Welcome to the School of Education


We offer degrees leading to careers in teaching from kindergarten through high school, as well as several research-based Master's programs. We are nationally accredited, and offer exciting opportunities to learn while observing and working in schools in the Tulsa area.

We are a small but vibrant school housed in the Henry Kendall College of Arts and Sciences, allowing us to participate in the rich environment of the liberal arts and sciences. Our students engage in serious study of the theory and practice of education, see teaching as both art and science.

In our Teacher Education Program, we seek to develop graduates that, as professional educators:

  • are experts in their subject areas;
  • know how to teach; and
  • act as public intellectuals.

By being experts in their subject areas, we mean that our graduates master the central concepts of their chosen major and minor, as well as develop the ability to think critically and speak and write clearly in the appropriate genres for their field of study. In addition, they have a foundation in the liberal arts and sciences that allows them to locate their subject area in historical, social, and philosophical context.

By knowing how to teach, we claim that our graduates master the art and skill of teaching through coursework and field-based experiences that integrate theory and practice. This includes general professional knowledge, general skills of teaching (setting up appropriate environments for learning, assessing student strengths and needs, planning for instruction for all students, implementing such plans, assessing student learning as a result of instruction, and reflecting critically on these activities), and specific skills of teaching their subject area.

By being public intellectuals, we intend that our graduates be driven by a reasoned, justified, and articulated philosophy of education and that they be critical and creative thinkers. They take seriously their role as citizens, servants, and leaders in our society, and behave ethically in all aspects of their lives. They also realize that they do not know everything they will need to know to be influential teachers and public intellectuals, and as a result have developed the skills and dispositions for lifelong learning. Most of all, as public intellectuals, they recognize and embrace this calling to create an impact beyond the classroom, one that filters into the broader community over the years.

Accreditation

The School of Education currently holds national accreditation through the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and state accreditation through the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation. We have Candidate Member status with the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC).