A TEACHING AND LEARNING ISH, MATHS AND SCIENCE MA A TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS PATHWAYS (ENGLISH, MATHS GLISH, MATHS AND SCIENCE) FACULTY OF EDUCATION AND CHILDREN S SERVICES ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PROGRAMMES MA TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS (ENGLISH, MATHS AND SCIENCE) INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS 2014 2015 www.chester.ac.uk
UNIVERSITY OF CHESTER REN S SERVICES FACULTY OF ACULTY OF EDUCATION AND AND CHILDREN S SERVICES MA Teaching and Learning and Specialist Pathways Programme Leader: Bethan Hulse b.hulse@chester.ac.uk CONTENTS Overview 1 Programme focus 1 The academic credit structure 2 Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) 2 Assessment 2 Electronic submission TurnItIn 3 Disabilities and Specific Needs 3 Calendar of events 3 Modules 4 Costs 7
MA TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS 2014 2015 OVERVIEW The MA Teaching and Learning (MATL) programme is a schoolfocused qualification developed to help teachers extend their teaching skills and abilities at Masters level. It develops professional standards at Masters level in critical reflection, systematic enquiry and application to practice through engagement with research, literature and policy frameworks for pedagogical practice, curriculum development, collaborative working and leadership. PROGRAMME FOCUS Our MA Teaching and Learning programme provides a coherent, personalised and progressive framework for the professional learning and career development of teachers. Learning activities will include a mix of strategies combining elements such as lectures, group discussions and learning conversations through the use of a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), and action research. During our programme you will utilise your experiences as a teaching professional to critically reflect on your own practice and develop confidence in sharing good practice and articulating new insights. Delivery is through taught sessions which foster lively debate and deliberate and contest issues that are relevant and current. Assessments are designed to encourage critical engagement with literature and reflect on professional practice. subject specialists, Heads of Department and successful applicants of the National Scholarship Scheme and will lead to the following named awards: Mathematics Education Science Education English Education Specialist pathways in Maths, Science and English allow participants to engage in sustained research within their chosen area. Participants will study six modules plus a dissertation. Accreditation for prior learning can be applied for in relation to any of the non-core modules on the MA in Teaching and Learning course (up to 60 credits). Using our excellent research facilities local, national and international perspectives will be brought into focus. This will help you to understand issues within the field of education and learning and will benefit the children and young people you teach. You will be given opportunities to assess up-to-date research findings and how they might complement or challenge current approaches, as well as pursuing your own research, which will be fully supported. Online resources and individual tutorials with lecturers in your chosen field of study will support your learning and extend your knowledge and practice. The MA Teaching and Learning is tailored to meet the requirements of the National Scholarship Scheme to Support Professional Development, and has named routes in Maths, Science and English. The MA Teaching and Learning now has three subject specialist routes in Maths, English and Science. This may be of interest to 1
UNIVERSITY OF CHESTER THE ACADEMIC CREDIT STRUCTURE All MA degrees are made up of 180 credit points known as CAT points (Credit Accumulation Transfer). You can move these between Universities. At Chester these points are accumulated through 20 credit modules. Each module is designed to take one term to complete. This is a typical pattern for a full MA, although you can take up to six years to complete the full programme from the first time you register for the programme. A Postgraduate Certificate comprises 3 modules (60 CATs) and usually can be completed in 3 terms. A Postgraduate Diploma comprises 6 modules (120 CATs). A full MA comprises 180 credits which would ordinarily include a compulsory dissertation or equally weighted research project worth 60 credits. The dissertation itself is an independent, original piece of research, and usually takes around a year to complete. Throughout your dissertation you will be provided with a supervisor within the specialist area that you want to investigate who will support and guide your study. Although you are not required to attend any further teaching sessions during this period, other than meeting with your supervisor, we run dissertation research workshops on the two teaching Saturdays each term. There is no obligation to attend, but we hope that they will provide research students with a peer community, act as a forum to exchange research ideas and raise issues about the course, and offer you the chance of meeting other academic members of staff to help you with your study. ACCREDITATION OF PRIOR LEARNING (APL) APCL To claim credit for prior accredited learning (credit you have already achieved from the University of Chester or any other university) you will need to complete an Accreditation of Prior Certificated Learning (APCL) form and bring a copy of your certificate to the MA Programme Leader, who will sign off the form and process your credit, subject to specific requirements. If you think you may be eligible for APCL, please contact the Programme Leader, who will consider your application on an individual basis. APEL You may also submit a claim for Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL). This may be for work you have accomplished in a professional capacity. This has to be submitted in the same way as an assignment and we provide tuition and guidance. There is a fee payable for each 20 credits that you bring in. Currently this is charged at 220 per 20 credits. GOLDEN TICKET A Golden Ticket opportunity of up to 1,000 is available to former ex-graduates of the University of Chester. This offers 1,000 discount across the cost of a Master s programme. It works on a pro rata basis and is applied at a rate of 333 per year. Terms and conditions apply. ASSESSMENT Assessment takes place at the end of every module and usually consists of an assignment or a case study. The submission dates are set to be the start of each subsequent module i.e. three times a year or in some instances will be arranged during the module. What if I need to extend the deadline for the submission of an assignment? You can have an extension to a module or defer from it until a later, negotiated date. EXTENSION If, for quite legitimate reasons, you are unable to submit your assignment by the deadline, you can apply for up to a five-week extension. The Request for an Extension form is available on Moodle in the MA online learning space or in the MA Teaching and Learning Programme Handbook. Your completed request form must be sent to the Programme Leader (and copied to the module tutor) prior to the original deadline, allowing sufficient time for them to respond. We encourage students to try their utmost to meet deadlines as we know from experience that extending deadlines can lead to other problems with your studies. We keep a record of those applying for extensions and will contact anyone who seems to be continually struggling to meet deadlines to offer support. Extensions can be agreed for up to a maximum of 5 weeks. After this time, the assignment will be deferred to the next assessment submission date and treated as a Deferral. DEFERRAL Our Assessment Board is in January each year. Our reassessment Board is in May. If you cannot submit your work in time for one of these boards, you need to defer your module assessment using the Request for Deferral form on Moodle in the MA online learning space or in the MA Teaching and Learning Programme Handbook. The Request for Deferral form must be returned as soon as possible prior to the original submission date to the Programme Administrator or the Programme Leader and to Registry Services. This request is then considered at the Programme Studies Board meeting which meets monthly. Should the leave to defer be granted, students will receive formal notification of their next submission date from the Academic and Professional Programmes Administrator. What happens if I need to take time out? You have up to six years* to complete your MA from the start of registration and up to three years to complete a Postgraduate Certificate. If, for any reason you wish to suspend your studies you will need to complete the Interruption of Studies form which is available on Moodle in the MA online learning space, from the Academic and Professional Programmes Administrator, the Programme Handbook or the Postgraduate Office of Registry Services. It is important to be aware that this does not extend the registration period. Students must complete all studies by their provided finish date. All requests for interruption of studies are reported to the Programme Assessment Board in January of each year. * In cases of the successful applications of APL, this period will be reduced pro-rata. What happens if I fail something? Your tutor will contact you and discuss additional support. You can resubmit any failed work, once more, usually at the next submission date. We recommend a tutorial before any resubmitted work is assessed. There will be an additional cost to resubmit your work. 2
MA TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS 2014 2015 ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION TURNITIN All written assignments are submitted electronically through TurnItIn, an online submission portal attached to each module. The process is similar to adding an attachment to an email. The system automatically logs the date and time you submitted your assignment, sends you a receipt and also notifies the relevant tutor that your assignment is ready for marking. Electronic submission eases the process for you in handing in your work, as it can be done from anywhere in the world. It also safeguards you and us by providing clear evidence of your submission and providing us with safe storage for your assignment. It also means we can access your work from anywhere in the world, at any time, as can second markers and our external examiners. Tutors will usually return your annotated work and feedback electronically which means you should receive feedback promptly. We aim to return work within four weeks of submission. DISABILITIES AND SPECIFIC NEEDS If you have any disability, specific need or illness that would require assessment through different circumstances, please contact the Programme Leader. For more detailed information, please follow this link http://www.chester.ac.uk/ campus-life/support-for-student/disability-support CALENDAR OF EVENTS The MA Teaching and Learning is delivered part-time through two weekend schools per term. The dates for 2014-15 are shown below. Sessions run from 5.00pm 7.00pm on the Friday evening and 9.30am to 4.00pm on the Saturday. There is no other attendance, though you may want to attend individually negotiated tutorials, particularly when studying for your dissertation. It is expected that you attend all sessions. Sometimes you may experience unavoidable difficulties and you find you have to miss a session. We would expect you to contact the Module Tutor to discuss alternative arrangements. Postgraduate Programmes Induction Day Saturday 13th September 2014: 10.00am 1.00pm Weekend School Dates The study dates for the academic year 2014-2015 are: Term 1 Weekend 1 Friday 26th September 2014 5.00pm 7.00pm Saturday 27th September 2014 9.30am 4.00pm Weekend 2 Friday 7th November 2014 5.00pm 7.00pm Saturday 8th November 2014 9.30am 4.00pm Term 2 Weekend 1 Friday 30th January 2015 5.00pm 7.00pm Saturday 31st January 2015 9.30am 4.00pm Weekend 2 Friday 27th February 2015 5.00pm 7.00pm Saturday 28th February 2015 9.30am 4.00pm Term 3 Weekend 1 Friday 15th May 2015 5.00pm 7.00pm Saturday 16th May 2015 9.30am 4.00pm Weekend 2 Friday 12th June 2015 5.00pm 7.00pm Saturday 13th June 2015 9.30am 4.00pm 3
UNIVERSITY OF CHESTER MODULES Each of the following modules are optional and worth 20 credits: Module Code CD7023 CD7201 Module Title NQT PROFESSIONAL INDUCTION PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT REVIEW Module Description This module runs alongside your NQT year and builds upon your professional learning in line with teaching standards. You will enhance and enrich the professional knowledge and understanding of your pedagogy and specialist subject or phase. In this module your induction tutor will work alongside your NQT Mentor and explore ways to complement your school s CPDL programme enabling you to gain 20 M level credits through accreditation of your Induction Portfolio. This module aims to engage teachers in reviewing and evaluating their own professional experiences. It requires them to take stock of where they are currently, to reflect on their professional learning journey and to make explicit what they have learned from their experience. To do this, the module enables participants to develop the capacity to reflect critically in ways that reveal the knowledge, skills, values and beliefs on which they draw in their daily professional practice. The module also facilitates participants ability to utilise this enhanced self-awareness to identify and plan appropriate future personal and professional development and learning. CD7202 COACHING To enable teachers to improve the effectiveness of their coaching techniques through critical reflection and analysis of their practice and by interrelating theory with firsthand experience. It is designed to offer an opportunity to reflect critically on their own experience of coaching and advance their capabilities and professional knowledge and skills in the field of coaching. Additionally participants will develop and apply their own coaching skills in order to enhance their professional effectiveness. CD7203 CD7204 CD7205 CD7206 CD7207 TEACHING, LEARNING AND ASSESSMENT CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT INCLUSIVE PRACTICE COLLABORATION AND LEADERSHIP UNDERSTANDING DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING This module aims to develop participants understanding of a range of learning, teaching and assessment strategies which promote pupil progress in order that all pupils achieve their learning potential. This module aims to provide an understanding of the socio-political influences upon curriculum development, as well as an insight into possible theoretical frameworks for teacher and school led curriculum development, with a dual focus upon theoretical understanding and participant contribution to curriculum development within the school or setting. The module aims to expand participants knowledge and understanding of pupil development, inclusive practice and social inclusion through critical analysis and reflection on current educational theory, research, policy and their own practice. This module aims to give participants a clear understanding of how effective styles of leadership and management contribute to the achievement of the pupil, the teacher and the school community. It also aims to help participants to locate themselves as an effective member of the inter-agency team that supports children and families. This module aims to explore aspects of development and learning impact throughout childhood and adolescence and enables participants to develop a critical perspective of the inter-relationship between learning and development theories and the influence of these throughout childhood and adolescence. Participants will critically explore the impact of theories relevant to their specific practice and own experiences. 4
MA TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS 2014 2015 CD7208 CD7032 CD7033 CD7036 CD7021 DISSERTATION* *Dissertation is compulsory and is worth 60 credits. RESEARCH DESIGN PRACTITIONER ENQUIRY CRITICAL PRACTICE EARLY PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE REFLECTING ON THEORY AND PRACTICE This module aims to provide participants with the opportunity to undertake a substantial empirical enquiry in a professional setting. Reflecting on the individual experience of carrying out research and linking research within a professional context which informs new practice in the workplace. The dissertation module will include delivery of research methods. Researching methods most commonly used by teachers in schools within the wider context of research. This includes: Writing a research question Exploring concepts in research: validity, reliability, generalisability, bias within the context of students own research Considering the nature of the data students will collect and issues of analysis Considering ethical issues that might arise Carrying out a literature review in which to locate the research question and to support analysis Writing and presenting a research proposal This allows participants to design a small scale research project relating to their own context. This requires: Interrogating practice to discover a question for enquiry Justifying the research question in a professional context Exploring the ethical issues Justifying the methodology Carrying out the enquiry Writing the research report A sustained and in-depth study of a specific area of practice. This includes: Evaluating own professional learning Considering a suitable project for sustained professional reflection Engaging with selected theoretical frameworks for thinking Proposing, planning and executing a professional project Exploring the methodological concepts of reflexivity and critical practice Undertaking a project in the work place Constructing a reflective and critical professional learning journal Evaluating the impact of the project and the associated professional learning Reflection on early practice as a professional teacher the story so far. With specific reference to: Induction standards Critical incidents Reflecting on experience of critical incidents Reframing experiences SCIENCE PATHWAY CD7210 CD7211 CD7212 ENHANCING SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING SUBJECT KNOWLEDGE AND THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM PRACTITIONER ENQUIRY IN SCIENCE TO ENHANCE EXPERTISE This module will enable participants to carry out a small scale practitioner enquiry into an aspect of scientific learning and teaching in their context. Drawing on participant s subject knowledge and pedagogical understanding of science. The course will provide you with opportunities to enhance your subject knowledge and understanding in science and explore the impact of deeper subject knowledge of pedagogical practice. This module will enable participants to carry out a small scale practitioner enquiry into an aspect of scientific learning and teaching in their context. Drawing on participant s subject knowledge and pedagogical understanding of science. 5
UNIVERSITY OF CHESTER ENGLISH PATHWAY CD7213 ENGAGING AND ENRICHING EDUCATION THROUGH CHILDREN S LITERATURE A reflection upon personal reading history in the field of children s literature. Genre and gender: characteristics of children s literature. Literature across the curriculum and approaches to study. Analysis of children s literature. Writing children s literature. CD7214 LINGUISTICS FOR TEACHERS OF ENGLISH Develop a critical appreciation of the role and practice of teachers of English. Demonstrate a critical awareness of the contribution of the application of linguistics Critically analyse the application of linguistics to enhance teaching and learning Critically analyse and evaluate the research into the application of linguistic knowledge in the classroom CD7215 ENGLISH AND THE NEW LITERACIES An exploration of the impact, and relevance for education, of digital, multi-modal and multi-media literacies. Impact on language and what is held to constitute literature, and the implications for the teaching of English. An exploration of some of the software and techniques being used by children at home and at school. Engagement with recent research relating to children s use of new communication technologies. MATHS PATHWAY CD7216 ENRICHING AND ENGAGING MATHEMATICS EDUCATION Exploration of links between the cognitive and affective domain in mathematics pedagogy. Analysis of physical, practical and functional mathematics learning models to promote engagement and enrichment. Develop foci for interventions in mathematics teaching through an analysis of participants pedagogical and subject knowledge needs. Link education theory to practice through enquiry. CD7217 HOW CHILDREN LEARN MATHEMATICS Be able to apply teaching strategies that expose and address misconceptions through a critical analysis of effective learning models. Be able to develop their knowledge of language issues in mathematics teaching and learning so that they can apply teaching strategies that address language issues, while critically reflecting on strategies that promote dialogue in the classroom. Be able to identify characteristics of creative teaching so that participants know how to innovate, exemplified through applications of practical and physical mathematics as well as exploration of the nature of mathematics as a creative discipline. CD7218 EMERGING EXPERTISE THROUGH PRACTITIONER ENQUIRY IN CREATIVE MATHEMATICS PEDAGOGY To enable participants to explore the nature of mathematics as a creative discipline through critical reflection on and analysis of participants own mathematics education and current education practice. To study theories of creativity and critically analyse theories in the context of education. To explore creativity in a variety of mathematics education based settings from the perspective of teachers and of learners through critical reflection and immersion in creative practice. To apply emerging skills and knowledge to practitioner enquiry designed to develop creative pedagogical approaches and/or foster creativity in mathematics learners. 6
MA TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS 2014 2015 ASSESSMENT The assessments within the programme are generally designed to focus on a work-based product or process that is part of your normal work and development and is integral to a range of professional practice. You will produce a critical commentary through writing or another presentational format that includes engagement with, evaluation and application of, relevant literature and theory. DELIVERY We can deliver from our Riverside Campus in Chester or in school. The latter may be preferable for those schools that work within clusters or have a large number of staff interested in taking part. COSTS Cost: per module = 445 per annum = 1,335 Students with a PGCE at M level can bring the first 60 credits in free of charge. Costs to schools may be reduced where there are sufficient numbers. Academic and Professional Programmes Administrators: Jo Cowan: j.cowan@chester.ac.uk 01244 511579 Richard Betts: r.betts@chester.ac.uk 01244 512592 Apply online at www.chester.ac.uk 7
A TEACHING AND LEARNING ISH, MATHS AND SCIENCE MA A TEACHING AND LEARNING AND SPECIALIST PATHWAYS PATHWAYS (ENGLISH, MATHS GLISH, MATHS AND SCIENCE) Faculty of Education and Children s Services Continuing Professional Development INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS www.chester.ac.uk