MASTER OF ARTS

IN

TEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE (TEFL)

TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE (TESOL)

COURSE OUTLINE

CONTENTS

1. Course Structure and Content.

2. Aims and Objectives.

3. Entry Requirements.

4. Teaching and Learning Methods.

5. Methods of Assessment.

6. Assessment Regulations.

7. Supervision and Cohorts.

1. Course Structure and Content.

The course is designed to be completed within twenty-two months by a student devoting ten to twelve hours per week, working by distance learning. A student wishing to take a longer period to complete the Course will be entitled to do so, provided that he/she completes the requirements for the Course within thirty-six months.

Candidates will normally join the Course at one of four entry points during the year: Autumn Semester - October and January. Spring Semester - April and July. They will be assigned to a supervisor and to a cohort of students.

The Course currently consists of 10 modules, a dual-staged practicum component, and a dissertation topic. In order to achieve a pass, a Candidate must satisfy the examiners in each module of the Course. The University reserves the right to vary the number and nature of the modules examined. Currently, they are:

A. The Methodology, Practise and Principles of Teaching English as a Foreign/Second Language,
B. The Linguistic Nature of Language,
C. Second Language Acquisition and Initial Language Development,
D. Language Systems and Grammatical Discourse,
E. Language Learning and Learner Styles,
F. Communication and Linguistics,
G. Language and Cultural Identity,
H. Advanced Applications, Techniques and Technology in the Language Classroom,
I. English as a Language of Global Communication,
J. Major Research Issues and Recent Trends in TEFL/TESL,
K. A Tiered Teaching Practicum,
L. A Dissertation Topic.

2. Aims and Objectives.

The principal aim of the Course is to provide the student with the knowledge and skills required to teach English as a foreign/second language. To this end, the Course will grant students knowledge of the nature of language and its acquisition, understanding of the global role English language plays, and implications of current research and theory in the field. Focus will also be placed on the development of practical methodologies of teaching and learning principles for use in the classroom. The course will provide solid practical and academic foundations for anyone wishing to become engaged in the practise of English language teaching.

3. Entry Requirements.

Minimum entry requirements for the Course are as follows:

A first degree in any discipline,
or,
Membership of a professional body whose qualifications may be deemed to be the equivalent of
a degree.

Candidates will normally have attained the age of twenty-four years and will be expected to show a proficiency in the English language.

Candidates whose first language is not English will be required to demonstrate a minimum level of English language proficiency.

The above notwithstanding, each application will be considered on its own merits and the University will give consideration to candidates from a diversity of backgrounds who can demonstrate the capacity to succeed within the course. However, admission to the Course and all interpretations as to the eligibility for such admission remain at the discretion of the University.

4. Teaching and Learning Methods.

The delivery of the teaching for the Course is by distance learning. The material is designed to give the student maximum flexibility as to the pace of learning. Course materials will consist of Topic Lists, detailed directed reading from set texts and secondary literature, reading lists covering background material, Progress Assessment Tests, and minor and major assignment topics. In addition, a tiered teaching practicum will be conducted as the students learning progresses.

Topic Lists. These will be a summary of the topics or sub-sections that are to be covered in the relevant module. They will include a summary of the topics covered under the module teaching, KEY LEARNING POINTS, (KLPs) and the names of theorists or writers associated with KLPs.

Text books. The second major element of teaching for the Course is the Text Book. Because of the likely circumstances of students, studying away from access to major libraries, effort has been made to concentrate
teaching upon the standard classic texts for each module that provide a sufficient coverage of the topics dealt with in the Course. Students will be directed to the relevant portions of each text, in the order that these should be tackled against each topic heading in the appropriate sequence.

Background Reading. A list of general texts and articles, relating to each module, will also be presented to the student for further reading, either during the Course or for follow up work. In an effort to support the distance learning mode of the course, each module will also contain references to electronic articles available for download over the Internet.

Progress Assessment Tests, (PATS). A further component of the learning will be the PATs. These will normally take the form of a series of complex exercises or questions, designed to test and solidify the student's grasp of the major concepts contained within each topic of the module. While they will necessarily be of an "open book" nature, they will require the student, not only to research the literature of the subject presented but to demonstrate understanding and discrimination of the material presented throughout the course. While the results of the PATS will not count towards final assessment, and may thus be seen as "non-punitive", a student will be required to have achieved a satisfactory pass, (see Section 5 - Methods of Assessment), in the relevant PATS for each module, before being allowed to tackle the minor and major assignments for that module.

Minor and Major Assignments. The requirements of these elements of the Course are dealt with in detail in Section 5 - Assessment Regulations. In terms of the teaching philosophy of the Course, the following outlines apply. The Minor Assignment, for each module, will be designed to allow the student to adequately demonstrate a grasp of the basic principles and main elements associated with that module. The major assignment, on the other hand, will require the student to demonstrate an awareness of the role that the topics covered in the relevant module play in terms of the wider context of the course, namely, the practise of teaching English as a foreign/second language.

Tiered Practicum Component. The practicum component of the Course will allow students to observe as well as implement strategic elements of the course as study progresses. The dual-staged practicum consists of the completion of 20 hours of EFL/ESL teaching observation, and 40 hours of practical EFL/ESL teaching. It is the responsibility of the student to organise the undertaking of this part of the course at an institution in their locale. Naturally, students with prior teaching experience may be exempt from participation in this element of the course.

5. Methods of Assessment.

Each student will be examined in all the core modules of the Course A through J, and the MINIMUM PASS (GRADE "C" - 50%), must be achieved for each module. In addition to this, students are required to successfully complete stages of the practicum teaching component throughout the duration of the course. There are no traditional "three hour" examination papers, although students will be required to satisfy the examiners as to their suitability to proceed to the Minor and Major assessment stages of each module by satisfactory performance at the Progress Assessment Test, (PAT) stage. A failure at this stage may be re-tested on up to two subsequent occasions.

Over and above this requirement, all students will be required to submit a short introductory paper, based upon guided reading, which will assess their capability to deal with later work. A student who fails to attain a satisfactory standard in this paper will receive the appropriate guidance before being invited to proceed with the main body of the Course.

The assessment for the Course will consist of two elements. A Portfolio of Assignments and the Dissertation. The Portfolio will account for 70% of the final Grade for the Course. The Dissertation will account for 30%. Each of these will be presented to the University for formal assessment, in the form of separate volumes, (two copies of each), typed and bound according to the University's current regulations.

The Portfolio of Assignments will consist of a selection of assignments of the student's choice. Despite this regulation, students will be required to have achieved MINIMUM PASS on the average of the Minor and Major assignments as submitted for EACH module. This minimum to pass a module, (see below), is an average of Grade "C" (50%), where Minor Assignments attract a weighting of 40% of the total for a module and Major Assignments attract 60%.

The Portfolio will consist of any four Minor Assignments and any four Major Assignments of the student's choice. It is expected that students may wish to amend previously submitted assignments to reflect Supervisor's comments. It must be noted, however, that Supervisors will offer only one set of criticisms for any given assignment that achieves a minimum pass mark. No further advice will be offered for an assignment that is to be included in the Portfolio.

Minor assignments for each module will consist of a submission of not less than 3500 words and not more than 5000 words in which the students factual grasp of the basic principles and main elements of the module will be tested. The major assignment of each module will consist of a paper between 5000 and 7000 words, that will seek evidence that the student can not only grasp the technicalities and theories of the module topic but also place their relevance in the wider context of the field.

The Dissertation is seen as the student's opportunity to apply the subject matter of the Course to a particular “real world” language learning or teaching research topic that he/she is particularly interested in. As such, it will be a negotiated process between student and Supervisor, in which the former offers suggestions for possible detailed study for "tailoring" the research to meet the dual needs of academic rigour and the students personal objectives. Here, suffice it to say that the Dissertation will be written on a topic, based upon current major research issues and the recent trends of TEFL/TESOL, agreed between Supervisor and student, that will be worthy of the attraction of 30% of the overall marks for the Course and will be between 11000 and 14000 words in length. While the supervisor will offer help on the formulation and execution of the Dissertation, once the Dissertation is submitted, it WILL be taken as the final submission.

6. Assessment Regulations.

i. In order to be eligible for the award of the appropriate qualification a candidate must make the submissions as required by the relevant Definitive Course Document within the prescribed time limit - IN THIS CASE, THIRTY-SIX MONTHS - subject to any extension granted.

ii. The Examiners shall have the right to award a mark of DISTINCTION to a student who has shown exceptional merit in the examination process.

iii. A candidate for examination may, for reasons adjudged adequate by the University, be exempted from any part of the normal examination or assessment procedure.

iv. If an essay or report is otherwise adequate but requires minor amendment, such amendment may be made, within six weeks of notice to the student.

v. The marking scheme of the University sets the pass mark for the Course at C = 50%. The mark for DISTINCTION is A = 70%. The range of marks is as follows: A, B+ B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D.

7. Supervision and Cohorts.

The University is aware of the need to provide first rate supervision to students, given the fact that they are working in a distance learning mode. Each cohort of students, joining the Course at a given entry point - will be allocated a Supervisor who is either an experienced academic or proven practitioner in the field of Teaching English as a Foreign/Second Language. He or she will be the students' guide through the Course.

Distance learning can be a difficult and isolating experience, and it is proposed that each cohort of students should receive a list of its peers. These will be people who are undergoing the same stresses and strains. They will be facing the same problems and the same assignment difficulties at a similar time. Rather than feeling isolated, it is the University's hope that students will wish to join with others to share their experiences in a fellow feeling of a community. Unless an individual student wishes to maintain anonymity, each Cohort of students will be given a list of their peers, in the hope that the over all standard of their work, their performance on the Course and, above all, their experience as a student is enhanced.

©Copyright Knightsbridge University 2005. No part of this Course Outline, in part or in whole, may be reproduced, distributed or used for commercial purposes without the written consent of Knightsbridge University.