Program Overview

Programme: BEdHons Teacher Education and Professional Development

The BEdHons Teacher Education and Professional Development programme is designed to equip students with advanced knowledge and skills in teacher education and professional development.

Admission Requirements

To be eligible for admission, students must meet one of the following requirements:

• Relevant bachelor's degree and a relevant Teacher's Diploma (e.g., BA + HED)
• Relevant bachelor's degree and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education
• Relevant four-year bachelor's degree in Education (e.g., BEd)
• Relevant M+4 Teacher's Diploma and relevant Advanced Diploma in Education

Additional Requirements

For Oral Literacies in African Language Education (ALE 730), students must have completed IsiZulu/IsiNdebele/Sepedi/Setswana 1, 2, 3. Beginner's courses are not acceptable.

Selection Criteria

Selection is based on:

• Meeting the minimum academic requirements required for admission
• Previous academic performance
• Applicable academic and/or teaching background
• Availability of supervision for the required research project
• Proven academic potential, which may include academic communication and computer application skills
• An interview may be requested
• The requirements of professional registration bodies
• The discretion of the head of department

Examinations and Pass Requirements

Subject to exceptions approved by the Dean, on the recommendation of the relevant head of department, a student may not sit for an examination for the honours degree more than twice in the same module. A final-year student who has failed a maximum of three semester modules or their equivalent, with a final mark of at least 40% in each, may be admitted by the Dean to a special examination/s in these modules during January of the following year, provided that this will enable the student to comply with all the requirements for the degree.

Research Information

A research project is compulsory and must be handed in for examination, as prescribed by the particular department.

Pass with Distinction

The degree is conferred with distinction on a student who has obtained an average of at least 75%, with a minimum of 70% in each module.

Programme Structure

The programme consists of:

• Fundamental modules
• Core modules
• Elective modules

Fundamental Modules

• CDV 780: Part 2: Research report 780 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Supervised research project of limited scope. Use qualitative and/or quantitative methods. Writing a short report.
• NMQ 755: Part 1: Research proposal 755 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Guided literature research, formulation of a conceptual framework, and development of a research proposal for a supervised research project of limited scope.

Core Modules

• API 711: Assessment approaches and instruments 711 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Foundations, principles, and ethics of assessment practices. International trends. Quantitative and qualitative modes of assessment and appropriate instruments. Generating evidence for assessment. Assessment and quality assurance. Techniques of computer-based assessment.
• CDD 710: Curriculum development 710 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Principles and foundations of curriculum/programme design and development. International and national models and trends in curriculum/programme development. Principles of outcomes-based programming in the SAQA context. Curriculum development models and instruments in action. Situation and task analysis needs assessment. Development. Dissemination. Implementation as a change process. Assessment and evaluation.
• EDS 711: Philosophy and social imperatives of education 711 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Meta-theories in education. Empiricism; rational empiricism; critical rationalism; critical theory; phenomenology; hermeneutics; system theory; philosophies in education: traditional philosophies; indigenous (African) philosophies. The influence of modernism and postmodernism on education. Sociological imperatives for education. Theories of societal change and roles and values of education. Comparative perspectives on learning theories and their meaning for education.
• NMQ 745: Educational research methodology 745 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: The nature of educational enquiry: contexts of research, research ethics, truth, rationality, subjectivity, and objectivity; Quantitative and qualitative modes of enquiry, research designs, and data collection techniques. Various approaches to qualitative research including case study research, historical research, ethnographic research, and action research. Basic concepts and principles of quantitative research. Statistical techniques in the educational research process. Survey methodology and questionnaire design. Classification and graphical representation of data. Descriptive measures. Statistical inference. Data-processing procedures. Parametric versus non-parametric tests. Some test statistics (e.g., F-Test and T-test). Formulating a research methodology for a limited project.
• PFO 710: Professional development 710 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Professional development as educator to optimise independence, interdependence, and self-renewal. Implementing principles of personal vision, personal leadership, personal management, interpersonal leadership, creative cooperation, and balanced self-renewal through action research.

Elective Modules

• ALE 730: Oral Literacies in African Language Education 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: The aim of this postgraduate module is to equip students with the advanced pedagogical knowledge and research in oral literacies in African languages.
• CAE 730: Creative Arts Education 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: The module aims to equip and develop research scholarship on interdisciplinary Creative Arts Education.
• EDI 720: Diversity in education 720 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: Visions of education for a multicultural society strive for equity of opportunity to learn, largely through the convergence of three practices: heterogeneous grouping, highly interactive instruction that appeals to a wide variety of learning styles, and inclusive curricula.
• GEE 730: Gender in education 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: This module is informed by a commitment to gender equality and gender justice. It explores the concept of gender in various educational settings.
• GEO 730: Perspectives in Geography Education 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: This module is informed by a commitment to greater depth of Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) in Geography Education.
• HIE 730: History education 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: The module aims to examine and debate the nature of African History and how it manifests itself within African and non-African school contexts.
• JGL 730: Multi-literacies 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: This module introduces the concepts of multi-literacies and multimodality highlighting the importance of these when teaching learners from diverse linguistic and cultural communities.
• JLO 710: Life orientation education 710 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: The aim of this module is to develop skills, knowledge, values, and attitudes that empower students to make informed decisions and to take appropriate actions in diverse educational contexts.
• PES 730: Physical Education and School Sport 730 (Credits: 16.00)
  • Module content: The module entails two parts PE and SS. The integration between the two parts will entail themes related to the teaching of PE, managing SS, and focusing on sport as a social phenomenon.