The Master of Arts in Teaching French
and
Maine State Summer Institute for Teachers of French
Background and Purpose
There is a critical need statewide for more and more qualified teachers of Modern Languages. As a first response, the M.A.T. in French at the University of Maine has been redesigned in a collaborative effort involving the campuses of the University of Maine System and Colby, Bates, and Bowdoin Colleges to better meet the needs of Maine’s K-12 teachers of French. The revised program is summer-institute based with an intensive, immersion format. Courses will also be offered state-wide through technology during the academic year.
The program is intended for master’s candidates who are currently teaching at the K-12 level and who hold conditional, transitional, provisional, professional, or targeted needs certificates in French. This degree is designed to provide both the advanced level of mastery in language and culture and the pedagogical knowledge they need for full certification from the Maine State Department of Education. It is congruent with the new guidelines for Modern and Classical Language Teacher Endorsement.
Additional requirements include a course in advanced French grammar or one in French stylistics and a minimum of 12 hours of 500-level courses in French linguistics, film, literature, and contemporary society.The culminating project for the M.A.T. in French is the submission of a professional teaching portfolio illustrating the candidate’s familiarity with Maine’s teaching standards and his/her readiness to teach a second language in the K-12 classroom. Candidates seeking certification in the state of Maine must complete a course on teaching the exceptional student. In-service teachers who are already certified to teach French may opt to take additional courses in French language and culture or they may resume the study of a second foreign language at the intermediate level or higher in lieu of courses leading to certification.
Teachers who are already fully certified in language education and who want to pursue the MAT will take additional courses in French language and culture (or they may opt to study a second foreign language at the intermediate level or higher) in lieu of the courses leading to certification.
Degree Requirements
4 Courses in film, literature, linguistics, language and/or cultural history at the 500 level. (Taught in French, 12 cr.)
1 Course in contemporary society & culture. It is highly recommended that this course be taken in a country where French is a national or official language. It is intended to introduce the teacher to current political structures, social institutions and issues, business practices, educational systems, etc. An alternative in-residence immersion course will be offered in Maine for those who are unable to participate in such courses abroad. (Taught in French, 3 cr.)
1 Course in linguistics to familiarize the teacher with how language is structured, how it functions and carries meaning. A course in phonetics is also highly recommended to ensure the mastery of pronunciation and phonology. (Taught in French, 3 cr.)
1 Course in advanced French grammar to improve grammatical accuracy and develop authentic language use. (Taught in French, 3 cr.)
1 Course in designing the K-12 language curriculum. (3 cr.)
1 Course in teaching the exceptional student is required for certification. (3 cr.)
1 Course in foreign language teaching methods which reinforces principles and best practices in pedagogical strategies, (including the use of technology in the classroom), curriculum development, and assessment with an emphasis on the Maine Learning Results in Modern and Classical Languages and National Standards. (3 cr.)
Graduate portfolio. The culminating project for this degree is a professional teaching portfolio illustrating the candidate’s familiarity with Maine’s ten teaching standards and readiness to teach a second language in the K-12 classroom.
Course Delivery Mode
Courses in French and education are offered in the Maine State Summer Institute for Teachers of French and via distance education during the academic year. It will be possible to complete the 30 required credits in two summers (12 credits x 2) and one academic year (6 credits). Credits from other courses offered at participating institutions may, upon approval by the Graduate Coordinator at UM, be counted toward the M.A.T.
Summer 2008
Registration for all courses listed below must be completed at the University of Maine. All registrations for graduate-level courses (numbered 500) must be processed through the Graduate School, University of Maine. Teachers who have been admitted to a graduate program must register for courses (be they 400 or 500) at the Graduate School, University of Maine
All on-campus courses in summer 2008 (the Maine Sate Summer
Institute for Teachers of French) will be delivered on the Gorham Campus of the University of Southern Maine
FRE 598 Quebec Institute: Samuel de Champlain: Fondateur de la ville de Québec et explorateur de la Nouvelle-France (Prof. Raymond Pelletier, UM) June 22 – July 2 (in Québec)
FRE 598 – Shortcuts to French Culture (Prof. Charlotte Daniels, Bowdoin) June 23-July 3 (USM Gorham Campus)
FRE 598 - Stylistics (Prof. Nancy Erickson, USM) June2-August 2 (Asynchronous)
MLC 466/598 - The Teaching of Modern Languages (Prof. Jane Smith, UM) July 7-11, 9am-4pm (USM Gorham Campus)
MLC 467/598 - Literature in the K-12 Language Curriculum (TBA), July 14-18, 9am-4pm (USM Gorham Campus)
Fall 2008 - TBA
Admission
Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree, have successfully completed 24 credit hours (or equivalent) in French and submit GRE scores. Application forms are available from the Graduate School at 207-581-3219 or online.
The Advisory Council
Nancy Erickson, Ph.D., University of Southern Maine
Charlotte Daniels, Ph.D., Bowdoin College
Teresa Farrar, M.A.T., Foxcroft Academy
Katharine Harrington, Ph.D., Consortium Universities of Maine at Fort Kent, Presque Isle and Machias
Adrianna Paliyenko, Ph.D, Colby College
Raymond Pelletier, Ph.D, University of Maine, Program Coordinator
Anne Pooler, Ed.D., University of Maine
Kirk Read, Ph.D., Bates College
Jane Smith, Ph.D., University of Maine, Program Coordinator
