Syllabus: Dip Ed

Programme details for the Diploma in Education

Courses Presented in This Programme

The Dip. Ed includes the following compulsory courses:

• Profession of Education
• Teaching Experience
• Development Psychology: Lifespan
• Social Psychology

Duration of the Programme

This programme has a minimum learning duration of eight months before the qualification certificate can be issued. The maximum learning duration is normally two years.

Prerequisites

Completion of the Cert Ed or having been granted the status of a Cert Ed qualification through the process of recognition of prior earning (RPL), as confirmed by the CU Senate.

Single courses may be enrolled for to complete other qualifications. In such cases the student must consider that the courses were planned and selected sequentially by CU to serve as foundational knowledge for the more advanced courses.

Profession of Education

Credits: 19

Synopsis. For Foundations of Education or Introduction to Teaching courses.

This popular, motivational introduction to the field of education and the roles of today's teachers focuses on four main aspects of teaching: general characteristics of the profession; various needs of today's learners; approaches to management, teaching, and assessment; and, influences of technology, philosophy, sociology, and history on today's educators. Guided by the well-known belief that “this is only the beginning,” coverage exhibits a realistic emphasis on the topics that will be of particular concern to novice teachers, especially a unique methods lecture: Teaching and Assessing. Numerous projects throughout the material actively engage readers in text content, while the special features encourage reflection, analysis, and self-discovery.

Outline. The following aspects are reflected in this course:

• PART 1: THE PROFESSION.
  Education in a Age of Change. Becoming a Professional Educator. Challenges of School Reform.
• PART 2: LEARNERS AND THEIR NEEDS.
  Profiles of Today's Learners. Responding to Diversity. Meeting the Needs of Exceptional Learners.
• PART 3: TEACHING AND ASSESSING.
  The Curriculum. Effective Instruction. Classroom Management and Discipline. Assessing Learning.
• PART 4: SHAPERS OF TODAY'S EDUCATIONAL WORLD.
  Social and Philosophical Perspectives. Historical Influences. Influences of Technology. Legal Issues Affecting Learners and Teachers.

Teaching Experience

Credits: 13

Synopsis. Appropriate course for Student Teaching/Field Experience.

This efficient course guides the student teacher, the cooperating teacher, and the university supervisor from day one in the assigned classroom through the adjustments of beginning to teach in the classroom and on to the certification and job application processes. The 163 cases included are about real-life, everyday classroom activities. It is unique in the fact that it has more potential application for immediate use than any other course in the field.

Outline. The following aspects are reflected in this course:

• I. A PROFESSIONAL ENTRANCE.
  Getting Off to a Good Start. Getting to Know Administration, Faculty and Staff. Becoming Familiar with School Property. Becoming Familiar with School Policies. Discovering School Referral Services. Observations. Evaluation of the Student Teacher. Legal Status. Ethics of the Teaching Profession.
• II. THE PEOPLE INVOLVED.
  The Student Teacher. The Cooperating Teacher. The University Supervisor. The Students in the Classroom.
• III. DIVERSITY.
  Multicultural Students. Special-Needs Students.
• IV. STUDENT LEARNING.
  Helping Students Learn. Some Current Theories. Learning Styles. What Seems to Work.
• V. PLANNING FOR SUCCESS.
  Planning.
• VI. CLASSROOM ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT.
  Classroom Organization. Classroom Management.
• VII. THE TEACHING PROCESS.
  Teacher Competencies. Student Teaching Communication. Availability of Materials. Implementation of the Classroom Process. Instructional Evaluation.
• VIII. THE NEXT PROFESSIONAL STEP.
  Certification. Job Placement.

Development Psychology: Lifespan

Credits: 25

Synopsis. This course has a topical approach to child development and is the most current and comprehensive course available.

It has new pedagogy, a heightened emphasis on the interplay between biology and environment, expanded coverage of culture, and an enhanced focus on education, health, and social issues.

Students are provided with an especially clear and coherent understanding of the sequence and underlying processes of child development, and the effective topical organization emphasizes to students the interrelatedness of all domains of development — physical, cognitive, emotional, and social—throughout the course narrative and in special features.

While carefully considering the complexities of child development, the course presents classic and emerging theories in an especially clear, engaging style, with a multitude of research-based and real-world examples. Strengthening the connections between application and theory or research, this course brings forth the most recent scholarship in the field, representing the changing field of child development.

Outline. The following aspects are reflected in this course:

• I. THEORY AND RESEARCH IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT.
  • History, Theory, and Applied Directions. Child Development as a Scientific, Applied, and Interdisciplinary Field. Basic Issues. Historical Foundations. Mid-Twentieth-Century Theories. Recent Theoretical Perspectives. Comparing Child Development Theories. Applied Directions: Child Development and Social Policy.
  • Research Strategies. From Theory to Hypothesis. Common Methods Used to Study Children. Reliability and Validity: Keys to Scientifically Sound Research. General Research Designs. Designs for Studying Development. Ethics in Research on Children.
• II. FOUNDATIONS OF DEVELOPMENT.
  • Biological Foundations, Prenatal Development, and Birth. Genetic Foundations. Reproductive Choices. Prenatal Development. Prenatal Environmental Influences. Childbirth. Approaches to Childbirth. Birth Complications. Heredity, Environment, and Behavior: A Look Ahead.
  • Infancy: Early Learning, Motor Skills, and Perceptual Capacities. The Organized Newborn. Motor Development in Infancy. Perceptual Development in Infancy. Early Deprivation and Enrichment: Is Infancy a Sensitive Period of Development? 5. Physical Growth. The Course of Physical Growth. Development of the Brain. Factors Affecting Physical Growth. Puberty: The Physical Transition to Adulthood. The Psychological Impact of Pubertal Events. Puberty and Adolescent Health.
• III. COGNITIVE AND LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT.
  • Cognitive Development: Piagetian, Core Knowlege, and Vygotskian Perspectives. Piaget's Cognitive-Developmental Theory. The Sensorimotor Stage (Birth to 2 Years). The Preoperational Stage (2 to 7 Years). The Concrete Operational Stage (7 to 11 Years). The Formal Operational Stage (11 Years and Older). Piaget and Education. Overall Evaluation of Piaget's Theory. The Core Knowledge Perspective. Evaluation of the Core Knowledge Perspective. Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory. Vygotsky and Education. Evaluation of Vygotsky's Theory.
  • Cognitive Development: An Information-Processing Perspective. The Information-Processing Approach. General Models of Information Processing. Developmental Theories of Information Processing. Attention. Memory. Metacognition. Applications of Information Processing to Academic Learning. Evaluation of the Information-Processing Approach.
  • Intelligence. Definitions of Intelligence. Recent Advances in Defining Intelligence. Representative Intelligence Tests for Children. The Computation and Distribution of IQ Scores. What and How Well Do Intelligence Tests Predict? Ethnic and Socioeconomic Variations in IQ. Explaining Individual and Group Differences in IQ. Early Intervention and Intellectual Development. Development of Creativity.
  • Language Development. Components of Language. Theories of Language Development. Prelinguistic Development: Getting Ready to Talk. Phonological Development. Semantic Development. Grammatical Development. Pragmatic Development. Development of Metalinguistic Awareness. Bilingualism: Learning Two Languages in Childhood.
• IV. PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT.
  • Emotional Development. The Functions of Emotions. Development of Emotional Expression. Understanding and Responding to the Emotions of Others. Temperament and Development. Development of Attachment. Attachment, Parental Employment, and Child Care.
  • Self and Social Understanding. Emergence of Self and Development of Self-Concept. Self-Esteem: The Evaluative Side of Self-Concept. Constructing an Identity: Who Should I Become? Thinking About Other People. Thinking About Relationss Between People: Understanding Conflict.
  • Moral Development. Morality as Rooted in Human Nature. Morality as the Adoption of Societal Norms. Morality as Social Understanding. Moral Reasoning of Young Children. Development of Self-Control. The Other Side of Self-Control: Development of Aggression.
  • Development of Sex Differences and Gender Roles. Gender Stereotypes and Gender Roles. Influences on Gender Stereotyping and Gender-Role Adoption. Gender Identity. To What Extent Do Boys and Girls Really Differ in Gender-Stereotyped Attributes? Developing Non-Gender-Stereotyped Children.
• V. CONTEXTS FOR DEVELOPMENT.
  • The Family. Evolutionary Origins. Functions of the Family. The Family as a Social System. Socialization Within the Family. Family Lifestyles and Transitions. Vulnerable Families: Child Maltreatment.
  • Peers, Media, and Schooling. The Importance of Peer Relations. Development of Peer Sociability. Friendship. Peer Acceptance. Peer Groups. Peer Relations and Socialization. Television. Computers. Schooling. How Well Educated Are American Young People?

Social Psychology

Credits: 22

Synopsis. This Social Psychology course has motivated students to take social psychology out of the classroom and into their lives. It has now been combined with a free, online source of relevant and timely articles on social psychology.

With a research approach, it provides many opportunities for students to go beyond the course content and learn more about social psychology from articles in leading social science journals, popular magazines, and the New York Times.

Outline. The following aspects are reflected in this course:

• The Field of Social Psychology: How We Think About and Interact with Others
• Social Perception: Understanding Others
• Social Cognition: Thinking About the Social World
• Attitudes: Evaluating the Social World
• Aspects of Social Identity: Self and Gender
• Prejudice: Its Causes, Effects, and Cures
• Interpersonal Attraction: Initial Contact, Liking, Becoming Acquainted
• Close Relationships: Family, Friends, Lovers, and Spouses
• Social Influence: Changing Others' Behavior
• Prosocial Behavior: Helping Others
• Aggression: Its Nature, Causes, and Control
• Groups and Individuals: The Consequences of Belonging
• Social Psychology in Action: Applications to Law, Medicine, and Organizations

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