Welcome Message from Dr. Fredric Jacobs, Curriculum and Instruction Director

Welcome to the Curriculum and Instruction program in the School of Education, Teaching, and Health (SETH) at American University. 

The field of curriculum and instruction is designed to support those interested in the field of education, to construct curricular practices which provide equitable educational opportunities for all learners while considering relationships among the individual, the context of their lives, and knowledge systems within which they participate as learners. In so doing, we aim to foster our students’ abilities to create classroom crossroads where worlds can come together and open up new environments for learning.

The SETH faculty in designing this program, looked to create a program that would allow students to find new ways of thinking about curriculum and instructional issues in educational settings and beyond. One difference lies in our emphasis on the importance of understanding the relationship between theory and practice. Students in the C and I programs are given multiple opportunities to build a theoretical toolkit for teaching and learning that includes broad perspectives on how schools function and student learn. Our goal for the program is to create space for developing a deeper understanding of what it means to support diverse learners. 

Our theorized practices in the C and I programs are grounded in a commitment to social justice and equity.

At present we are offering a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and a Graduate Certificate in Curriculum and Instruction.

I look forward to meeting you.

Sincerely,
Dr. Fredric Jacobs
Director of Curriculum and Instruction