College of Education

The proposed new mission of the College of Education is to prepare highly effective, culturally competent educational professionals who are equipped to understand and assume leadership positions in a global society.

The College of Education addresses the constructs of globalization and internationalism found in the institutional mission statement through instruction, faculty and student research, study abroad, and public/community service which focus on improving the students’ background in the discipline, as well improving the quality of life for those citizens of the border region.

Instructional Opportunities

All TAMIU students must meet the foreign language requirement of six semester credit hours, as part of the institution’s graduation requirements. This foreign language requirement, along with all the other Core Curriculum requirements, must be met prior to being admitted to the College of Education, which has a secondary admission process.

College of Education provide opportunities for students to learn and view the world through different lenses in the following manner:

Coursework focused on preparing our first generation college graduates for educating all children and youth in the evolving global society they will enter.

For example, Communication Disorders students complete CSDO 4300 Multicultural/Multilingual Issues in Communication Disorders, which acquaints students with typical and atypical speech and language development of culturally and linguistically multicultural populations.

Elementary Education, Bilingual Education specialization students must demonstrate proficiency in academic Spanish prior to completing nine semester credit hours of methodology coursework.

A Global Faculty

Our students learn much about internationalism and global multicultural through our foreign faculty members, dual language faculty, and our visiting scholars.

*Our faculty hails from China, Korea, México, and Thailand. Through them, students understand that the world is larger than our local community, the border region, and the State of Texas. As most faculty speak two languages, exposure to more global languages is imperative for a changing international populace.

Mission-Related Faculty-Student Research

Many of the College’s faculty (i.e., clinical, tenure-track, or tenured) engage students in research endeavors, collaborating with them to present findings at conferences. Additionally, coursework provides opportunities for students’ to research related to the border region and beyond. Students acquire action research skills pertinent to issues in education. The past three yearly themes were: poverty, technology, and assessment.

International Focus through Study Abroad Opportunities

The College of Education has developed specific and unique study abroad experiences across four continents and countries including Argentina, Belgium, Belize,China,Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Laos, Malaysia, Netherlands, Peru, Scotland, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, and Uruguay.

Among specific study abroad programs available:

*Bilingual and Special Education programs provide a six-week study abroad experience in Madrid, Spain.

*Communication Disorders students participate in many opportunities, including visits to hospitals, clinics, and the like in Asia. Students learn about global and international systems regarding speech, language, and hearing policies and support systems that vary by country.

*Another opportunity for Communication Disorder students provides them with a chance to work in Belize with graduate students from a peer institution.

*Kinesiology students can take courses in Athens while touring the historical sites of the discipline’s origin in Greece.

* A new Elementary Education initiative will provide an opportunity to study global and international differences of schooling for young children in an initial study abroad to Italy, Finland, and China.

Public/Community Service

Much of the public/community service is geared towards impacting the border region. Many of our students are directly involved with improving the quality of life for these citizens.

Some examples follow:

*For Communication Disorders students unable to complete CSDO 4300 Multicultural/Multilingual Issues in Communication Disorders abroad, they complete their practicum hours in in the Communication Disorders Clinic, which services children who have speech, language, and/or hearing issues from the border region. Many of the clients are low income and bi-cultural (Spanish and English).

* In a community partnership based on a memorandum of understanding between the College of Education and the Mexican Consular General’s Office, students in the Bilingual Education specialization complete EDBE 4336: interacting, teaching/tutoring, and educating adult learners with English literacy while they obtain their equivalent elementary diploma. Students have supported 15 individuals who complete their America elementary diploma and are now working with 10-12 adult learners to complete their high school equivalent diploma.

*Undergraduate students (over 200 in 2014) participate each semester in Special Olympics. In fact, because of the voluntary service our students complete (over 50,000 service hours since 2010), Texas A&M International University was awarded the 2014 Outstanding Service Award for the State of Texas.

*Communication Disorders students who belong to National Student Speech Language Hearing Association and complete 20 hours of public/community service earned a violet stole to wear at graduation. Among service projects: gathering grocery bags full of food for the local food bank each Thanksgiving, volunteerism with the Regent Care Center, Children's Day Care, Sacred Heart Children's Home (an orphanage), and the Bethany House (a homeless shelter with children).

* Read 3 is a community partnership between H.E.B., a Texas-based grocery corporation and the College of Education. In the three years of our involvement with the program, our student volunteers accrued more than 700 hours helping 150 preschool children from low income backgrounds begin to appreciate and enjoy reading.

Faculty Development

College of Education faculty are very conscientious of the international and global aspects in all we do. Our unique faculty development opportunities to embed research naturally filter into their teaching and thus students’ learning.

*Last year, the University sponsored the annual conference of the Texas affiliate of the National Association of Multicultural Education. Students and faculty participated.

*For the last three years, faculty around the campus supported Fulbright Korean teachers in faculty members’ homes for two weeks. This experience provides a wonderful opportunity for our faculty to learn about a different culture and global issues pertinent to education and life in Korea.

*In 2002, the College established a scholarly referred journal publication and research outlet focused on educational research studies and projects in border educational regions. From its inception and humble beginnings as driven by a unique geographical location and cross cultural context, the Journal of Border Educational Research (JBER) (https://journals.tdl.org/jber/index.php/jber), reached a limited regional audience to a publication that currently rests in the Texas Digital Libraries online platform. JBER now reaches an international and global audience.

Related Links:

Other Select Texas A&M International University Academic certificates, degrees and programs that extend our University';s global and international mission include:

Certificate in International Leadership:
This is an academic certificate that includes three groups of 3-credit courses based on fostering understanding of the learning outcomes associated with International Leadership. Students must apply and meet criteria to earn the Certificate.
https://catalog.tamiu.edu/undergraduate-information/undergraduate-certificates/international-leadership-certificte/

Certificate in International Studies:
This Certification is intended for undergraduate students in various disciplines across TAMIU who are interested in pursuing careers in the Foreign Service, international institutions, non-governmental international organizations, and multinational corporations as well as those who recognize the importance of understanding international issues to virtually any career field.
https://catalog.tamiu.edu/undergraduate-information/undergraduate-certificates/international-studies-certificte/

Certificate in Latin American Studies:
This Certificate allows students to enhance their skills and expertise with a broad knowledge of this primary geographical region. Completion of the requirements is certified by the Binational Center for Research, Education, Leadership, and Public Service (BINC) and the Office of the Registrar.
https://catalog.tamiu.edu/undergraduate-information/undergraduate-certificates/latin-american-studies-certificte/

Minor in International Leadership:
This is an academic program providing a minor for undergraduate students. It consists of 18 Semester Credit Hours courses and experiences in leadership, including communication, foundations of leadership, teamwork, international politics and transnational trends in communication, among others.
http://catalog.tamiu.edu/undergraduate-information/arts-sciences/social-sciences/international-leadership-minor/

The International Student Mentors Program:
ISMP is a peer support activity program which helps with the assimilation process of new international students to TAMIU and South Texas.
https://www.tamiu.edu/international/ISMP.shtml

TAMIU Trailblazers Program:
The TAMIU Trailblazers program is a co-curricular leadership initiative that serves as a student's road map to success with co-curricular programs that compliment classroom learning. Activities are divided into five learning dimensions including The Global Perspective.
https://www.tamiu.edu/sole/tamiu-trailblazers20.shtml