Learning outcome

After the second year of study, students will have acquired basic knowledge and understanding of pupils’ different abilities and needs in years 5-10 of primary and lower secondary school. Students will be able to tackle pupil diversity through didactic analysis and plan in collaboration with colleagues, the school administration and parents.

Knowledge:

Students will be able to:

• Explain the importance of the socio-cultural environment’s impact on pupils’ learning activities.
• Explain the theory of socialisation.
• Discuss and analyse the concept of adaptive teaching based on supporting documents, theory and research.
• Analyse and discuss the content of different youth cultures and the relevance for learning.
• Discuss and explain how students with multicultural and multilingual backgrounds can represent both resources and challenges in schools.
• Identify pupils’ specific needs and be able to implement relevant measures, both in groups and individually to promote learning outcomes.
• Identify individual pupils’ basic skills.
• Analyse the curriculum to plan assessment activities throughout the school year.
• Explain important principles in the home-school cooperation and justify choices in relation to the relevant supporting documents.
• Explain ethical relationships and children’s rights.
• Demonstrate that they recognise the signs of bullying, abuse and maltreatment and the school’s normal procedures in such cases.

Skills

Students will be able to:

• Recognise pupils’ needs for adaptive teaching based on their achievements and background.
• Identify and follow up the needs of pupils with multi-cultural backgrounds in relation to learning.
• Plan adaptive teaching, both in groups and individually.
• Plan pupils’ development of their own learning strategies.
• Adapt a strategy for developing the basic skills of individual pupils.
• Develop criteria for achievement in all subjects to promote pupils’ learning.
• Use continuous and final evaluation that promotes learning initiatives in education.
• Facilitate good home-school collaboration.
• Apply their understanding of personal and social issues in helping pupils who find themselves in a challenging life-situation.
• Use professional guidance skills in the study programme.

General skills

Students will be able to:

• Show a responsive manner towards pupils and parents with different viewpoints and backgrounds to promote pupils’ learning.
• Lead a class socially, methodologically and professionally.
• Implement systematic training in the basic skills in all subjects.
• Develop awareness in relation to the importance of assessment to learning.
• Lead and facilitate the development of reading and reading strategies at beginner and intermediate levels.
• Cooperate and demonstrate self-criticism as well as the ability to develop change skills.
• Demonstrate an understanding of ethical and cultural differences, and of the problems teachers may encounter.

Course Description

The course focuses on the relationship between teacher, pupil and content; the relationship between these three elements will always be present in the subject. In the second year of study (course code: PEL 502), the main focus will be on the pupil’s resources and abilities. Based on the knowledge the students will have acquired after the first year of study, and the content of the course (PEL 502), work on the subject will become more complex, and further characterised by holistic thinking with regard to learning activities at primary and secondary level. The semester plans, assignments and teaching practice schedules will reveal how the course content is aimed at learning activities in years 5 - 10 of primary and lower secondary school.

R & D
The teaching in PEL 502 is based on national and international research, theory and literature. Through the use of qualitative and quantitative research in teaching and learning activities at the college, efforts are made to bring a reflective and critical expertise to teaching in primary and lower secondary schools. Integrated in the work on particular topics, students will be given an introduction to basic research methods. Following on from this, students will complete a quantitative study in the teaching practice school, possibly in cooperation with the subject Mathematics (cf. “Assessment Methods” below).

Collaboration
The content and organisation of the topics will be coordinated with the other relevant study programme courses (subjects) in the second year. Pedagogy in Teacher Education has the overall responsibility for the whole of the study programme and will collaborate with the subject teachers and the teaching practice mentors so that theory and research are used during the period of teaching practice, and experience from teaching practice is used in teaching at the college.

Teaching and Learning Methods

The teaching will consist of seminars and lectures and focus on specific topics – theoretical or case-based – and will involve workshops in which the college teachers and students can take turns teaching or giving presentations. The teaching and learning methods will be characterised by discussion and reflection.

Supervision is emphasised in the teacher education study programme, and also involves a close relationship between student, college teachers and the teaching practice schools. Students will receive comprehensive supervision, and they will also participate in the supervision process by responding orally and in writing to the college teachers, other students and teaching practice mentors; in this way, the individual student will be able to develop professional and pedagogical skills.

The supervision will largely be based on case studies or questions that students and teachers prepare. Students will complete an advanced course in supervision.

The learning dialogues will take place periodically and aim at following up the student’s own programme of study; they will be carried out individually or in groups by appointment. Three-party dialogues will be carried out in relation to the period of teaching practice, cf. the teaching practice plan.

The study programme emphasises that participation in social practice is important for individual learning. The learning community includes communication with all the parties involved in the teacher education study programme; through this community, students will learn to reflect on their own and others’ learning.

Assessment Methods

All seminars are compulsory. The same applies to teaching practice seminars and follow-up, as well as supervision groups and similar activities. Compulsory teaching at the college is indicated in the semester plan. The college requires a minimum of 80% attendance; however, it is expected that all students will participate in compulsory activities.

Continuous assessment
Students will be given two assignments every semester which will be assessed as approved / not approved. These assignments are compulsory, and must be submitted and approved before the student will be permitted to sit the examination.

Autumn semester:

a) A group assignment is planned in collaboration with students, in which students prepare proposals for assessment.

b) An individual assignment in which the student will evaluate one of the group responses in a) above, based on stipulated criteria.

Spring semester:

a) A group assignment – a quantitative study based on pupils, teachers or parents. Data from the study will be processed statistically. This assignment may be carried out in collaboration with the subject, Mathematics.
b) An individual assignment within the area of special education.

Final assessment with a lettered grade in Pedagogy in Teacher Education (course code: PEL 502):

• Written examination in the autumn semester 40%
• Oral examination in the spring semester 60%

The final grade for each of the Pedagogy in Teacher Education courses (course codes: PEL 501, 502, 503, 504) will be entered on the diploma; in other words, four separate grades will appear.

Minor adjustments may occur during the academic year, subject to the decision of the Dean