MA Education: Learning, Pedagogy and Assessment

The MA Education: Learning, Pedagogy and Assessment is a one-year, full-time programme for anyone with an interest in education. Throughout your time with us we will help you achieve a critical, reflective and practical understanding of the current issues and debates surrounding teaching and learning, and familiarise you with the key educational trends and policies in the UK and internationally.

The course has a strong international dimension, which builds on its staff and students’ diverse interests, experiences and backgrounds.

This programme draws on a long-standing innovative research tradition within the School of Education and Lifelong Learning, and on our excellence in professional education. You will benefit from research-led teaching, and our team members bring with them skills and expertise at the cutting-edge of research, pedagogy and theory-informed practice.

You will be taught by leaders in the field, who research and contribute to national and international debates, so you can be sure that you will be learning in a stimulating environment.

What’s more, our academic environment and the resources available to you will help nurture your knowledge of and aptitude for educational research.

About

Study the way people learn, the importance of the interactions between teaching and learning, and how we can, and should, assess a person’s progress.
This full-time Master’s course is ideally suited to anyone with experience in education, who wants to delve deeper into the processes, theories and practices at play in this fascinating field. Placing equal emphasis on theory and practice, it will build on your existing knowledge, interests and expertise, and help you apply the theoretical constructs to practice.

This course will give you an in-depth understanding of current key educational issues, debates, trends and policies, both nationally and internationally. It will develop your knowledge of educational research, and help you in conducting your own research project.

You will be part of UEA’s renowned School of Education and Lifelong Learning, and you will gain skills and knowledge that will prove invaluable in your career in education, or one of the many associated fields.

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Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the courses listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the regular review of course programmes. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes, there will normally be prior consultation of students and others. Changes may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will inform students.

Structure

During your time with us you will be required to complete seven modules (180 credits). Of these, five are core taught and one is optional taught (each is worth 20 credits). Finally, you will complete a dissertation module (worth 60 credits).

More specifically, you will take three specialist compulsory modules on learning, pedagogy and assessment, as follows:

Autumn semester: An Introduction to Key Concepts and Ideas in Educational Practices
Autumn semester: Pedagogies in Educational Contexts: Perspectives and Practices
Spring semester: Assessment: Principles, Issues and Practice

You will also take two generalist compulsory modules, covering educational research methods and critical reading:

Autumn semester: Critical reading
Autumn semester: Educational Research Methods

Your generalist modules are designed to provide you with sufficient grounding in the methodology of educational inquiry. This will enable you to begin to design and conduct research in your own specialist area of interest.

‘Critical Reading’ will concentrate on the development of your critical skills, particularly by allowing you to focus on educational policies. You will be assessed in this module through a critical policy review.

‘Educational Research Methods’ will provide you with a grounding in the methodology of educational inquiry, as well as equipping you with skills to design and conduct your own research. It will also offer an introduction to key research techniques and cover crucial aspects of qualitative inquiry..

Your sixth module will be your dissertation, which you’ll commence at the beginning of the Spring semester and submit at the end of the academic year. Usually – but not always – research-led, you will choose a dissertation topic based on your interests and professional background, with guidance from our team. You will then work with an individual supervisor to design, research and write up your project.

Finally, you will select and complete one optional module. Examples of the type of modules on offer include:

Key concepts and approaches to education leadership, management and policy
Leading teaching, improving learning and global education reform
Public Policy, Strategic Management and Complexity
Principles and Practice in Second Language Education
Language Learning in Context
Introducing Innovation and Change
Literacy, Development and Adult Learning: An Introduction to the Concepts
Introduction to Quantitative Research Methods in Educational Research
Key Theories in Research into the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics
The Use Of Technology in the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics
Educational Policy and Practice for Development
Introduction to Education for Development
Intercultural Communication in Practice

Teaching and Learning

You will experience a wide range of teaching and learning methods throughout the course. These include lectures, seminar sessions, tutorials, group discussions, practical workshops, group visits to key educational settings, student-led presentations, team-working and writing exercises.

You will be given guided reading before and during each module, and you will be expected to undertake preparatory reading ahead of your classroom sessions, as well as in relation to your coursework. And while some coursework will be completed individually, some may involve close collaboration and co-operation with members of your peer group.

Independent study

Guided, self-directed independent study is essential and will be supported by a range of resources, including a dedicated online portal. You will need to read extensively between taught sessions, and contribute your thoughts and ideas to the group discussion boards and blogs associated with many of the modules.

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Compulsory Modules

CONCEPTUALISING EDUCATIONAL PRACTICES

Code EDUE7028A

Credits 20

You may wonder why this module encourages you to explore some ‘obvious’ concepts and ideas such as ‘learning’. Isn’t it obvious what ‘learning’ is? Not if we take into account the fact that a google search yields millions of different answers to the question: ‘What is learning?’ Or that it is rather difficult to answer the question: ‘How do we know that someone has learned something?’ The meaning of ‘learning’ may not be as ‘obvious’ as we think. This module provides an introduction to key concepts and ideas about learning and teaching in compulsory, post-compulsory and lifelong learning that are often taken for granted as ‘obvious’. You will explore how different theoretical perspectives on learning illuminate different aspects of learning and teaching interactions. You will examine these within the broader context of educational organisations and systems. The key concepts and ideas studied in this module include: ‘learning’; ‘cognition’ and ‘emotion’; learning and teaching as ‘social interaction’; ‘agency’, ‘structure’ and ‘culture’; ‘education leadership’ and ‘education policy’. You will also explore how diverse approaches to learning and teaching offered by psychologists, sociologists, educational researchers and policy-makers influence everyday educational practice. The core approach to our module discussions will be based on challenging concepts and ideas that appear ‘obvious’ but, on closer examination, turn out to be problematic. In writing an assignment on a topic of your own choice, you will have an opportunity to challenge some of the ‘obvious’ ideas about your topic.

PEDAGOGIES IN GLOBAL EDUCATIONAL CONTEXTS

Code EDUE7030A

Credits 20

This module aims to give students the opportunity to explore and critically consider key issues about pedagogy. It discusses a wide array of ideas and theories that have influenced pedagogic thinking and practice, in various settings, formats and contexts. In particular, it engages with classical and contemporary accounts that have been put forward by as a diverse body thinkers as Plato, Confucius, Freire, Illich and contemporary social movements. Some of the topics we explore include the effect of information technology on leaning and thinking, the meaning and significance of critical pedagogy, the idea of deschooling society, the pedagogy of social movements as well as alternative ways of learning and teaching and enhancing pedagogic relations and interactions.

ASSESSMENT: PRINCIPLES, ISSUES AND PRACTICE

Code EDUE7029B

Credits 20

This module aims to introduce students to key ideas and concepts that underpin assessment philosophies, purposes and design in schools and universities. We will look at the history and functions of assessment and explore the different roles and types of assessment and problems and challenges. Against this backdrop we will then consider assessment design in relation to curricula and/or pedagogy.

CRITICAL READING

Code EDUE7035A

Credits 20

What does it mean to be a ‘critical’ reader? Why is critical reading important? How can you develop your criticality, both as a reader and a writer? What is the single question that reminds us to take a critical stance when reading a range of published ‘texts’?

DISSERTATION

Code EDUE7037X

Credits 60

Working with an individual supervisor, the student is required to design, research and write up an inquiry-based project for a dissertation. With guidance from the course team, the student chooses a dissertation topic according to his/her individual interests and/or professional needs.

EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH METHODS

Code EDUE7038A

Credits 20

This module provides students with a grounding in the methodology of educational inquiry as well as with some preparation before they apply their own research skills. The module offers an introduction to some key research methodologies and covers crucial aspects of qualitative inquiry. A range of methodological approaches are explored, such as ethnography and case study, and various methods of collecting qualitative data are discussed (e.g. interviewing, doing observations). Students are equipped with some key skills that can help them design and conduct research in their own specialist areas of educational interest.

Optional A Modules

(20 credits)

EDUCATIONAL POLICY AND PRACTICE FOR DEVELOPMENT

Code DEV-7011B

Credits 20

The aim of this module is to help you understand and critically examine, policy-making processes and specific policies for educational development. You will discover the relationships between policy and practice in a range of international, national and local development contexts. Through this module you will explore different approaches to policy development and familiarise yourself with dominant global policy agendas in education - asking who makes or influences policy, and considering policies as socially situated documents, practices and processes. The module introduces you to education policy options and practices to address a range of development challenges and how related strategies are enacted in practice; drawing on policy theory and ethnographic and school-based research, as well as practical sessions to critique policy-related writing, examine models of educational quality and curricula, and explore issues of school-related gender based violence.

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS IN EDUCATION

Code EDUE7025B

Credits 20

The content of this module complements and elaborates the 20-credit Research Methods in Education compulsory module of the full-time MA programme in the School of Education and Lifelong Learning. It aims to you to elementary concepts and methods in statistical analysis and to help them make well-informed choices in their uses of appropriate methodological techniques and tools in their own research. The module is of relevance if you want to understand the way quantitative evidence is generated, analysed and interpreted and if you choose to collect quantitative data (e.g. through questionnaires) or use mixed methods (i.e. both qualitative and quantitative).

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION IN PRACTICE

Code PPLC7007B

Credits 20

Do you wish to pursue a career in international management and relations, multilingual business, or international development? Are you interested in becoming a more effective communicator in other professions such as translation, interpreting, education, and cultural mediation? In this module we will explore the issues fundamental to intercultural communication (IC) in practical contexts. You will examine the different ways of thinking about effective communication in a variety of work/organisation-based environments. During the seminars/lecture series, invited practitioners will introduce you to how IC operates in specific organisations, including government agencies or in multilingual business management. On completion of this module, you will have developed the linguistic skills, cultural competence, and critical thinking required for the production of an extended research project in intercultural communication. You will also have acquired a sense of how cultural assumptions may influence communication with others from different backgrounds, and developed a greater willingness to enter into dialogue with the values prevalent in cultures other than your own.

LEADING TEACHING, IMPROVING LEARNING AND GLOBAL EDUCATION REFORM

Code EDUE7043B

Credits 20

As governments in many countries across the world seek to transform their education systems, questions about leading teaching and improving learning are more important than ever. How do we know that our students are learning and making progress? What forms of knowledge are needed to improve teaching? Can we scale up local improvements or borrow policies from other countries to improve teaching and learning locally? This module enables you to investigate the relationship between approaches to improving learning ‘locally’ and the tendencies towards standardisation and complexity reduction characteristic of global education reform. You will have opportunities to reflect on the leadership (or management) of improvement initiatives that are sensitive to the individual needs of children, young people or adults learning in diverse local contexts. Through a depth study of a specific ‘local’ issue, you will also have an opportunity to examine the complex nature of leadership initiatives and policies aimed at improving teaching and learning. The advantages and limitations of researching the ‘local’ and the ‘particular’ will be discussed in relation to knowledge gleaned from large-scale educational surveys, schools’ ‘league tables’ and international comparisons.

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Open Days

Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the modules listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the annual monitoring, review and update of modules. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes and their constituent modules, the University will endeavour to consult with students and others. It is also possible that the University may not be able to offer a module for reasons outside of its control, such as the illness of a member of staff. In some cases optional modules can have limited places available and so you may be asked to make additional module choices in the event you do not gain a place on your first choice. Where this is the case, the University will inform students.

Entry Requirements

Degree classification

UK 2.1 or equivalent

Degree subject

Social Science (E.g. Education, Sociology, International Development, Philosophy, Psychology, Modern Languages, Classics)

Additional entry requirements

Applicants should normally have a good undergraduate degree from a recognised higher education institution. The University will also take into account the employment experience of applicants where relevant and applications are actively encouraged from those who want to return to academic study.

Relevant teaching experience is desirable.

Students for whom english is a foreign language

We welcome applications from students whose first language is not English. To ensure such students benefit from postgraduate study, we require evidence of proficiency in English. Our usual entry requirements are as follows:

IELTS: 6.5 (minimum 6.0 in all components)
PTE (Pearson): 67 (minimum 64 in all components)

Test dates should be within two years of the course start date.

Other tests, including Cambridge English exams and the Trinity Integrated Skills in English are also accepted by the university. The full list of accepted tests can be found here: Accepted English Language Tests

INTO UEA also run pre-sessional courses which can be taken prior to the start of your course. For further information and to see if you qualify please contact intopre-sessional@uea.ac.uk