For this professional qualification you will need some experience of working with learners, either in teaching, the education advisory service, educational administration or an allied field – this may include informal learning settings. You will join a learning community of over 2500 students from varying educational contexts worldwide. Educational aims This programme contributes to the personal development of those concerned with education both formally and informally in a wide range of settings and locations.
Coursework encourages you to bring together your personal understanding of issues relating to specific aspects of education with the enduring and current body of professional and academic research publications relevant to your professional/personal agenda. Advanced independent scholarship is fostered through study of particular disciplines within education and through student-determined, small-scale research projects.
These projects provide the opportunity for you to integrate the learning guided by the programme with your personal interests in education and, as appropriate, your practical professional knowledge. The modular structure of the programme allows you to progressively broaden the knowledge and understanding of your chosen aspects of education. It also provides for the development and consolidation of advanced scholarship through practice and refinement of the independent learning inherent in the academic literacy and conventions of academic writing required for successful study at masters level.
Teaching, learning and assessment methods Each module uses a range of study techniques to help you engage with the academic literature and to reflect on your own practical and professional knowledge. A variety of informal and formal assessment tasks are incorporated into the coursework. These vary from module to module. Within each module coursework is designed to prepare you for independent study within a particular educational discipline. The formal tutor- and examiner-marked assessments for each module are summarised in the prospectus and detailed in the study materials for each module.
For every module, you are supported in reflecting on your own learning and in selecting an appropriate topic for a personal, small-scale research project. Through assessments linked to this research project you must demonstrate an integration of the discipline specific and generic learning outcomes for this postgraduate qualification. Career impact Across the globe there is an increasing demand for creative, innovative education professionals who have highly developed skills and a deep understanding of learning; in many countries a masters degree is becoming essential for career advancement in teaching and related careers.
This qualification offers teachers and other education professionals working with learners of all ages the opportunity to develop professionally and academically. It is suitable for graduates working in formal education settings (nurseries, schools, colleges and universities), those supporting non-formal learning as well as education leaders and policy makers. Modules in this qualification are designed to enable you to update your knowledge and skills and give you the opportunity to reflect on your professional practice whilst developing your understanding of theoretical models and current debates. Case studies and examples are from a worldwide context and this qualification will be relevant to educators across the globe.
This qualification does not qualify you for teacher registration, please see our PGCE qualification Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) (K20) if you are interested in gaining a teaching qualification.
