Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE LLI1002

 
TITLE School Experience and Practicum 1

 
UM LEVEL 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course

 
MQF LEVEL 5

 
ECTS CREDITS 6

 
DEPARTMENT Leadership for Learning and Innovation

 
DESCRIPTION In this study-unit students will be introduced to theoretical and practical issues related to life in schools and classrooms. They will become familiar with teaching as a profession through weekly observations in Primary Schools. Tutorials will guide student teachers to discuss and reflect on educational issues and their implications for teaching and learning.

Student teachers will be assigned to classrooms to plan and teach a number of lessons during a block placement, normally scheduled towards the end of the study-unit. Students will gain first-hand experience in organising and planning a teaching practice file with all the relevant components including schemes of work, lesson plans, self-evaluations and pupil profiles.

Study-unit Aims:

This study-unit offers student teachers:
- the opportunity to work with children directly;
- to prepare and deliver lessons for the particular age group for whom they are responsible;
- to evaluate the multi-faceted roles of a teacher in a primary school setting;
- to gain the necessary skills which are required for successful teaching;
- to develop organised and systemic ways of planning;
- to become familiar with the school routine, the School Leadership Team and staff, school curricula, textbooks and additional supporting resources.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

• Recognise the need for careful and systematic planning in the primary school;
• Draw up relevant schemes of work and lesson plans;
• Compare, evaluate and distinguish quality planning to cater for primary school learners;
• Critically reflect upon the links between theory and practice;
• Describe ways of creating positive learning environments;
• Analyse classroom dynamics from psychological, sociological & academic perspectives;
• Become aware of the teaching/learning processes; and
• Begin to develop a repertoire of teaching skills suitable for the primary classroom context.

2. Skills
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

• Observe classroom events with a view to critically reviewing and analysing learning processes;
• Select and adapt teaching skills to meet the needs of a given group of children;
• Lead, organise and manage a group of primary school children;
• Collaborate with other adults in a professional team in the primary school setting;
• Compile a TP file which facilitates the teaching/learning process;
• Prepare specific lesson plans;
• Prepare schemes of work;
• Design, plan and prepare effective teaching resources;
• Develop research skills;
• Develop reflective skills to improve practice;
• Develop effective communication skills.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

Main text:

- Faculty of Education Field Placement Manual
- Wien, C. A. (2015). Emergent curriculum in the primary classroom: Interpreting the Reggio Emilia approach in schools. Teachers College Press.

Supplementary readings:

- Calvo de Mora, J. and Wood, K. (2014). Practical knowledge in Teacher Education: Approaches in teacher internship programmes. Oxon: Routledge.
- Cheng, M. M. H. (2018). Facilitating student-teacher professional learning in their field experience. Routledge.
- Hodges, T. E. and Baum, A. C. (2018). Handbook of research on field based teacher education: Advances in higher education and professional development. IGI Global.

 
ADDITIONAL NOTES Please note that a pass in each assessment component is obligatory for an overall pass mark to be awarded.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture, Placement and Practicum

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Analysis Task [See Add. Notes] SEM2 No 50%
Fieldwork [See Add. Notes] SEM2 No 50%

 
LECTURER/S Maria Emmanuela Attard
Rachel Bonett
Eliza Cachia
Rosienne Camilleri
Daniela Demicoli
Daniela Grima Bezzina Borg
Josephine Milton
Amanda Amanda Maria Morales
Michelle Panzavecchia
Mariella Zikic

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit