Starting in the fall, Indiana University math and science majors will be able to tack a year on to their schooling and come away with a master’s degree in education. A partnership between IU’s School of Education and its College of Arts and Sciences makes the degree possible, though Education School Dean Gerardo Gonzalez admits it may be tough to woo some students away from lucrative careers in the applied sciences.
“The pay scales that are available in traditional education al systems don’t always compare to business or science careers,” Gonzalez said. “Now the benefit, of course, is that at a time of recession like we’re experiencing now, the jobs are more secure.”
Gonzalez saidhe knows he’ll have to appeal to students’ hearts as much as their bankbooks, in order to help fill thousands of teaching jobs expected to come open during the next decade as Baby Boomers retire.
“There is a critical shortage of math and science teachers throughout the country and here in Indiana especially,” he said. “So this is another attempt to get more students who have an interest in those areas to go into teaching.”
IU’s program mirrors those in place at schools like Michigan State University and the University of Virginia. Students will focus on their majors for the first three years of school, begin to take education classes during their senior year and then focus on pedagogy during a year of post-graduate study.
