Program Overview

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Overview

The MA in Education offers a strong foundation for careers in a range of educational settings, both public and private, in the UK or abroad. The course is designed for ‘Highly skilled Education Professionals’ such as teachers, lecturers, educational managers, and leaders in a variety of educational contexts including schools, colleges, universities, the military, and nursing.

What's Unique About This Course?

• Strong foundation for diverse educational careers in public and private settings, UK and abroad
• Designed for highly skilled education professionals across various contexts (schools, colleges, universities, military, nursing)
• Develops knowledge, understanding, skills, and professional values in education and training
• Enhances ability to apply scholarship, theory, and research to relevant contexts
• Promotes critical reflection and analysis to improve professional practice
• Adds professional credibility to resumes
• Serves as a stepping stone for doctoral or PhD studies in education

Course Modules

Year 1

Educational Research and Development

• Module: 7ED007
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Core

This module aims firstly to engage participants in a critical discussion about how new educational knowledge is created. Secondly, it aims to support the process of educational research via the development of a research proposal for the professional enquiry, the final module of the MA Education award.

Professional Enquiry

• Module: 7ED026
• Credits: 60
• Period: 1
• Type: Core

The Professional Enquiry module engages participants in a systematic and critical enquiry into an area of education related closely to their own professional context and of personal interest. In this context, education is understood to encompass life-long learning and training as well as pedagogic and educative processes taking place within and outside of educational institutions. Participants are expected to engage critically with relevant literature and emphasise contestability in various viewpoints and positions. This small-scale research will include the collection and analysis of primary data. Participants will relate theory to practice and make recommendations based on their findings.

Critical Approaches to Diversity, Equality and Social Justice in Education

• Module: 7ED002
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

In this module you will have an opportunity to critique current theory and practice around equality and diversity in education and wider society. It will provide you with opportunities for critical examination of contemporary and established theories around inequality, social justice and policy responses to diversity. Its aim is to equip students with a broad understanding of issues of equality, diversity and social justice in an educational settings including ways in which to meet the needs of diverse students within these settings.

Critical Outlooks on Pedagogy and Inclusion

• Module: 7ED062
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

The module encourages critical awareness of pedagogical strategies and approaches to developing inclusive educational practice. By examining socio-cultural views on the development and learning of disabled learner and those with additional need, you are encouraged to explore the perspectives related to the notion of pedagogy

Critical Reflection and Reflexivity in Professional Learning

• Module: 7ED001
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

An introduction to the fundamental importance of critical reflection and reflexivity in professional learning in education covering issues such as professional development in a changing world, identity, positionality and ethics. The module will form part of the research strand of the award leading into the research and development module and then into the professional enquiry.

Education in a Global Context

• Module: 7ED059
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

This module supports a deeper understanding of education globally; you will explore the context education world wide, contextualising and reflecting on your own learning experiences. You will engage in activities that support your transition into the UK education systems. Covering areas such as referencing and academic writing at a higher level.

Leadership, Mentoring and Coaching Skills

• Module: 7ED065
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

This module builds on the knowledge, skills, and understanding of leading mentoring and coaching within a wide range of organisations. You will be critically reflecting on some of your previous experiences and learning, and deepening your professional knowledge, understanding, and skills in a wider context. You will be encouraged to take an innovative approach to guiding others in their development of coaching mentoring practice and will use your skills as a reflective practitioner to lead coaching mentoring within your organisational setting.

Leading Change in Pedagogy

• Module: 7ED034
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

This module will explore theories of change and improvement in pedagogy. Participants will also be encouraged to explore their own principles and values that underpin such change, e.g. is all pedagogic change solely about improving academic outcomes? This will allow participants to critically engage with pedagogic innovations within their own subject or responsibilities within the education setting. Participants will be expected to write a critical reflection on persuasion and change exploring such areas as professional motivation and the rhetoric of change that underpins the content of a professional presentation. Additionally, participants will be expected to produce the critically justified presentation (a Powerpoint or Prezi etc.) with in depth commentary intended for collegues which makes clear the academic justification for the change, intended impact on learners and provides motivation for change in colleagues' practice. This will enable a strategy for disseminating the plan, inspiring change in colleagues and establishing agreed success criteria.

Learners in the Digital Age

• Module: 7ED017
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

In this module you will explore the digital identities and habits of learners and teachers within educational settings working collaboratively and individually to achieve this. You will examine existing theoretical perspectives in digitally mediated education and consider how emergent pedagogical frameworks might be utilised to engage with learners digital habits. You will specifically examine the changing role of the learner and teacher/facilitator within this emerging paradigm. An example might be: For example, you might look at the ways in which blogging is used in social spaces and critically appraise its functionality for learning purposes. Is their any research into the habits of bloggers, what is the demographic etc., Is it likely to translate to a school/college space? Does it fit any particular theories of learning? Further you could supplement this by looking at its use in education. Any aspect of digital engagement might be chosen: mobility, gaming, social software, you tube etc.

Mentoring: A Collaborative and Reflective Relationship

• Module: 7ED006
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

This module is designed to enable the mentor to critically explore the implications of mentoring relationships with emphasis on supporting the reflective practice skills of their mentees.

Multi-Agency Working in Context

• Module: 7ED041
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

The aim of the module is to explore the impact of the leadership within the context of multi-agency working. This will emerge from critical self-assessment and links to key theorists. There will also be an opportunity to reflect upon contemporary issues through a problem-solving case study approach reflecting a wide range of stakeholders.

Representations in Childhood and Youth

• Module: 7ED040
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

In this module you will have the opportunity to look at how children and young people are represented in the media and the wider culture both in the UK and abroad. By focussing on issues such as child poverty, teenage pregnancy and charitable advertising campaigns, you will learn to recognise how dominant images of childhood and youth can impact on prevalent (mis)understandings and expectations of children and young people. You will study visual and textual data taken from a wide range of media sources, and contemporary images will also be compared with historical representations in order to trace how ideals around childhood and youth have changed over time. The theoretical underpinning of the module is that childhood and youth are socially constructed, and that this can be explored by analysing the cultural representations of children and young people which surround us every day. You will have the opportunity to develop digital literacy skills as you learn how to analyse and compare images and media products.

The Statutory Assessment of Special Educational Needs - A Comparative Exploration

• Module: 7ED063
• Credits: 20
• Period: 1
• Type: Optional

This module will provide you with the opportunity to draw upon historical and theoretical perspectives to consider the development of the statutory assessment process for children and young adults with special educational needs, disability or learning difficulties. You will research and critically evaluate the development of the English system of assessment that includes statementing and educational health and care plans through the investigation of case studies rooted in your professional or personal experience. You will also appraise the benefits and challenges of holistic approaches to such things as reassessment of need that includes the views of children young people and parents when it comes to meeting those needs. The module will also include the opportunity to critically consider the approaches of another country to educational inclusion and such to reassessment to develop a comparative review of alternative systems.

Potential Career Paths

• Teaching
• Human Resources Advisor
• Early Years Educator
• Consultant

Additional Information

Why Wolverhampton?

The University of Wolverhampton has a long and proud history of working with teachers and practitioners at all levels of education both nationally and internationally. All our departments are highly rated for their provision, and proud to be known for their employable graduates with excellent long-term prospects. The MA in Education, at the University of Wolverhampton, is therefore designed to provide an excellent opportunity to develop career and employability skills.

What Skills Will You Gain?

• Identify the significance of relevant professional, institutional, sector and societal factors shaping education, policy, and practice
• Have a systematic understanding and critical awareness of issues of diversity and social justice related to education policy and practice
• Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of major educational theories, concepts and rivalries based upon seminal, recent, and contemporary educational research where both national and global contexts are interwoven
• Evaluate critically current research and advanced scholarship through the use of critical reflection to explore the relationship between theory and practice in complex situations
• Have a recognition of your own value positions related to education and associated claims to knowledge in education
• Demonstrate the ability to analyse, judge and critique complex or contradictory areas of knowledge and practice and think creatively and flexibly to synthesise and transform these ideas

Course Fees and Finance

Location | Mode | Fee | Year
---|---|---|---
Home | Full-time | £8815 per year |
Home | Full-time | £9088 per year |
Home | Part-time | £4408 per year |
Home | Part-time | £4544 per year |
International | Full-time | £15950 per year |
International | Full-time | £16950 per year |

Entry Requirements

Academic Pathway:

• A degree in the area of Advanced Practice with Children and Families, Early Years, Childcare, Education Management or Studies, Leadership, Learning, Special Educational Needs or an international equivalent.

Work Experience Pathways:

• Any degree subject area and 12 – 24 months of supervisory work experience in a related educational setting, demonstrating knowledge of the subject matter you are interested in pursuing.

Or

• 3 – 5 five years of relevant managerial work experience, demonstrating in-depth knowledge of the sector for the subject matter you are interested in pursuing.

All work experience-based applicants will be required to provide a reference detailing your role(s) and responsibilities from your line manager this would be requested after you have successfully applied.

EU and International Applicants:

We have specific entry requirement information for EU and International applicants. Please also check the UK requirements above as these will also showcase if there are any additional subject requirements needed for entry.

Academic Requirement:

Our country specific entry criteria are related to the curriculum you have studied. Please click here to find the correct information for the country you have studied in.

English Requirement:

All International Applicants are required to have a sufficient level of English to satisfy student visa requirements, here is a list of acceptable English qualifications.

Our country specific entry criteria will also provide clear guidance on whether your high school English qualification is accepted as an equivalence to the above.

Personal Statement Requirement:

All international applicants are required to showcase their reasons for applying to study in the UK please use our personal statement template to support your application.

Study Gap Information:

International applicants also provide education information and work experience information. It’s important that when you complete your application you cover all of this information on your application to ensure we can satisfy this admissions assessment.