Master of Arts in Teaching of Spanish

This program is for teachers who already have state certification and are teaching in local K-12 classrooms. This MAT addresses several important areas, including the following:

  1. High school Spanish teachers teach both literature and language. Thus, they often seek advanced knowledge in both fields. The proposed MAT requires teachers to take courses in both areas.
  2. The MAT also incorporates advanced coursework in education – carefully selected courses in consultation with College of Education faculty. These courses include topics that are crucial to K-12 teachers such as teaching literacy skills, educational psychology, and curricular development
  3. Public school teachers work full time and cannot arrive to campus before 4:30 pm. Our Department has made the commitment to regularly teach courses within the MAT after 4:30 pm or, when possible, in the summer.

Questions? Contact the Teacher Education Coordinator.

Program Description Heading link

Admission

Students who have an undergraduate degree and who hold current Type 03, Type 09, or Type 10 Illinois certification are eligible to apply. Students must be able to speak, comprehend, read, and write Spanish at an advanced level (minimally an AFTFL level Advanced Low). Students must complete 12 semester hours of graduate work with grades of A or B in order to continue in the program.

Graduation requirements

A total of nine (9) courses, or 36 hours, are required for the MAT degree. There are four (4) required core courses. The remaining five (5) courses are electives, which must be chosen according to certain requirements. The minimum number of Spanish courses is five (5). Of the total number of courses, three (3) must be completed at the 500-level and chosen in consultation with the academic advisor. Comprehensive Examination required. No more than eight (8) semester hours of credit (2 courses) will be accepted for transfer, and these credits must comply with University regulations and be approved by the program.

General Curriculum Heading link

The following five (5) Core Courses are required:

  • SPAN 440, Theory and Methods in Teaching Heritage Speakers
  • SPAN 500, Intensive Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics
  • SPAN 501, Introduction to Literary Analysis and Criticism for Teachers of Spanish
  • SPAN 556, Second Language Learning
  • CI 413 (Foundations of Literacy Instruction, K-8)
    or
    CI 504 (Secondary Literacy)

Students choose four (4) elective courses according to these requirements:

  • A total of two (2) elective courses must be completed in the Spanish department.
  • At least one (1) elective course must be in education
  • At least one (1) elective course must be in linguistics, language policy, and teaching.
  • Electives must be chosen from the list of approved courses below.

Heritage language concentration Heading link

Students who wish to complete the concentration in Teaching Spanish as a Heritage Language must complete the following:

  • SPAN 500, Intensive Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics
  • SPAN 501, Introduction to Literary Analysis and Criticism for Teachers of Spanish
  • SPAN 556, Second Language Learning
  • CI 413 (Foundations of Literacy Instruction, K-8)
    or
    CI 504 (Secondary Literacy)
  • LALS 501 (Latinos and Latin America in Transnational Context)
    or
    LALS 502 (Topics in Latin American and Latino Studies)
    or
    SPAN 406 (Spanish Sociolinguistics)
  • 1 education elective
  • 2 additional electives

Electives must be chosen from the list of approved courses below.

List of approved MAT electives Heading link

Courses marked with an asterisk (*) are required.

  • SPAN 411. Topics in Medieval and Early Modern Spanish Literature and Culture.
  • SPAN 414. Topics in Cervantes’ Don Quijote.
  • SPAN 421. Topics in 18th and 19th Century Spanish Literature and Culture.
  • SPAN 422. Topics in 20th and 21st Century Spanish Literature and Culture.
  • SPAN 430. Topics in Colonial History, Literature and Culture.
  • SPAN 431. Topics in Latin American Letters from the Revolutionary Era to Independence.
  • SPAN 434. Topics in Latin American Letters from Modernismo to the Early 1970’s.
  • SPAN 435. Topics in Contemporary Urban Latin American and Latino Culture, Literature and the Arts.
  • SPAN 494. Special Topics.
  • SPAN 400. History of the Spanish Language.
  • SPAN 406. Spanish Sociolinguistics.
  • SPAN 408. Hispanic Dialectology.
  • SPAN 409. Semantics and Pragmatics in Spanish
  • SPAN 427. Studies in Language Policy and Cultural Identity.
  • SPAN 440. Theory and Methods in Teaching Heritage Speakers.
  • SPAN 487. Computer Assisted Language Learning.
  • LALS 501. Latinos and Latin America in Transnational Context
  • LALS 502. Topics in Latin American and Latino Studies
  • CI 464. Bilingualism and Literacy in a Second Language
  • CI 482. Assessment and Instruction: A Multilingual/Multicultural Perspective
  • CI 540. Linguistics for Teachers
  • EPSY 446. Characteristics of Early Adolescence*
  • ED 430. Curriculum and Teaching*

* ED 430 and EPSY 446 are 3 credit courses. Students taking these courses will need to take additional hours to fulfill the 36 hours required for the degree.

Apply now!

Application Information Heading link

Fill out completely and submit:

  1. Online application and
  2. Pay the application fee.

All application materials, must be submitted online, by: May 15