POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT OF INSTRUCTION

AND TEACHER EDUCATION

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA

FACULTY

Dr. Megan Burton

Dr. Nathan Carnes

Dr. Amy Donnelly

Dr. Christine Ebert

Dr. Tambra Jackson

Dr. Therese Kuhs

Dr. Tasha Laman

Dr. Heidi Mills

Dr. Stephen Thompson

Dr. Kenneth Vogler

Elementary Education Program 777-4265

Please note:

Policies are subject to change at anytime. Please check with your advisor.

July, 2007

The PhD degree in elementary education provides advanced study of current educational theory, research, and practice for educational professionals who wish to enter leadership positions in higher education, schools, educational agencies, and related fields. The PhD program includes courses in (1) specialized preparation in elementary education (2) foundations of education (3) cognate field (4) elective studies, and (5) dissertation preparation. A minimum of 78 hours beyond the baccalaureate degree is required. The last 30 hours in the program must be completed no more than 8 years prior to graduation.

2. to understand trends and evolutionary forces at work in the development of the public school curriculum by content area and grade level historically, currently, and in the foreseeable future;

3. to understand alternate philosophies important to education historically, at present, and for its immediate future;

6. to develop a knowledge of policies and procedures within public schools and other

educational agencies and institutions at the national, state (South Carolina), and local levels.

7. to develop leadership qualities and acquire skills in designing, implementing and evaluating educational programs for diverse populations;

8. to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions of a professional educator as leader.

Preliminary to any admission consideration, the applicant must satisfy all admission requirements of the Graduate School and complete a Department of Instruction and Teacher Education application supplement.

Program faculty has established admission criteria to evaluate each applicant’s file. These criteria are used to determine admission eligibility according to satisfactory performance or appropriate evidence on each of the following:

1. Evidence of a satisfactory score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Miller Analogies Test (MAT). A GRE score of 1000 (verbal and quantitative) or a MAT score of 408 is generally considered satisfactory. Applicants for whom English is a second language must also submit test scores on the TOEFL for admission consideration. A score of 570 on the TOEFL is generally considered satisfactory.

2. Grade point ratios for undergraduate and graduate work completed. A “B” average

3. Evidence of at least three years of teaching experience in an elementary or middle school.

4. A minimum of two positive letters of recommendation, one from a professor and one from a professional colleague.

5. A comprehensive letter of intent expressing the applicant’s professional goals and aspirations, and specific interest in advanced study in Elementary Education.

Using the specific admission criteria outlined above, the program admissions coordinator compiles a composite applicant profile for review and discussion by the elementary education graduate faculty. Since there are limited openings, the faculty carefully reviews each applicant’s total profile including the interview and recommends the most qualified applicants for admission.

The program in elementary education admits applicants to the PhD program twice each academic year. To be considered for admission to the spring semester, the applicant must ensure that his or her file is complete and submitted by October 1^st. To be considered for admission to the summer or fall semester, the applicant must ensure that his or her file is complete and submitted by February 15^th. No action will be taken on incomplete files. Applicants wishing to check on the status of their files should contact the Office of Student Affairs in Wardlaw 113 of the College of Education at 803-777-6732.

The student’s program advisory committee will evaluate previous coursework and experiences and recommend appropriate courses to insure that at the completion of the program the student can demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions typically developed in the following coursework:

At least one recent pedagogy course in three of the core subject areas (mathematics, science, language arts, social studies). Two courses must be at the 800 level (EDEL 840, 858, 860, or 870).

3. Cognate: A minimum of 9 credits must be in one area outside the Department of Instruction and Teacher Education.

4. Dissertation hours: A minimum of 12 semester hours of dissertation credit (EDTE 899) is required. 3 hours may be in a dissertation proposal course.

5. Electives: A minimum of 9 semester credit hours in advanced graduate work, typically at the 700 level or above. Professional Development courses, even those associated with graduate credit, are generally not included in the PhD program of study.

Credit earned in one of the five areas described above may not be applied to any other area. The program must include 9 hours of post-masters coursework at the 700-800 level taken in the College of Education, but outside the Department of Instruction and Teacher Education. These hours may be taken in areas 2, 3, or 5.

In order to receive the PhD degree, the candidate must earn a grade point average of 3.0 or better on all courses in the student’s approved program of study.

Coursework from other institutions with a grade below “B” cannot be transferred.

The last 30 hours listed on the program of study must be completed within eight years. Students who do not take coursework over two consecutive years will have their academic status reviewed by the elementary faculty.

Outdated courses at USC may be revalidated through examination with the approval of the course instructor, the student’s doctoral committee, the Graduate Director of the College of Education, and the Dean of the Graduate School.

A written program of study is to be submitted within the first year after a student has been recommended as a PhD degree candidate. It must be approved and signed by all Program Advisory Committee members, the Graduate Director, and the Dean of the Graduate School. The program must include all courses to be completed as part of the doctoral study.

The applicant must have a reading knowledge of one foreign language or an approved alternative selected from the Department of Instruction and Teacher Education Language/Research Tool Options. SLIS courses taken for the language requirement may also be used as a cognate.

Option A. Demonstrate competency in a foreign language or in an alternative language for the visually or hearing impaired by completion of one of the following courses with a grade of “B” or better:

Foreign Language 315 or satisfactory performance on an examination administered by the Foreign Language Department.

Option B. Demonstrate competency in a computer language with potential for research applications by the completion of EDIT 703, Advanced Methods in Integrated Media, or EDRM 718, Research and the Statistical Packages with a grade of “B” or better.

Option C. Demonstrate competency in a computer-related area of study outside the College of Education by completion of one of the following with a grade of “B” or better (please check the Graduate Bulletin for prerequisites):

Residence Requirement The granting of a doctoral degree by the University of South Carolina presupposes a minimum of three full years of graduate study (or equivalent) and a minimum of 30 graduate hours of study after admission to the doctoral program. The doctoral residency requirement may be satisfied only after admission to a doctoral degree program and must be fulfilled by enrollment in at least 18 graduate credit hours within a span of three consecutive semesters (excluding summers). Enrollment in a summer term is not required to maintain continuity, but credits earned during summer terms will count towards residency.

The regulations governing doctoral programs define four committees which serve specific roles in the supervision and examination of a doctoral candidate. Descriptions from the Doctoral Committee Appointment Request forms are:

1. Program Advisory Committee - “...a committee of four or more members, including the major professor and one, qualified member from outside the candidate’s major department...”

2. Oral Comprehensive Examination Committee - “...consists of not fewer than four members, at least one of whom must be from outside the candidate’s major department...”

3. Dissertation Committee – “...a committee of three or more professors, 2 of whom must be in the candidate’s field...”

4. Dissertation Oral Examination Committee - “...consists of no fewer than four members, at least one of whom must be from outside the candidate’s major department...”

The qualifying examination is a 6 hour written examination to determine the applicant’s potential for the PhD in Elementary Education. The examination is prepared by the graduate faculty in elementary education and is administered on specific dates during the academic year. The student should arrange to take the qualifying examination soon following the admission to graduate study for the PhD degree. Students have two opportunities to complete the examination successfully.

The Elementary Education Committee shall provide three readers for each exam and grade the examination PASS, PASS WITH HONORS or FAIL. If the evaluation of the written exam is FAIL the candidate may request one additional opportunity at the regularly scheduled time. The candidate must receive a grade of PASS or PASS WITH HONORS on each of the parts of the Elementary Education Qualifying Exam in order to PASS. After the successful completion of these steps, the candidate is recommended by the Graduate Director for doctoral candidacy. Successful completion of the examination and admission to candidacy enables the student to form a doctoral committee with the approval of the Graduate Director and Dean of the Graduate School.

1. Responsibility for preparation. The student’s doctoral committee shall prepare the exam. The committee chairman shall be responsible for coordinating the preparation of the examination. Doctoral candidates will be required to take the comprehensive examination on a computer.

a. not before the semester in which the student is completing all course work required for the PhD degree.

b. a “B” average on all of the coursework completed on the doctoral level at the University of South Carolina.

4. Scope of the examination: The doctoral committee shall determine the scope of the examination. It is recommended, however, that the student’s competence be tested in 1) elementary education, 2) the broad field of education, and 3) research.

b. Scorers: The student’s doctoral committee shall serve as scorers for the comprehensive examination.

c. Criteria for passing the examination: A student shall have passed the examination when scorers assign a grade of pass or higher.

d. Retaking the examination: A student who fails the examination the first time may take it a second time at the discretion of the Graduate Director. The chair of the doctoral committee will determine the appropriate time for retaking the exam.

e. A student who fails the examination a second time shall be disqualified from pursuing the PhD in the College of Education.

f. Additional courses can be added to the student’s program if a majority of the examining committee members see a need for such coursework to remedy weaknesses.

1. Responsibility for preparation: The student’s doctoral committee shall conduct the oral comprehensive examination.

b. The completion of coursework originally prescribed by the student’s doctoral committee (the candidate may be currently enrolled in the last semester of that work). This examination should be administered after the student has passed the written comprehensive examination.

c. At least a “B” average on all of the course work completed on the doctoral level at the University of South Carolina.

4. Scope of the examination: The purpose of this examination is to determine how well the student has achieved in the proposed coursework thus far and whether additional courses are to be prescribed for the student to remedy any deficiencies.

b. Scorers: The examination committee composed of the members of the student’s doctoral committee shall grade the examination. Additional members shall be appointed when needed to assure expertise in the subject areas covered by the student’s courses.

c. Criteria for passing the examination: A majority of the examiners must pass the student by secret ballot after discussion.

e. Retaking the examination: A student who fails the examination the first time may take it a second time. The student will retake the examination at the discretion of the chairperson of her/his doctoral committee. Students who do not pass on the second trial, are disqualified from pursuing the PhD degree in the College of Education.

f. Final recommendation for student’s curriculum: If the student passes the examination, the examination shall determine the additional courses – if any, the student shall be required to take for the PhD and submit a program adjustment to the Graduate Director representing final recommendations for the student’s curriculum. Additional courses can be added to the student’s program if a majority of the examining committee members are in favor of the additional coursework. The termination of the doctoral oral examination shall represent the final opportunity for the faculty to add to the student’s course requirements.

a. Each candidate must defend successfully the dissertation proposal before the dissertation committee.

b. When approved unanimously by the committee, the proposal is signed and a copy is placed in the records of the student’s program area.

a. Each candidate must undertake original research and prepare a dissertation based on it.

b. The research is conducted under the supervision of the student’s dissertation committee and the dissertation must be approved by both the committee and the Dean of the Graduate School.

a. Candidates may not defend a dissertation until the doctoral comprehensive examination has been successfully completed.

b. Each candidate must defend successfully the dissertation before an approved examining committee at least thirty days prior to the date of graduation.

c. The examination will be open to the faculty and guests. Invited guests shall not vote or comment on the student’s performance.

d. The examination is restricted to a defense of the written draft of the dissertation as accepted by the student’s dissertation committee.

e. Scoring shall be by secret ballot after discussion. A majority of the committee must vote a grade of PASS for successful completion of the examination.

f. A second examination may be held for candidates who do not receive a majority grade of PASS. Students failing the second examination are disqualified from further study toward the doctoral degree in the College of Education.

a. A minimum of 12 semester hours of dissertation preparation credit is required for the completion of a dissertation. Three hours may be in a dissertation proposal course.

b. A candidate must register for dissertation credit in the semester in which the degree is conferred.

a. All credits and all examinations applicable to the doctoral program must be completed within an eight-year period.

b. The dissertation must be completed and defended within five years after the candidate has passed successfully the Doctoral Comprehensive Examination.