Postgraduate Course: Teachers as Agents of Change (EDUA11340)
Course Outline
| School | Moray House School of Education and Sport |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course introduces teachers and others engaged in education to ideas about how to create conditions for all students' learning, how to work with others to propose change for social justice in educational settings, and to reduce the effects of social inequalities. |
| Course description |
Drawing on the most recent international research and scholarship in the area of teacher agency, the course is designed to develop:
1) an understanding of a professional sense of purpose as agents of change (e.g. commitment to and understanding of social justice);
2) competence for exercising transformative agency (e.g. understanding how teachers can help create conditions for all students¿ learning, and mitigate for external social inequalities, poverty, or other intersecting markers of diversity);
3) engage with the given degrees of professional autonomy to explore ways of influencing change in school and policy environments (e.g. by collaborating purposefully with other professionals and families); and
4) reflect critically and systematically on issues of social justice (e.g. by engaging in systematic analysis of teachers¿ individual and collective practices and environments). Participants will devise a plan to initiate a change intended to promote socially just policy and practice.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2019/20, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
| Course Start Date |
23/09/2019 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 5,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 15,
Other Study Hours 174,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
2 )
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| Additional Information (Learning and Teaching) |
Reading, taking notes, discussion with colleagues, planning initiatives, evaluating, assignment prep
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Feedback |
Feedback will be given within 15 working days on both formative and summative assessment. Formative feedback may include peer and tutor comments in class or comments on plans. Summative assessment will include comments on the script and written comments using the common postgraduate marking framework on TurnItIn. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the diverse conceptualisations of social justice and the contextual nature of social justice issues
- Use research and scholarship in the area of social justice and teacher agency for critical evaluation of current policy and practice
- Engage in a critical, evidence-informed discussion of the implications of social justice principles for professional practice
- Work collegially with others to negotiate the meaning and implications of educational structures and cultures, and values underlying given policies and practices
- Draw on critical and systematic reflection to explore strategies for addressing social justice issues and transforming structures and cultures
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Reading List
Ballard, K. (2012). Inclusion and social justice: teachers as agents of change. In S. Carrington & J. Macarthur, J. (Eds.) Teaching in Inclusive School Communities, pp 65-87. John Wiley & Sons Australia.
Eteläpelto, A., Vähäsantanen, K., Hökkä, P., & Paloniemi, S. (2013). What is agency? Conceptualizing professional agency at work. Educational Research Review, 10, 45-65.
Gewirtz, S. (1998). Conceptualizing social justice in education: mapping the territory. Journal of Education Policy, 13(4), 469-484.
Pantic, N. (2015). A model for study of teacher agency for social justice. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice. 21(6), 759-778
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Develop a thorough understanding of key concepts, for example 'inclusion', 'inclusive education', 'additional support for learning', recognising them as problematic and contested terms
Critically engage with theoretical and disciplinary perspectives in relation to practice, and their implications for policy
Be able to exercise substantial autonomy and initiative in academic activities, including decision making on the basis of independent thought
Be open to new perspectives, methods and creative ideas in inclusive education |
| Special Arrangements |
Students on MSc Inclusive Education will be given priority entry to this course. |
| Keywords | inclusion social-justice agents change education |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Natasa Pantic
Tel: (0131 6)51 6626
Email: |
Course secretary | Ms Marie Hamilton
Tel: (0131 6)51 6678
Email: |
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