Program Overview

Introduction to the Master in Primary Education

The Master in Primary Education is a program designed to strengthen your classroom practice and provide you with the tools to further develop your school. Upon completing your diploma, you will be well-prepared to fulfill five core roles in the workplace: subject specialist, innovator, researcher, leader, and communicator. In these roles, you will work with your team to implement evidence-based and sustainable educational innovations.

Program Structure and Focus

The program is built around four central themes that are essential for broad expertise in primary education. It starts with a focus on the learning processes of primary school children and then expands to broader contexts that deepen this vision. The program offers a well-considered balance between subject-specific deepening, educational insights, school organization, methodology, and data literacy.

Research and Practice

In this program, theory and practice work closely together. Thanks to the collaboration between the university and colleges, this master's program is both academically strong and practice-oriented. You will learn to actively bridge the gap between scientific research and daily classroom practice, including in subjects where you work on current and realistic educational themes from the field.

Competence-Based Learning and Flexibility

The program itself sets a good example. Under the motto 'teach what you preach,' a flexible, competence-oriented approach is chosen. You will learn from experts in the field and work independently and actively, supported by teachers and fellow students. This makes the program accessible to both regular students and professionals already in the field. The program can be spread over several years and even followed in evening education, making it easy to combine with your work in education.

Bridging Program for the Master's Program

If you have a professional bachelor's degree in lower or kindergarten education but not an academic bachelor's degree in pedagogical sciences or education, you will first follow a bridging program of 60 credits before you can start the master's program of 60 credits. This forms the ideal basis for further specialization and preparation for the academic level of the master's program.

Key Features of the Program

• A brand-new program with impact: The Master in Primary Education is a new program that starts in the academic year. With this master's, you take the next step in your teaching career: you deepen your expertise as a teacher and develop into a driving force in the school.
• Carried by a powerful collaboration: This program is supported by an enthusiastic collaboration between the University of Antwerp, KdG University of Applied Sciences, and AP University of Applied Sciences. By pooling our strengths, we combine the strengths of the university such as research and academic deepening with the practice-oriented expertise of the universities of applied sciences in the field of subject didactics and classroom practice.

Research in the Program

The Master in Primary Education offers you the opportunity to take a step back from your classroom practice and gain in-depth knowledge of scientific research on education. Within various program components, you learn step by step, both individually and in group work, what scientific research entails. You develop skills to critically interpret scientific knowledge, participate in applied and fundamental research, and set up and conduct independent research. This research is conducted within domains that are both currently and in the future of great social relevance.

Practical Component of the Program

In the program component Practical Issues in Primary Education, you work together with a group of fellow students and a primary school on a current and relevant issue. These practice-oriented projects are situated at the micro or meso level of the school and offer a unique opportunity to set up practical research with direct impact on the classroom and school environment.

Methodology and Study Load

Both for the bridging program and the master's program, a hybrid approach is used. This means offering a combination of:

• Physical contact moments, such as lectures and interactive work moments.
• Guided self-study, supported via the digital learning environment Blackboard.
• Project-based education, where you work in groups on practice-oriented issues.

To make a realistic estimate of the study load, the guideline is used: 1 credit point corresponds to 25 to 30 hours of study time. For a program component of 6 credits, this means an average study load of 150 to 180 hours, or about four full-time study weeks.

Language Requirement

It is expected that students have a good passive command of English. Although contact moments take place in Dutch, part of the study material consists of English-language scientific articles and books. Basic knowledge of academic English is necessary to understand and process the literature.