This programme will provide opportunities for school-leavers with proven ability and interest in languages to acquire a high level of cultural and communicative competence in two languages. The languages students can choose from are French, German, Irish, Japanese and Spanish. You will choose two of these.
The programme is four years in duration and includes a number of school-based teaching practice placements. These include a six-week placement in the spring semester of year two and a further ten week placement in autumn semester of year four. These placements are designed to provide you, the student teacher, with practice-based opportunities for professional development supported via the supervision of faculty members of the University.
Prior to the completion of your teacher education studies you will need to provide verifiable evidence of an immersive educational experience in the curricular language of a minimum of four weeks duration. This may be accessed in two blocks, each of which must be at least two weeks. At least one of these blocks must be in a setting where the language is the vernacular language of the region/country.
The immersive educational experience(s) must be one of the following:
- attending a language course
- working as a staff member in an educational setting
- conducting an action research project which is of relevance to your teaching studies
- engaging in School Placement.
By the end of this course, graduates will:
- Demonstrate the required skills to competently and confidently teach through the target languages
- Apply their professional knowledge base to planning and implementing appropriate teaching, learning and assessment strategies and integrate this knowledge with qualities of inquiry and reflective practice
- Observe, reflect and critique practice in a variety of educational settings as well as engaging in non-teaching activities.
- Demonstrate the professional competencies identified in the Teaching Council’s Codes of Professional Conduct for Teachers
- Exercise sound judgement, based on well-considered educational principles, in their planning, design and delivery of relevant disciplinary based teaching and learning experiences in second-level schools
- Develop the personal and interpersonal skills necessary to promote the academic, social and personal development of students in their care
Year 1
Semester 1
- Contemporary Understandings and Thinking on Education
- Elective Language 1 Module
- Elective Language 1 Literature Module
- Elective Language 2 Module
- Elective Language 2 Literature Module
Semester 2
- Understanding Young People and How They Learn
- Educational Technologies for Teaching and Learning
- Elective Language 1 Module
- Elective Language 1 Literature Module
- Elective Language 2 Module
- Elective Language 2 Literature Module
Year 2
Semester 3
- Planning for Learning
- Understanding Classroom Practice
- Language Pedagogy 1
- Elective Language 2 Module
- Elective Language 1 Module
Semester 4
- School Placement 1
- Language Pedagogy 2
Year 3
Semester 5
- Curriculum and Policy Studies
- Inclusive Education 1 Contemporary Perspectives
- Optional elective module. Students will select one module from a tailored suite of elective modules designed to broaden and enrich their understanding of languages education.
- Elective Language 1 Module
- Elective Language 2 Module
Semester 6
- Inclusive Education 2: Special Education Needs
- Elective Language 1 Module
- Elective Language 1 Literature Module
- Elective Language 2 Module
- Elective Language 2 Literature Module
Year 4
Semester 7
Semester 8
- Teacher as Professional
- Elective Language 1 Module
- Elective Language 1 Literature Module
- Elective Language 2 Module
- Elective Language 2 Literature Module
