In this section you will find useful paperwork and course documents to help with your course.

This module will explore the meaning of curriculum and the local, national and global contexts it has to respond to.  Drawing on theories, principles and models of curriculum design trainees will focus on how they impact on learning and teaching and the extent to which they might be deemed inclusive or exclusive.  The significance of equality and diversity will be explored and attempts will be made to design curriculum elements that could be termed inclusive. Trainees are challenged to design a curriculum that responds to learners and their various needs.  The module will also provide opportunities for trainees to consider the specific challenges of developing curricula within their subject specialism including evaluation of plans for learning.

Trainees will be required to research an educational issue which relates to their subject specialism and draw out the implications for their own professional development and for the learning experiences of their current and future students.  This may involve an analysis of personal and learner group needs both in terms of the subject specialism and pedagogical approaches.  Emphasis will be placed on the identification and justification of appropriate research methodologies and their effective deployment. There will be discussion on the ethical nature of research design. The module provides an opportunity for trainees to demonstrate an independent learning approach, to extend their capacities for making evidence-based professional judgements, and to evaluate their own methodological approaches.

This module will enable trainees to develop clear concepts of professionalism, to clarify their core professional values, and to extend their awareness of the key issues and influences on professionalism in post-compulsory education.  Effective communication, openness to collaborative work and a willingness to be self-evaluative are seen as essential to continuous professional development. The module will improve understanding of the relationship between demands for accountability and quality systems and approaches. The benefits of engaging with such systems, and ways of doing so. will be explored. Trainees will engage in critical self-evaluation of their own knowledge, skills and abilities and consider these in relation to the demands of the subject, teaching, codes of conduct, and attitudes to continuing professional development.