Information for students

UTS: Education caters for a range of educational practitioners' professional development needs, from primary through to adult workplace teaching and learning and TESOL. Undergraduate and postgraduate courses across these areas provide a rich teaching and learning environment, combining theory and practice with unique opportunities to discover more about learning in a variety of contexts – in schools, vocational colleges, corporations and learning centres in Australia and overseas.

Credit recognition policy

UTS: Education recognises both formal and informal prior learning. For more information consult the faculty's policy on credit recognition.

Academic liaison officers

As part of UTS: Education's equity plan, an academic liaison officer is available to help students with physical, psychiatric and medical issues and other special needs. The liaison officers negotiate with lecturers on students' behalf for any reasonable adjustments required to ensure equity of educational opportunity. This may include provision of signers, notetakers, extensions of time, alternative assessment tasks and special exam conditions.

Robyn Staveley
telephone +61 2 9514 5381

Computing facilities for UTS: Education students

UTS: Education has a digital media learning space in Building 10 (CB10). This facility incorporates leading-edge concepts in educational design and technology. The computer facility provides powerful Macintosh computers with a suite of common up-to-date software installed for document production, web authoring, video and image editing, internet and email access. They are compatible with a range of foreign language fonts. Printing and scanning facilities are also available for students. UTS: Education students have access to these facilities when classes are not in progress.

Presentations in Building 10 teaching spaces may be complemented by data projectors linked to electronic lecterns. These integrate an internet-connected computer, DVD player, VHS player, document imager and sound system for media rich learning experiences. A number of mini-studios with camera, lighting and playback facilities allow students to videotape and review presentations. Building 10 also contains a general access computing laboratory and a computer kiosk on the street level. These are available to enrolled students 14 hours a day.

International links

UTS: Education has a history of strong international links and has offered programs in Laos, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Japan, the South Pacific region, Europe, the Middle East and South Africa.

UTS: Education has seen increasing numbers of international students from Japan, China, South Korea and from countries in Africa and the Middle East. The most popular courses with international students are in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) and individual subjects done in study abroad programs.

In the teacher education courses students have the opportunity to do professional experience in Thailand, Samoa and Korea. The Bachelor of Arts in International Studies is also available as a combined degree with UTS: Education undergraduate degrees and offers students the opportunity to live and study overseas in one of a number of countries of choice for two sessions.

Teacher education

UTS: Education offers pre-service teacher education courses for beginning teachers in primary and secondary education.

Teacher education is offered in a full-length degree, which may be taken as a four-year Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of Education (C10350) or as a five-year combined Bachelor of Education Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (C10349). Both courses provide a fully recognised teaching qualification in primary, secondary and K–12 education. There is also a non-teaching qualification exit option, the Bachelor of Arts in Educational Studies (C10209), for students who complete three years of study.

Secondary education is also offered as a graduate-entry program, the Master of Teaching in Secondary Education (C04255), for students with a recognised bachelor’s degree, or an equivalent or higher qualification. The course offers major studies in English, mathematics, science, PDHPE, mathematics/science and HSIE (business studies/economics).

Other postgraduate courses are designed for qualified and experienced teachers who wish to extend their professional skills. These include master's courses in TESOL and Education (Research) .

People considering teaching as a career should be aware that teachers need:

• high levels of competence in literacy and numeracy
• high levels of competence, or the willingness to achieve competence, in information and communication technologies, and
• a fundamental interest in learning.

Initial teacher education courses

The initial teacher education courses available are:

• Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of Education (C10350)
• Bachelor of Education Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (C10349), during which students prepare for teaching and acquire knowledge and understanding of another language and culture, with two sessions spent overseas
• Master of Teaching in Secondary Education (C04255)

The Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of Education (C10350) and the Bachelor of Education Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (C10349) are interlinked and designed to prepare students for teaching in primary and/or secondary schools. The two courses share a common core of professional experience, key learning areas and contextual studies. This common structure enables students to change courses at the end of their first year, subject to places being available.

In addition, the Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of Education (C10350) allows students to study a choice of electives or a sub-major in TESOL or special education. Meritorious students can instead choose to complete an honours program (C09082). In the Bachelor of Education Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (C10349), students undertake a country major choice instead of electives or honours.

The Master of Teaching in Secondary Education (C04255) is designed to prepare students to teach in secondary schools. Students must already have a degree majoring in their teaching area. The course combines professional experience, contextual studies and methods subjects in the student's major. Depending on the student's previous degree, there is also the possibility of a second teaching subject. There are two professional experience placements.

Professional experience

Professional experience contains two interlinked elements:

• campus-based studies that examine the range of theoretical issues, skills and procedures central to effective pedagogical practice, and
• field experiences where students engage in a variety of professional interactions in schools and other educational settings.

These combined elements foster the development of professional knowledge, skills and attitudes with which teachers should begin their careers. Students may apply to undertake field experience in an existing international professional experience program in Thailand, Korea or Samoa, except for students in the Master of Teaching in Secondary Education.

Through its provision of developmentally sequenced and integrated campus and field-based experience, the professional experience streams promote learning about learning, learning about self, learning about school life and learning about teaching.

UTS: Education rules specify that failing a professional experience subject for the first time places the student on probation and failing the same teaching professional experience for the second time leads to exclusion.

All students participating in the internships that require them to supervise students without the presence of a qualified teacher are subject to a criminal records check by the NSW Department of Education and Training. The department, on the basis of the criminal records check, reserves the right to reject or suspend the participation of any student in such programs. It is expected that such security checks also apply to schools other than NSW departmental schools.

Criminal records checks are carried out only with the student's consent. All students are requested to complete a form that authorises a criminal records check to be undertaken. Any refusal to undergo the check results in the student being unable to complete the course requirements.

Full details are provided in general information.

See MyPlacement (professional experience allocation system for teacher education).

Key learning areas

The key learning areas in the teacher education courses are:

• mathematics
• science and technology
• human society and its environment (HSIE)
• personal development, health and physical education (PDHPE)
• creative arts
• English.

The Master of Teaching in Secondary Education (C04255) offers major studies in the following areas:

• English
• mathematics
• science
• PDHPE
• mathematics/science
• HSIE (business studies/economics).

Contextual studies

Subjects within the contextual studies stream encourage students to draw on perspectives gained from all components of their degree, so that in the latter part they can refine and articulate their personal theories of learning and justify them with reference to research evidence from classroom practice and theoretical insights.

Bachelor of Arts in Educational Studies

Students who were originally admitted into the Bachelor of Teaching in Secondary Education (C08002), Bachelor of Education in Primary Education (C10206), Bachelor of Education Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (C10208), Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of Education (C10350), Bachelor of Education Bachelor of Arts in International Studies (C10349) Master of Teaching in Secondary Education (C04255) have the opportunity of transferring to the three-year Bachelor of Arts in Educational Studies (C10209) (subject to the approval of the course coordinator). This degree does not provide qualifications to teach.

For further details contact:

telephone 1300 ask UTS (1300 275 887)
Ask UTS

Adult education

UTS: Education offers adult education postgraduate courses for people who work, or wish to work, as language, literacy and numeracy educators or in a research capacity across areas such as education and learning, vocational education and training.

Adult education courses are shaped by the following educational principles derived from adult learning theory.

• Learning is a collaborative endeavour involving the mutual negotiation of meaning and understanding.
• Learning is enhanced through the recognition and use of experience and the acquisition and application of knowledge in practice-based activities.
• Learning is a lifelong and socially embedded activity, dependent on mutual respect, diversity of approach and the recognition of relevance to learning.
• Learning involves the appreciation and application of theories in the different and changing contexts of professional practice.
• Learning is enhanced through discussion, critical thought and reflection on taken-for-granted assumptions and practices.
• Learning involves mutual obligations based on the valuing of difference, respect for diversity, responsible and ethical self management.
• Learning is a developmental process involving the recognition, articulation and transformation of knowledge, personal values and theoretical frameworks.

Workplace/flexible learning

Recognising the competing demands of work and home life for students, UTS: Education aims to offer adult education courses in a variety of study modes. Students may be able to choose to study full time or part time depending on their selected subjects. Some subjects are offered in a variety of learning modes including weekly classes, blocks (intensive, face-to-face learning programs conducted over a number of days each session, often during school holidays) and weekend workshops. The Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma and Master of Arts in TESOL course can be done by distance, provided the applicant is a qualified teacher.

telephone 1300 ask UTS (1300 275 887)
or +61 2 9514 1222
fax +61 2 9514 3939
Ask UTS
UTS: Education

Professional Development

Professional Development provides consultancy services and workplace training programs in the fields of training, human resource development and vocational education.

Michelle Hatcher
telephone +61 2 9514 3888
fax +61 2 9514 3811