longitudinal Study
  • Teacher Education goes into Virtual Schooling (TEGIVS)
  • Turkish Student Teacher Internship Project

 

bullet Deparment Recognition and Points of Pride

  • Five faculty members are elected members of Iowa Academy of Education
  • Faculty member named University Professor
  • Faculty member achieving recognition as Fellow in American Psychological Association
  • Faculty member awarded Dean’s Research Recognition Award (2008)
  • Faculty member awarded ISU Award for Outstanding Achievement in Teaching (2008)
  • Faculty member recognized as one of 150 Visionaries in Iowa State University history (2007)
  • Faculty member recognized for Leadership in Foreign Language Education (1996, 2001)
  • In the past 16 years, over 150 graduate students have served as mentors for department faculty helping  with educational technology

 

bullet Departmental Clubs/Activities for Undergraduate Students

  • Alpha Upsilon Alpha/International Reading Association
  • Best Buddies
  • Council for Exceptional Children
  • Education Club
  • Iowa State Education Association
  • Kappa Delta Pi
  • National Science Teachers Association
  • Preparing tomorrow's Teachers Learning Community
  • The Educational Computing Club (TECC)

 

bullet Employment Opportunities

  • Teaching (undergraduate)
    • Early childhood education
    • Elementary education
    • Middle school
    • Secondary education
    • Educational computing (minor)
    • Special education
  • School and other settings (graduate)
    • Curriculum design
    • Instructional technology
    • Literacy
    • Educational research
    • Educational policy making
    • Special education
    • Comparative studies
    • University and college faculty positions

    •  

Note: Updated on October 26, 2009