Coordinator
Anne Ediger
1011 West Building
(212) 772-4665
aediger@hunter.cuny.edu

The M.A. in TESOL Program is designed to prepare teachers who want to teach students for whom English is a second or foreign language.  The Hunter College program offers three options for a TESOL course of study leading to a master’s degree in TESOL:

Program 1 for those interested in teaching ESL PreK-12 --for students without prior teacher certification, 30 – 44 credits
Program 2 for those interested in teaching PreK-12 ESL--for students already certified in another subject, 25 – 39 credits
Program 3 for those interested in teaching Adult ESL, 30 – 40 credits

The first two programs of study (Programs 1 and 2) lead to New York State TESOL K – 12 certification.  Unlike Programs 1 and 2, Program 3 (the Adult Track) does not lead to New York State certification; there is no certification for ESL teachers of adults. These tracks are not interchangeable, and students must specify one of them when they apply to the program. The M. A. TESOL Program is nationally recognized by the national TESOL association.

The M. A. Program in TESOL is interdisciplinary, including courses on a wide range of topics in language and teaching that provide students with a theoretical and practical background in linguistics, pedagogical grammar, literacy, and second language acquisition, as well as psychological, sociological and cultural aspects of learning.  These courses adopt an approach that infuses theory into classroom teaching.  Our courses in methods, curriculum and materials development, and assessment bring together how language and teaching can be integrated to inform instruction. Expertise in teaching English to speakers of other languages is acquired through studying specialized methods and techniques that differ from those used by teachers who prepare to teach English Language Arts to native speakers of English.

The Hunter College program is committed to public urban education and field placements reflecting the ethnic and cultural richness and diversity of New York City. As part of program requirements, teachers must complete both pre-student teaching fieldwork and a student teaching/practicum culminating experience at the level(s) at which they intend to teach.  In all three programs, connections to the ESL classroom are emphasized and teacher candidates are exposed to extensive field experience and practice.  Students should be prepared to spend considerable amounts of time observing and participating in educational settings, in addition to attending classes at Hunter.

Our TESOL Program offers students the option of taking courses during the academic year, spanning the Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer semesters. Most of our courses are 4-credit courses, which greatly simplifies and accelerates completion of the program.  The program coordinator and program faculty are available to advise on the best sequence of courses to maximize options for completing program requirements.  For the culminating requirement, students have a choice of either writing a master’s essay for four credits or taking a three-hour comprehensive examination, which carries no credit and is graded on a pass/fail basis.  Those who write a master’s essay are exempt from taking the comprehensive examination.

PREK-12 INTERNSHIP CERTIFICATE

One of the special features of our program is the opportunity for teacher candidates who qualify and want to teach before they have completed all of the requirements for certification, to teach under an Internship Certificate.  The Internship Certificate permits a teacher candidate to begin teaching while completing the master’s degree program, so long as they meet the following criteria:

• Passing scores on the New York State examinations the LAST and ATS-W
• An approved program completion plan that shows graduation will occur within no more than one year plus two summers.
• Enrollment in student practicum courses during the entire Internship period.
• A GPA of at least 3.2.