Based upon a background of positive psychology (Seligman), and strengths psychology (Clifton) strength-based leadership emphasizes the development of employee strengths, rather than the remediation of individual weaknesses as a way of doing business. Using the framework of strength-based leadership, students will learn how to apply leadership theory in a way which promotes a culture of commitment, rather than simply compliance. Students will study their own strengths and how to build an educational community around the strengths of each employee to move their schools to greater academic achievement. Florida Leadership Standards will be addressed via a crosswalk of the strength-based approach to traditional leadership practice.
- Teacher: Angie Franklin
Ethical School Leadership is leadership based on ethical standards of behavior. Since thoughts lead to action, personal beliefs will be examined as to how a belief may affect leadership. Leadership styles and behaviors are examined and students take and examine the results of validated assessments of their own leadership styles. Students will develop a professional code of ethics and values, and create and model a set of values for a school. The activities of this course are designed around the indicators of leadership standard: “High Performing Leaders act with integrity, fairness, and honesty in an ethical manner.”
- Teacher: Ranna Raval
This course is designed to provide students with the necessary technical skills required for the classroom teacher of the twenty-first century. The course will orient students to contemporary frameworks for technology education and introduce students to technology based tools and media that support instruction, extend communication outside the classroom, enhance classroom management, and perform administrative routines more effectively.
- Teacher: Monica Johnson
Students will study generic and their institution’s test, attendance, and graduation data to discuss and describe possible paths to improvement. This course is designed to move leaders from “I think” solutions to “the data suggest” solutions. Students will practice “real world” decision-making to meet the standard: “High Performing Leaders plan effectively, use critical thinking and problem solving techniques, and collect and analyze data for continuous school improvement.” Students will personalize their study to meet the needs of their charter, public and traditional private Montessori schools.
- Teacher: Julie Small
In this course, students will explore and analyze various organizational, management, and instructional strategies that work best for educating culturally diverse students. While actively experiencing responsive education within a learning community, students will reflect on diverse cultural experiences to form a personal understanding as a basis to integrate multicultural school/classroom experiences to improve the academic success of all students by building on student personal strengths. The theory of “Multiple Intelligences” and current research available in educational neuroscience will be the basis for developing a plan for meeting student needs to enhance student cognitive, social, and emotional success through a nurturing school/classroom environment.
- Teacher: Nicole Evans
In this course, students will explore brain research to examine developments in the field of neuroscience, and how these new understandings about the brain and learning can influence classroom practices. Class participants will actively construct their own learning making it personally relevant to their various teaching settings. Topics to be explored include how the brain processes, stores, and retrieves information, art infused across the content areas, processes involved in higher order thinking and learning, transfer of learning, and critical thinking.
- Teacher: Germaine DiJohn
An introduction to children’s literature, values of literature, genres of children’s literature, the qualities of classic and current children’s literature, and methods to integrate literature into the preschool and elementary Montessori classroom. The Montessori view of fiction, fantasy, and realistic literature and children will be explored.
- Teacher: Jenny McCord
This is an introduction to the historical, cultural, and philosophical foundations of modern education, public, charter, and private, including Montessori education. Students will reflect upon and critique their own educational experiences and articulate their own beliefs and values about teaching, learning, and schooling. Students will also examine current and historical roles, expectations, stereotypes, and characterizations that define teaching, especially Montessori teaching, as a profession.
- Teacher: Debbie Couldrey
Explore the origin and art of oral storytelling. Provide a variety of oral storytelling techniques, styles and exercises to enhance the understanding and delivery of telling stories. Storytelling literature and the history of storytelling will be surveyed. Assist in the integration and application of storytelling to the learning environment in the classroom. The practice of telling stories orally to children will receive the major emphasis.
- Teacher: Heather White
A survey of information regarding children with special needs including possible causes and characteristics of exceptionalities, educational intervention, available resources, referral processes, and the advocacy role and legislative issues. Regularly scheduled observations of children are required. This course considers children with special needs from a critical perspective, drawing on element of disciplines such as disability studies and social justice. We will approach special needs and disability as an interaction between individual factors (such as the nature and severity of impairment, personal strengths and abilities), and structural factors (such as attitudes of others, abling or disabling environments).
- Teacher: Lindsey Pollock
- Teacher: Heather White
This course will present methods of teaching the arts (music, dance, drama, visual art, and
storytelling) in the preschool and elementary grades, as subjects in their own right, and integrated
with other curricular areas.
- Teacher: Elena Rosemond
This required core orientation for new doctoral students is a prerequisite that must be taken before or concurrently with other first-term courses. This course offers basic information on doctoral studies at Sarasota University, including an overview of the doctoral program and each doctoral-level course; guidelines on research expectations and academic honesty; APA style; utilizing technology and distance learning opportunities; and the dissertation process. Time will be devoted to review essential Montessori history, philosophy, and practice, and the course will also cover practical topics like studying, personal goal-setting, and communication with other students and mentors. Finally, issues of university life, including school policies on civil rights, discrimination, harassment, drugs and alcohol, and behavioral expectations of everyone in the Sarasota University community, will be addressed.
- Teacher: Ambar Saleh-Cipolloni
This course introduces the role of technology in the development of the Montessori curriculum as well as the role of technology in the implementation of the Montessori curriculum in the 20th century. The course is designed for students who have earned Montessori credentials and are working toward their Doctoral degree. Emphasis is on the changing role of technology in the Montessori classroom. We will analyze Montessori’s writings on technology and consider what current researchers suggest regarding technology and how educators are implementing technology in their schools. We will also analyze the life’s work of Walt Disney, to evaluate how he utilized technology in new and diverse ways out of his love for children.
- Teacher: Krystal Perkins
This synthesis of adult learning theories, Montessori theory, and teaching skills aims to provide students with applicable strategies to improve presentational skills and work more effectively with adults in a Montessori context. Students will practice and strengthen their lecturing and presentation skills while analyzing and evaluating improvements in Montessori teacher education centers.
- Teacher: Ambar Saleh-Cipolloni
Students are required to be registered for at least one dissertation course during each term during which they are preparing either the dissertation proposal or the final dissertation for committee presentation. This requirement remains in effect until the required 12 credits have been amassed and the dissertation is complete.
In this course, students will defend their dissertation proposal (Chapters 1-3) and complete the University’s IRB approval process prior to beginning data collection and analysis.
- Teacher: Savannah Thomas
Students are required to be registered for at least one dissertation course during each term during which they are preparing either the dissertation proposal or the final dissertation for committee presentation. This requirement remains in effect until the required 12 credits have been amassed and the dissertation is complete.
- Teacher: Heather Gerker
This course explores a foundational overview of peace psychology principles focusing on the nature, cause, intervention, and prevention of the determinants of peace. Students will analyze how peace psychology can be applied to a variety of interpersonal settings, and to promote conflict resolution and create non-violent social environments.
- Teacher: Elena Rosemond
This foundational course introduces and develops a frame of assumptions for strengths-based philosophy, as well as creates a framework for dealing with students from a strengths perspective. Originating from the fields of positive psychology, this course will familiarize students with elements of Seligman’s theory of Positive Psychology, Clifton’s Strengths perspectives, and Purkey’s Invitational Theory. Students will develop a new paradigm that will provide a differentiated lens to observe and evaluate students. The underlying assumption being that all students have talents and potential strengths that can provide a mechanism for performance excellence. Leaders are charged with assisting students in the discovery, development, and application of these strengths
- Teacher: Kara Siegel