Faculty of Education. School of Educational Partnership and Enterprise. Programme Handbook. For. Masters in Teaching and Learning

Transcription

1 Faculty of Education School of Educational Partnership and Enterprise Programme Handbook For Masters in Teaching and Learning Definitive Course Document: Stage Two Approval Date: December

2 The handbook is a guide to the programme you are studying. The formal regulations applying to the programme are the University of Cumbria Academic Regulations accessible at and the Programme Specification (see Appendix 2 of this document). In the event of any information contained in this handbook conflicting with that in the Academic Regulations then the latter should be taken as the definitive version. The information contained within this handbook may be subject to amendments and revisions. Please be informed that any revisions will supersede the information contained herein. Glossary Some commonly used acronyms are listed below: CAT FAB FASC FDL LISS MAB MTL PAT SAS Credit Accumulation and Transfer Faculty Assessment Board Faculty Academic Standards Committee Flexible Distributed Learning Learning, Information and Student Service Module Assessment Board Masters in Teaching and Learning Personal Academic Tutor Student Administration Service 2

3 University Of Cumbria Mission Statement Fully committed to inclusivity and accessibility, the University of Cumbria will reflect the Christian values and the creative traditions on which it was founded, and will promote an environment where diversity is celebrated and inventiveness flourishes with a mission: TO EXCEL in the design and delivery of a range of accessible lifelong learning opportunities through a network of University centres and campuses within Cumbria and North Lancashire. TO INSPIRE all of our students to achieve their potential by providing progressive teaching in an innovative and flexible learning environment which encourages independent thinking, tolerance and social responsibility. TO SUPPORT economic regeneration and the development of diverse and sustainable communities by playing a prominent role in assisting the growth of the Regional economy and enhancing its skills base. TO ENCOURAGE research, scholarship and knowledge transfer activities of excellence, much of which will help shape and support constructive social, cultural and economic change and development. 3

4 Contents 1 Introduction Welcome Course Team 5 2 About the Programme Title(s) of Award(s) Academic Regulations Programme Description Programme Rationale and Philosophy Programme Aims and Outcomes Collaborative Provision Structure of the Programme Attendance Evaluation of the Programme 11 3 Teaching and Learning Programme Teaching and Learning Strategy Learning, Information and Support Services (LISS) Personal Development Planning Key Skills and Skills Development 14 4 Assessment and Assessment Arrangements Programme Assessment Strategy Referencing and academic writing Confidentiality and Ethics Policy Assessment Word Limit Assessment Deadlines Extensions and Extenuating Circumstances Marking, Moderation and Feedback Academic Malpractice (including Plagiarism) 17 5 Student Support and Guidance Induction Communication Roles and Responsibilities Mapping MTL Content to the Professional Standards Student health and well-being Other Support Mechanisms Student Policies and Procedures 27 Appendix 1 Generic Information 4

5 Introduction 1.1 Welcome Welcome to the Masters in Teaching and Learning (MTL) provided within the North West MTL Consortium by the University of Cumbria. The Masters in Teaching and Learning programme provides a coherent, personalised and progressive framework for your professional learning and career development. The programme is defined by the Programme Specification and module descriptors which are available on the programme Blackboard site. 1.2 Programme Team Name Contact details Responsibility and area of academic interest To be confirmed 2. About the Programme 2.1 Title(s) of Award(s) Academic Awards Level Credit points Masters in Teaching and Learning Academic Regulations For more details about the Academic Regulations, please refer to Appendix 1 Sections 1 to Programme Description The Masters in Teaching and Learning (MTL) is designed to be a three year professional learning programme for teachers working in schools and other educational settings. It is delivered in partnership between schools, in the person of in-school coaches, and a university department, in the person of an academic tutor. 5

6 2.4 Programme Rationale and Philosophy The MTL programme provides you with a structured framework and formal coaching for your workplace learning. It also provides external input through the support of the tutor, the online engagement with other teachers, engagement with blended learning activities and online resources. The award of the MTL provides national recognition for the standard of your professional achievements and contribution. The MTL programme includes your in-school coach as a member of the teaching team and the combination of coach and tutor is a powerful mix of expertise that will guide, provoke, support and assess your professional development. A key philosophical stance of the MTL is that systematic enquiry, a form of practitioner research, is essential for the effective development of practice because policy, guidance and research findings need to be applied and evaluated in the local context. Practitioner research is a well developed, ethical and powerful approach to leadership and change in educational settings and by becoming an effective practitioner researcher you will become a change agent. Although the MTL is an individual programme of professional learning for you as a teacher it is integrated with your work and is run in partnership with your employer. You will need to negotiate the focus of your assignments within the programme in relation to your current role and to school priorities. All of the MTL modules enable you to choose your focus for the assignment within the broader scope of the module content. By seeking synergy between your role and purpose and the work involved in completing the programme the team believe you will be more motivated and more able to manage your time to achieve success. The MTL programme will help you to prioritise and find time for your own learning amid the pressures of work and your focus on the learning of children and young people. Your learners and colleagues will benefit from your development of practice and its impact across the school and wider networks. 6

7 2.5 Programme Aims The Masters in Teaching and Learning programme aims to provide a coherent, personalised and progressive framework for the professional learning and career development of teachers by integrating progression in the demonstration of relevant Professional Standards for Teachers with Masters Level requirements. The programme is focused on supporting teachers in developing their practice to enable all children and young people to reach their potential. It aims to build on teachers previous training and experience through a progressive three phase professional learning framework. Participants will develop and demonstrate professional standards and skills at Masters Level in critical reflection and systematic enquiry. It will enable them to select, critically engage with, evaluate and apply to their practice the research, literature and policy frameworks for pedagogical practice, curriculum development, collaborative working and leadership. Phase One The aim of Phase One is to build on the professional experience of participants and develop their Masters Level enquiry skills through practitioner research activity that investigates the impact of their practice on children and young people s outcomes. It aims to provide learning opportunities for participants with/without previous attainment at Masters Level to address their individual professional needs and develop their Masters Level skills of enquiry and facilitate critical engagement with the evidence base. Phase Two The aim of Phase Two is to broaden and embed participants professional practice with particular reference to the subject(s) and age phase they are teaching. It aims to develop critical thinking and questioning of existing practice, policy and sources of evidence. This Phase involves engagement with four interrelated areas of content: teaching, learning and assessment; subject knowledge for teaching and curriculum development; how children and young people develop; leadership, management and working with others. This Phase particularly aims to develop independent professional development planning including a basis for determining the individual s focus for Phase Three. Phase Three The aim of Phase Three is to enable the participant to further develop their practice within a specialist focus of school subject, age phase or aspect of teaching and demonstrate it to be at the forefront of the professional field with elements that are exemplary in terms of their impact on the progress of children and young people. It aims to develop the teacher s confidence and ability to contribute to collaborative learning in their workplace and in the wider professional community. 7

8 Programme Learning outcomes Participants in the programme will be able to demonstrate: 1. professional learning through practitioner research and critically reflective enquiry which influences their own and their colleagues practices and thinking, building on prior training, career experiences and development 2. critical evaluation drawing upon the evidence base of effective pedagogical practice and interventions across the four content areas: teaching and learning; developing subject knowledge; how children learn and develop, inclusion and behaviour management; leadership & management 3. critically informed analysis and application of diagnostic and appropriate evidence bases to impact positively on the outcomes of children and young people 4. effective contribution to and participation in personal professional and institutional improvement through alignment with performance management and improvement plans within their school or setting Participants will demonstrate their ability to: 5. Be independent, autonomous, critically reflective practitioners who are proactive and self-directed in their learning, showing initiative and enthusiasm for their professional development; be committed to the promotion of equality, diversity and social justice 6. Develop and demonstrate the skills of critical thinking, problem-solving, analysis and reflection through the interrogation of theory and enquiry through research processes and activities, which may lead to publication or challenge current ideologies of educational thinking to create innovative solutions 7. Learn and develop with others; make a contribution to the developing research and scholarly activity of the University and school community through sharing practice, learning and experiences with peers 8. Actively engage with the holistic nature of professional development, including personal, emotional, spiritual, and ethical aspects of learning 9. Act autonomously to instigate and lead explorations of problems and issues within their professional educational context, particularly those which positively impact upon the educational experiences and achievements of children and young people 8

9 In addition to the programme learning outcomes 1 to 9 the intended learning outcomes for each phase are set out here in order to show the progress in professional practice required: Programme Learning outcomes for Phase One: By the end of Phase 1, the participants on the MTL programme demonstrate that they have developed their professional attributes, knowledge, skills and understanding in their practice so that the teaching is effective and there is an increasingly positive impact on the outcomes of the children and young people they teach. This will require each participant to: identify personalised professional learning needs in their new context draw on and critique a knowledge base, related to the four content areas of MTL undertake a critical and enquiry based approach which continuously impacts on the outcomes for children and young people Learning outcomes for Phase Two: By the end of Phase 2, the participants demonstrate that they have broadened and embedded their professional attributes, knowledge, skills and understanding in their practice so that teaching is consistently effective and there is an increasingly positive impact on the outcomes of the children and young people they teach, through: a systematic understanding of research, national frameworks and practical knowledge in relation to the four content areas, drawn on appropriately to develop their practice an ability to critically reflect on and analyse the impact of this understanding on outcomes for children and young people through their developing practice as classroom teachers and in their other professional roles an ability to critically reflect on and analyse the impact of different teaching and learning strategies on different groups of children and young people a command of the subject, specialism or curriculum area in professional practice an open and questioning mindset in developing professional practice. Learning Outcomes for Phase Three: By the end of Phase 3, the participants demonstrate they have deepened their professional attributes, knowledge, understanding and skills in a specialist field, drawn from the MTL content areas, so that their teaching continues to be consistently effective, with elements that are exemplary, enabling children and young people to make good progress, through: a systematic understanding of research, national frameworks and practical knowledge in relation to their specialist field, drawn on appropriately to develop practice self-direction and originality in tackling and solving problems, and the ability to act autonomously in planning and implementing tasks at a professional level designing, carrying out and critically analysing an M-Level, practice-based enquiry in their specialist professional field, which explores relationships between theoretical and practical knowledge, and impacts on practice making sound judgements on complex issues, even when evidence is incomplete and communicating clearly their conclusions to specialist and nonspecialist audiences in their school and beyond engaging in collaborative learning opportunities in their specialist professional field and through planning for further professional development 9

10 2.6 Collaborative Provision The University works in educational partnership with a large number of schools and educational institutions or services and this provides a context for the delivery of the MTL programme. A placement agreement between the University and your employer forms the basis for the MTL programme delivery itself. 2.7 Structure of the Programme MTL Programme: University of Cumbria UoC MTL module Credits Module Title and indicative submission dates Phase One (begins May 2010) MTLC MTL Reflecting on professional practice 1 Summer term: submission in Jan 2011 PGCE M Level credits may be used in place of this module MTLC MTL Reflecting on professional practice 2 Summer term: submission in Sept 2010 Phase Two (begins Sept 2010) MTLC MTL Teaching, learning and assessment Autumn term: submission in Jan 2011 MTLC MTL Curriculum development Spring term: submission in May 2011 MTLC MTL Inclusive practice Summer term: submission in Sept 2011 MTLC MTL Collaboration and leadership Autumn term: submission in Jan 2012 Phase Three (begins Jan 2012) MTLC MTL Professional enquiry 1 Spring term: submission in May 2012 MTLC MTL Professional enquiry 2 Summer term: submission in Sept 2012 Graduation: Higher Degree Awards Ceremony - December

11 2.8 Attendance The MTL is work based but there is a commitment required by participants to engage fully with in-school coaching and with collaborative online learning activities and tutor support. 2.9 Evaluation of the Programme Participants in the MTL are able to contribute to programme evaluation and enhancement through end of module and end of year formal evaluations. Participant representatives provide feedback to the teaching team on behalf of cohort members. In addition participant representatives become members of the programme quality committee (PQC) which guides and monitors the evaluation and planning process for the programme. Evaluative feedback will also be gathered from tutors and coaches and tutors and representatives of in-school coaches will also be members of the PQC. 3. Teaching and Learning 3.1 Programme Teaching and Learning Methods The MTL programme participants are supported by trained in-school coaches. The MTL trained coach is an experienced teacher who provides professional consultations and critical appraisal of professional practice in relation to Professional Standards for Teachers and the MTL programme learning activities and assignments. The coach also provides general support and advice in relation to the programme and assists participants in networking within and beyond the school. The MTL programme participants are also supported by academic tutors from the University. The academic tutor will help the participant to develop information fluency, critical thinking and academic writing to support their Masters Level work. A proactive system of tutoring will mean that the entitlement of the student for support is explicit and tutors will be prompted by the programme administrative system to contact students and to provide formative feedback at stages through each module. In addition the administrative system will track the progress of students through the programme including those moving into the programme from other providers and those leaving to work and study elsewhere. The MTL is a largely online programme using Blackboard virtual learning environment and electronic learning resources and activities. Each module has a purpose-built set of resources and activities including online discussion and collaboration between students which will be moderated by the tutor. In addition students will have opportunities for face to face induction for each phase and optional enrichment workshops for each module. Subject to demand these may be provided at a range of locations, including some school-based sites, and in a range of formats such as twilight sessions or full days. In addition to the wide range of ebooks, online journals and in-house learning online resources provided for each module students will also have full access to the Universities libraries. Students will have training and support for accessing online resources as part of induction to each phase and through the normal university systems for IT and learning support via the library knowledge base, helpdesk , telephone and face to face. The personalised pathway of each individual is negotiated between coach, tutor and participant and expressed in a learning contract and professional 11

12 development planning tool that is used as a basis for professional development planning by the participant. The planning tool has been developed nationally and is modified to suit the University of Cumbria programme, it helps to map the programme to the professional standards that teachers will be addressing in their school-based professional development. This process will be aligned with performance management and will be monitored to ensure progress and relevance to the teacher s developing strengths, specialisms and areas for development. The coach and the tutor will communicate through and telephone and through the student to negotiate and monitor progress and agree targets. Phase One of the MTL programme builds on previous training and professional learning by participants. It will also emphasise the characteristics of systematic enquiry and the need for careful design and practice that takes into account the ethical issues involved. Phase Two consists of flexible distributed learning with content in four areas allowing sufficient flexibility, for example in the focus of the assignment, for participants to focus on their own particular needs within that broad area. Phase Three allows participants to specialise but requires them to focus on planning and completing a change project that impacts on the learning of children or young people in their educational setting and area of work. 3.2 Learning, Information and Student Services (LISS) LISS provides library resources including online ebooks and journals, IT helpdesks, information skills, learning support, academic skills, counselling, careers and advice. The University web site links and guides learners to the relevant support and many of the resources are web based or can be accessed by or telephone. For more details about LISS, please refer to Appendix 1 Section 5. The MTL Programme is designed to be mainly online so that you are able to study at a distance from the University and fit your learning flexibly into a busy work and home life. In practice your learning will be blended with a mix of online and face to face interactions and forms of support including online discussion and sharing of practice, induction sessions, workshops, coach and tutor support. The resources you need to fully engage with the Programme content are generally available online from a combination of ebooks, online research journal papers, online professional guidance / strategy / policy documents and other resources presented by the tutor team and available through the programme website. You will be given some training on how to access and use the online resources as part of induction to the programme, they are generally easy to use and regular use will develop your skills quickly. There is further online support in the knowledge base on the library site and also telephone and support from the University helpdesk system. Texts / ebooks The key texts for each module are available as ebooks. These are accessible from home via the online library catalogue. It is important note that although the texts are presented within specific modules the MTL Programme has coherence in two important aspects: Firstly the MTL programme is focused on systematic enquiry as an approach to enhancing teaching and learning and improving schools. This means that the key texts for Phase 3 are relevant to your work from the start of the programme because they provide guidance for your research methods and ethics. 12

13 Secondly the MTL programme has four key areas of content which are covered in the four Phase 2 modules. However the Phase 1 and 3 modules require engagement with these content areas and so the key texts for Phase 2 are relevant to your work from the start of the programme because they provide support for your knowledge of teaching, learning, assessment, curriculum development, inclusion, behaviour management, collaborative workplace learning and leadership of change. Texts may appear to be a convenient source of ideas and are often very pragmatic in offering advice on how to develop your practice. However you must not rely to heavily on texts and need to be selective and critically evaluate the claims made and ideas presented within them. They do however offer a quick way into a specific topic, it is rare that you will read an entire text and you need to read with a purpose and be selective, using the search tools within ebooks is a useful way to do this. Research Journal Papers Research journal papers provide an important, more reliable, but larger and more specialised body of work that you must selectively engage with in each of your assignments. Research papers are available to you online through the databases that the University library subscribes to. They are accessible through the eresources link on the library site and for full text journals a key database for Education is Academic Search Complete. Other databases may also be useful for specific curriculum subject areas or specialist areas and you will be advised on this in module guides. If you have the full reference for a particular journal or a specific paper then it is sometimes easiest to go to the A-Z of journals on the library site and search just within that journal. Critically evaluating and drawing from recent research papers reporting on investigations close to your own focus of enquiry or with useful contextual findings are a key aspect of improving practice through enquiry and of Masters Level study. However you should not feel that you need to cite dozens of papers in the assignment for a typical 20 credit module. It is best to search for, select and really critically engage with a small number of papers that have clear implications for your methods or your research questions. Finding relevant papers is a skills but you will get some training and need to practice and persevere in using the search tools in the databases. Of course once you have found one recent paper that is broadly relevant to your enquiry you will be able to find relevant references that are cited within that. 3.3 Personal Development Planning Personal Development Planning is built into the MTL programme through the negotiation and monitoring of your learning contract with your in-school coach and your tutor. In addition the assignments require you to identify your strengths and development needs and to set out plans for further professional learning activity. The MTL programme uses a national audit tool that has been adapted to the University of Cumbria programme. This will help you to map the programme activities and assignments to the professional standards that are relevant to you at any particular point in your progress through the programme. The in-school coach will support you in identifying the links between your MTL activities and assignments and the professional standards and your in-school professional development activities including performance review. 13

14 3.4 Key Skills and Skills Development The MTL programme contributes to the development of your professional and key skills and the negotiation of your learning contract will include a focus on audit and development of skills. 4. Assessment and Assessment Arrangements 4.1 Programme Assessment Strategy The MTL is a pass/fail award although grades will be given for each assignment. The pass mark at Masters Level is 50%. Assignments are marked against the learning outcomes and the University Masters Level Grade Descriptor. Module guidance includes more specific criteria or a mark scheme to assist participants in understanding the requirements. Students currently registered on two modules are not normally permitted to register for a third module until they have submitted an assignment. Students registered for a module for more than one calendar year and who have not submitted an assignment will be deemed to have withdrawn from the module. The assessments within the programme are generally designed to focus on a work-based product or process that is part of the normal work and development of the participant and is integral to a range of professional practice. The participant will produce a critical commentary through writing or another presentational format that includes engagement with, evaluation and application of relevant literature and theory. The critical commentary will report on a smallscale empirical investigation with clear conclusions leading from a systematic collection and analysis of data or it will develop a conceptual argument in relation to their developing practice. Within a collaborative and integrated approach focused on demonstration of the learning outcomes the in-school coach offers feedback on progress towards the MTL learning outcomes for each phase and the tutor undertakes summative assessment; they work together with the participant to gather evidence of practice in which the participant has been personally involved to evaluate progress. A number of different assessment formats are completed by participants, planned through negotiation of the learning contract, in order to enable them to demonstrate the required range of professional and subject based knowledge and skills. 4.2 Referencing and academic writing It is important that you cite references in your course work and bibliographies consistently and accurately. The University s standard referencing system is Harvard, as detailed in Cite them Right: the essential guide to referencing. More details can be accessed from You will have successfully developed and demonstrated academic writing in your first degree and as part of your initial teacher education. Writing is at the heart of classroom enquiry (practitioner research) because research is about thinking and sharing your thinking with others, communication to an audience and peer review is at its core. You may still hold some unhelpful ideas about the research process, in particular a commonly held myth is that you need to do all your thinking and reading and data collection and then write it up. Nothing could be further from the truth because writing shapes your thinking. 14

15 You should start writing and sharing your writing from the very first steps of a classroom enquiry or research project. Talking with your coach and other colleagues is useful as well but it does not lead so powerfully to clear thinking and capture it so effectively as having to write down your ideas. Sharing brief ideas online with your tutor group and getting feedback is an effective way to develop your ideas. As an experienced practitioner you have plenty of things to say already about your practice and your workplace context. If you find it difficult to get started then use free writing (just write for 5 minutes without stopping) or generative writing (write on a specific focus for 10 minutes, share it and discuss it with a colleague, then re-write it). Above all set out your report, initially with standard headings such as introduction, literature review, method, findings, discussion, conclusion, references. Add the number of words that you initially intend to write in each section. Start adding side headings and in each case write a short rubric stating what it is you will do in each smaller section. Building a framework in this way will allow you to write in short bursts, by sitting down and writing within one section. Your reading and analysis of data will also be crucial activities but you need to continue writing as your findings emerge. A second myth is that you need to start at the beginning and finish at the end, again you need to dismiss this idea. You should design and write up your project in a much more dynamic way moving from front to back writing in draft and then revising at a later date. You need to ensure that the argument you make is coherent from introduction to conclusion and one way of doing this is to write an abstract which will summarise the key features of your paper and then every now and them revisit the abstract to review and amend it. Always send the abstract to your tutor when sending them other draft writing to comment on. At least they will remember what your particular study is about and in addition they will see your developing argument, your thesis, coming through. When sending a draft always add your name at the top of any writing and use page numbers and side headings as they will all help your tutor to give effective feedback on different sections. Remember, start writing early in each module and keep writing, ask for feedback on your emerging ideas from colleagues and your tutor through online interaction and through the tutor system for feedback; writing shapes your thinking and will lead to success. 4.3 Confidentiality and Ethics The MTL is a practitioner research based programme and therefore participants, coaches and tutors need to follow an ethical approach to their work within the programme. A key part of this is building trust and effective working relationships. When colleagues are sharing practice, within institutions and across boundaries, it is essential that they are able to do so in an environment in which they can be confident that the details will not be shared beyond the tutor group except in a fully anonymous and generalised way. As part of this participants need to take care to maintain confidentiality in written assignments which in effect become public documents when they are submitted. The MTL requires you to consider ethics in the design and completion of enquiries and reflective writing and to abide by the ethical research code of the University which will be provided on the programme Blackboard site. You will be 15

16 required to negotiate enquiries with your coach and tutor and to provide a rationale for your ethical stance and procedures. The formal confidentiality policy for the Programme is set out here: MTL Programme Confidentiality Policy Confidentiality means maintaining the anonymity of individuals and avoiding the dissemination of privileged information about the activities of organisations and workplaces gained through working within them. It is essential that confidentiality is maintained in all students work to meet with professional ethical principles and with ethical guidelines for research published by the university. If a student is in any doubt about the inclusion of any documentation or written information in their work, in the main body or the appendices, they should seek the advice of their tutor. In addition students need to maintain confidentiality after learning about individuals and organisations during class or online discussions within their taught group. Any inclusion of names or excessive detail in student work that would allow any individual to be identified would be considered a breach of confidentiality. Any identification of an organisation where the organisation is subsequently linked to the student s work would be considered to be a breach of confidentiality. In addition to avoiding naming the organisation, its anonymity must not be revealed by giving too much unique or detailed description, for example of its location, provision or history. It is possible within a paper to use fictitious names for individuals or organisations if that is helpful to the reader. A clear statement should precede such use to explain that the names used are fictitious. The signature of staff who sign students official documentation would not be considered to be a breach of confidentiality. The naming of organisations that are not subsequently linked in the student s work to privileged information e.g. simply discussing the existence and function of an organisation or service e.g. QCA or NCSL would not be considered to be a breach of confidentiality. To support the fact that information is now in the public domain, the burden of proof lies with the student. A citation in the text and corresponding reference on the reference list would be necessary to demonstrate that the information was indeed in the public domain. Finally it would not be considered a breach in rare and exceptional circumstances where permission has been expressly given e.g. by an organisation stating the inclusion of their details in the work is approved and where the inclusion of their details does not then give rise to identification of individuals within the organisation. This permission must be in writing and included as a preface to the work. Feedback from the tutor will be the response to an initial breach of the confidentiality policy. A second recorded breach will lead to formal involvement by 16

17 the programme leader working with the participant in order to agree a way forward that avoids a further breach. 4.4 Assessment Word limit For more details about assessment word limits, please refer to Appendix 1 Section Assessment Deadlines Assignment deadlines are an essential aspect of the University s academic programmes because the work needs to be marked and subjected to second marking, moderation and external examiner procedures before going to the formal assessment boards where grades and credits are confirmed. All these checks and balances help to ensure fairness and to confirm that standards required for your award are maintained. The MTL assignments will be submitted in electronic format and feedback and provisional grades will be provided online prior to the assessment board. After the board the confirmed grades will be posted to you. Full details of the assessment submission process will be provided on Blackboard and in module guides. You must ensure that you keep a copy of all work submitted for assessment as you may be required to produce it. A full copy of the academic regulations is accessible from: Extensions and Extenuating Circumstances If you have very good reason and require an extension to the deadline for submission of an assignment then you must initially contact the I-Zone who will refer your request to the appropriate tutor and ensure that it is recorded formally. If you have extenuating circumstances and need to defer your submission for longer than two weeks then you will need to complete a form available from Student Administration (tel ). Refer to Appendix 3e of the Academic Procedures and Processes (accessible at for an explanation and guidance on extenuating circumstances. 4.7 Marking, Moderation and Feedback For more details about marking, moderation and feedback please refer to Appendix 1 Section Academic Malpractice (including Plagiarism) For more details about academic malpractice, please refer to Appendix 1 Section 4. 17

18 5. Student Support and Guidance 5.1 Induction Induction onto the MTL programme is a combination of face to face briefing by your in-school coach and online interaction with your tutor and an action learning set, a tutorial group, composed of peers. 5.2 Communication Communication on the MTL is via the Blackboard online environment and for individual messages by . Participants must check their university address regularly or ensure that they redirect traffic to a private address. Support for redirect is available on the Blackboard site and by or telephone from the IT helpdesk at the University. Coaches, participants and tutors will have opportunities to meet in face to face sessions. The exact nature of these will be dependent on the circumstances in which the participant and the coach are working. For example, in a school which has several participants, the meetings may be held in the school. Some meetings will be held as local cluster-based twilight sessions (e.g. in a nearby training school), some will be held at the university. As with existing initial teacher education partnership arrangements with the University and schools, there will be flexibility to ensure that participants, coaches and tutors are provided with opportunities for these meetings to take place. Through each phase, tutors will provide ongoing support for coaches and participants through telephone, and other online and blended methods. 5.3 Roles and Responsibilities The core purpose of coaching within the MTL programme is to support and challenge each participant in their professional learning. It is not the role of the coach to be judgemental, impose agendas or give answers. The MTL coach works from a school and local perspective, supporting the improvement of the MTL participant s professional practice while the HEI tutor will work from a regional, national and international perspective supporting the M- level evidencing of the participant s learning and assessing progress against M- level criteria. The three-way relationship will provide a structured and sustained approach enabling the participant to develop and deeper and more sophisticated understanding of professional practice. The MTL Coach Participant HEI Tutor relationship is based on: A learning agreement - establishing confidence about the boundaries of the relationship by agreeing and upholding ground rules that address imbalances in power, authority and accountability; A thoughtful, professional relationship - developing trust and mutual respect; attending with perception to the powerful emotions involved in deep professional learning A learning conversation - structured professional dialogue articulating existing beliefs and practices and encouraging evidence-based deep professional reflection linked to theoretical knowledge. 18

19 Supporting professional change is achieved through: Combining support from fellow professional learners and specialists - collaborating with colleagues to sustain commitment to learning and relate new approaches to everyday practice, seeking out specialist expertise to extend skills and knowledge and to model good practice; Growing self direction - an evolving process in which the learner takes increasing responsibility for their professional development as skills, knowledge and self awareness increase; Setting challenging and personal goals - identifying goals that build on what learners know and can do already, but could not yet achieve alone, whilst attending to both school and individual priorities; Experimenting and observing - creating a learning environment that supports risk-taking and innovation and encourages professional learners to seek out direct evidence from practice. Widening, deepening and embedding ideas from within and outside school is supported by: Understanding why different approaches work - supporting the application of theory that underpins new practice so it can be interpreted and adapted for different contexts; Acknowledging the benefits to the teachers, tutors and coaches - recognising and making use of the professional learning that participants, tutors and coaches gain from their MTL experience; Using resources effectively - making and using time and other resources creatively to protect and sustain learning, action and reflection on a day to day basis. 19

20 The role of the MTL Participant Teacher The MTL Programme is embedded in work-based learning but it is an individual programme of professional learning and needs to be driven by the participant. The participant teacher must take a lead in engaging with the programme and taking on the changes in practice and engagement with ideas from outside school outline above. They should then look to the coach and the tutor for support. This means planning for coach and tutor interactions by planning an agenda or focus, doing some reading and writing in advance and sending draft writing for prereading unless it is very concise. The participant must engage with the programme handbook and materials and use the professional development planning (PDP) tool to identify their own priorities within the scope of each module and plan a suitable focus for their assignments. They need to plan their MTL work to overlap and have synergy with their day to day teaching and development projects. The participant has a commitment to online interaction with their tutorial group in order to give and be given feedback on their practice and draft ideas on readings and for assignments. Above all the student is the driver but is supported by both tutor and coach in combination: The role of the University Tutor The University tutors will be responsible for assessing participants. For participants in Phase 1 without prior experience of Masters Level work, formative assessment will be provided by the HEI tutor to help the participant and the coach identify what is expected for the final assessment. Online resources will be made available for the participant and coach to support the gathering of evidence, reflective writing and the presentation of assignments in each module. Tutors hold Masters Level qualifications or a Doctorate and are active in their own scholarship and areas of research activity. They will have training in moderation of online learning, in tutor support for distant learners and in research supervision. The tutor will provide proactive tutoring support for the participant. They will moderate online discussion and activity with a group of up to 10 MTL teachers. 20

21 The MTL Blackboard will be accessible to all participants and coaches but the discussion forums will have restricted to members of each group and tutors. In addition the tutor will provide formative feedback as an entitlement to each participant as they work through their assignments. The timing and nature of the feedback will vary from one module to another but three occasions for formative feedback will be built into each module structure. This will help participants to complete their assignments confidently and in a timely fashion to meet deadlines. The Role of the In-School Coach The coach is identified by the school with the participant. To guide the selection there is a person specification. In phase 1, the induction tutor is likely to also be the coach. However, where there are several NQTs in a school or where the induction tutor s time is limited other suitable coaches may need to be identified. If the school is unable to provide a coach then this needs to be flagged up when the participant enrols and as early as possible if during the programme. The University will work together with the Local Authority to help to identify a suitable alternative (eg a coach in a neighbouring school or a part-time external coach). The school-related MTL funding will be redirected to the employer of the alternative coach. The coach does not need to be a specialist in the same subject / age phase as the participant. However, for phase 2 modules MTLC7003 and MTLC7004, it might be helpful if the coach has some knowledge and experience of the phase/subject area of the participant owing to the nature of the assignments. The amount of contact time provided by the coach specifically for MTL support will be dependent on the working relationship between coach and participant. For example, if the coach is also the participant s induction tutor, then coaching sessions for MTL may happen alongside induction sessions. Broadly speaking the participant should expect to discuss with their coach aspects related to their engagement and progress through the MTL programme about once every two weeks when registered for a particular module. In the ideal situation, where the coach is part of their workplace team, there should be a great deal of blurring between the day to day development of practice and the requirements of the MTL programme. However the student does have an entitlement to specific time with the coach that is focused on their MTL engagement and progress and nationally this is seen as about one hour every two weeks. It is important that participants drive their engagement with the MTL programme and see the coach as a source of support for that engagement rather than relying on the coach to take a lead. The coach does not need to have a Masters qualification because their main contribution is on the professional element of the programme. The University tutor is responsible for ensuring the work produced by the participant is appropriate for Masters Level study. The tutor will provide guidance and feedback for both the participant and the coach as to what is expected. Coaches will over time build a clear understanding of the requirements of Masters Level work and will be encouraged to pursue Masters Level professional development themselves. The University will provide opportunities for coaches to gain Masters level accreditation while working alongside the participants in the MTL. Often, each coach will work with only one participant. However, situational factors may mean that one coach may have to work with several participants provided s/he has sufficient time and access to work with the participants and the coach is 21

22 able to meet the needs of the participants in Phases 2 and 3. In general, coaches could work with up to three participants Initial training for coaches in Phase 1 and for new coaches in Phases 2/3 will be provided by the NW Consortium. There will be an initial full day s training for all new MTL coaches which will prepare them for their role in supporting the participants. TDA funding will be available for cover and travel expenses. The focus for this day will be on familiarisation with MTL and the role of the coach in working with the participant and the HEI tutor. There will be an additional half day on coaching and a half day on reflective practice for those coaches who are in need of further input. All coaches will be invited to a further half day progress meeting during each phase to identify and address ongoing common issues. A similar pattern of training will be provided for new coaches in Phases 2 and 3 with a half day s top-up training for those coaches moving from Phase 1 to 2 and 3. Coach training will focus on: A briefing on roles and responsibilities and the programme outline B contrasting professional standards and Masters level requirements C critically reviewing coaching principles and practice D considering action research as a driver for change in educational settings E evaluating professional standards in relation to the MTL programme F questioning theory and practice in professional learning Coach training sessions will be held at convenient locations in each Local Authority during February and March for Phase 1 and during May and June for Phases 2/3. As the initial training will be the same across all the venues in the NW, coaches can attend any training session regardless of which Local Authority and HEI they are working with. 5.4 Mapping the MTL Content Areas to Professional Standards MTL content areas linked to relevant Core Professional Standards for Teachers The following table indicates the most relevant Core standards alongside the MTL Content areas. Given that the lists within each area are not definitive, it follows that there may be other standards pertinent to an MTL Participant s chosen area of focus. The table could be used alongside any self-assessment the MTL Participant carries out. In some cases the Post-threshold standards may be relevant. Reference should be made to the standards on the TDA website ( 22