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Teaching

Knowledge, skills and attitudes will be developed through a variety of learning strategies including lead lectures, group work, case study analysis, role-play, practice analysis, development of reflective practice skills, experiential learning, e-learning incorporating the use of Blackboard and online library search tools, tutorial support.

Reflective practice is a key element within the learning and teaching strategy and facilitates the integration of theory with practice. Reflection provides students with the opportunity to examine their personal progress and development and to devise strategies for creating further development opportunities. In addition, developing insight can be critically enhanced through the consideration of theory, research and other significant evidence that stimulates reflection on practice. The importance of Personal Development Planning (PDP) is acknowledged and incorporated throughout:

• Accessible support mechanisms for engagement in PDP both within the course structure and through careers and other support offered by Student Services
• Opportunity to discuss their PDP with a tutor or advisor.

The University places emphasis on enabling students to develop that will equip them for lifelong learning and future employment, as well as academic achievement. A mixture of independent study, teaching and academic support from Student Services and Library Services, and also the Personal Academic Tutoring system enables students to reflect on progress and build up a profile of skills, achievements and experiences that will help them to flourish and be successful. 

Contact time

Tutor support and Student and Library Services are available throughout the week and students are encouraged to schedule regular personal study at home using the university’s extensive online support or on campus at the Hive or the Peirson Study and Guidance Centre.

In a typical week, students will have around 8-10 contact hours, including seminars, tutorial and small group activities. The dissertation module APHS3002 takes a blended approach and is taught through face-to-face and synchronous online sessions.

In addition, students are allocated a supervisor for their Dissertation, and this important relationship is established early in the academic year. Students are encouraged to meet regularly for dissertation supervision, and it is usual for the supervisor/supervisee relationship to be maintained for the duration of the study. Work-based learning is not a requirement for the Top-up Degree, but students are encouraged to work or volunteer within the sector as this helps link theory to practice and provides opportunities to explore ‘live’ challenges emerging in practice. 

Independent self-study

In addition to the contact time, students are expected to undertake around 24 hours of personal self-study per week. Typically, this will involve preparatory independent reading and study directed by teaching staff prior to taught sessions, self-directed reading and other forms of study (e.g. watching video or listening to audio recordings) and independent research guided by the learning requirements for each module of study as determined by module learning outcomes.

Independent learning is supported by a range of excellent learning facilities, including the Hive and library resources, the virtual learning environment, and extensive electronic learning resources.

Teaching staff

You will be taught by a teaching team whose expertise and knowledge are closely matched to the content of the modules on the course. The team includes senior academics, professional practitioners with practice experience and contributions from guest speakers who are experts in their fields. Postgraduate research students who have undertaken teacher training may also contribute to the teaching of seminars under the supervision of the module leader.

Teaching is informed by research and consultancy and lecturers are often experience practitioners and practice managers prior to taking up teaching positions at the university. A majority of lecturers on the course have a higher education teaching qualification or are Fellows of the Higher Education Academy.

You can learn more about the staff by visiting our staff profiles.

Assessment

The course provides opportunities to test understanding and learning informally through the completion of classroom-based exercises or ‘formative’ assignments. Each module has one or more formal or ‘summative’ assessment which is graded and counts towards the overall module grade. Full details of formative assessment will be available at the start of each module. Assessment methods include essays, case study and analysis, individual presentations, reports and analytical paper.

The precise assessment requirements for an individual student in an academic year will vary according to the mandatory and optional modules taken, but a typical formal summative assessment pattern for the year of the course is:

Year 3

• Case Study
• Presentation
• Summary Report
• Essay
• Independent Study

Feedback

You will receive feedback on formal assessments undertaken by coursework. Feedback supports learning and you are encouraged to discuss it with personal academic tutors and module tutors as appropriate. We aim to provide feedback on formal course work assessments within 20 working days of hand-in.

You will also receive feedback on formative assessments.

Programme specification

For comprehensive details on the aims and intended learning outcomes of the course, and the means by which these are achieved through learning, teaching and assessment, please