Caitlin Miller

M.Ed. in Literacy (online)

I decided to enroll in the M.Ed. in Literacy program at the University of Delaware after teaching for three years in the lower elementary grades. Since I work with children during the foundational years of development, I want to gain the credential of Reading Specialist and become a better teacher of reading in order to enhance my instruction in the classroom.

Since I am pursuing the M.Ed. while teaching fulltime, it is extremely helpful that the coursework is offered completely online—and that I can do it on my own schedule.

One thing I particularly enjoy about this program is how purposeful my graduate school projects are. In my Role of Literacy Across the Content Areas class with Dr. Bill Lewis, we chose a content-specific instructional unit that needed to be improved and used research-based instructional approaches to teaching reading and writing to create a unit plan. Now I have this plan ready to go for my social studies unit next year.

It’s helpful to be able to complete coursework that I can use to enhance my educational career. I find the coursework in this program to be beneficial and applicable to my own classroom, not busy work. I like how this program gives me options down the road for other career paths such as a reading specialist or literacy coach, but it also can be applied to my current position to enhance my instruction.

It’s not about the grade, but about what we learn. The professors, who are all supportive and willing to help, aren’t hung-up on lengthy assignments that are scored, but, rather, are interested in providing us the information we need and want to learn.

Pursuing a M.Ed. in UD’s School of Education is meeting my needs as a teacher both today and in the future. I am happy to be a part of the program and look forward to everything else that I will learn in this final year.