Program Overview

The Worlds of UCL: Critical Histories of Education, Nation, and Empire

The Worlds of UCL: Critical histories of education, nation and empire (EDPS0233) is a module offered by the University College London.

Key Information

• Faculty: IOE
• Teaching department: Education, Practice and Society
• Credit value: 15
• Restrictions: This module offers a limited number of spaces to students from some specific IOE/UCL programmes and is not available for Affiliate students. It is a Year 1 (FHEQ Level 4) module and is only open to students studying at the same level.

Alternative Credit Options

There are no alternative credit options available for this module.

Description

This course approaches the study of the history of education through the lens of UCL's own institutions, founded in 1826, and the Institute of Education, founded in 1902. It provides context to the historical evolution of the educational system in the UK and critically examines the close, but often hidden, connections between British education and empire, asking what impact these imperial legacies have today. The course draws on UCL's rich libraries, archives, and museum collections and works in collaboration with colleagues in UCL Museums, Libraries, Archives, and Special Collections. Students are introduced to a range of transferable practical skills linked to the assessment, in which students work together to produce a public history output in various forms.

Teaching Delivery

This module is taught in 10 weekly 1.5-hour lectures and 10 weekly 1.5-hour seminars. Seminars involve object-based learning in UCL's Object-Based Learning Lab, using oral history and historic film footage, visits to UCL's museums, and campus trails.

Indicative Topics

Lecture topics explore various facets of the history of UCL and IOE, including a focus on its foundation, the impact of gender, religion, and class; the experience of early students; the evolution and educational role of university museums; UCL and empire, student mobility, and international students; campus culture and student leisure and love life; Eugenics, decolonising the university, and imperial legacies.

Module Aims

• To introduce students to the history and historiography of education in Britain and the wider world.
• To use the history of UCL as a lens through which to explore a range of topics in the history of education.
• To introduce students to a range of historical research methods, including archive/documentary sources, oral history, object-based learning, and investigation of space/place.
• To enhance students' transferable skills, including improving their ability to evaluate historical evidence, independent research skills, group working, oral presentations, and digital literacy.
• To provide opportunities to learn more about UCL through engagement with UCL's museums and collections and the campus itself.

Recommended Readings

• Book: Negley Harte, John North, and Georgina Brewis, The World of UCL – (London, UCL Press, 2018)
• Film: Generation UCL: 200 Years of Student Life in London
• Book: Georgina Brewis and Sam Blaxland, Student London: A New History of Higher Education in the Capital (UCL Press, 2026)

Module Deliveries for 2026/27 Academic Year

• Intended teaching term: Term 2
• Undergraduate (FHEQ Level 4)

Teaching and Assessment

• Mode of study: In person
• Methods of assessment:
  • 60% Group activity
  • 10% Viva or oral presentation
  • 30% Coursework
• Mark scheme: Numeric Marks

Other Information

• Number of students on module in previous year: 77
• Module leader: Professor Georgina Brewis