PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION
1. Programme title and designation MA International Education 2. Final award
Award Title Credit
value
ECTS equivalent
Any special criteria
MA International
Education
180 90 N/A
3. Nested award
Award Title Credit
value
ECTS equivalent
Any special criteria
N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
4. Exit award
Award Title Credit
value
ECTS equivalent
Any special criteria Postgraduate
Diploma
Social Science and Public Policy (International Education)
120 60 N/A
Postgraduate Certificate
Social Science and Public Policy (International Education)
60 30 N/A
5. Level in the qualifications framework M 6. Attendance
Full-time Part-time Distance learning
Mode of attendance N/A N/A X
Minimum length of programme N/A N/A 2 years
Maximum length of programme N/A N/A 6 years
7. Awarding institution/body King’s College London 8. Teaching institution King’s College London
9. Proposing school Education, Communication & Society 10. Programme organiser and contact
Details
Dr David Pepper
david.pepper@kcl.ac.uk 11. Relevant QAA subject benchmark/
Professional, statutory and regulatory body guidelines
N/A
12. Date of production of specification 13 June 2016
13. Date of programme review TBC – reviews are currently suspended while the College undertakes portfolio review
Fac approved August 2017 checked June 2018 14. Educational aims of the programme
A. To introduce participants from Nord Anglia Education (NAE) to:
1. Competing perspectives on the social, political and economic trends that account for the growth of international education and the diversity of practices in international schools.
2. Contemporary theoretical and empirical research on: international education, including curriculum and assessment; intercultural education; second language teaching; and leadership and management, in the context of international schools.
3. Values underpinning social science; ethical considerations in education research; and, the constraints and affordances of quantitative, qualitative, mixed and research
methods in the context of international education.
B. To enable the participants to:
1. Share and learn from their experiences of working in a diversity of international schools with other participants, both online and offline.
2. Critically engage with the particular policy and practice issues that are most of interest to themselves, their schools and NAE.
3. Design, complete and disseminate an academically rigorous international education research and development project with practical relevance to their own personal professional development, their school and NAE.
15. Educational objectives of the programme/programme outcomes (as relevant to the SEEC Credit Level Descriptors)
The programme provides opportunities for students to develop and demonstrate knowledge, understanding, skills and attributes as follows.
Knowledge and understanding The programme provides a knowledge
and understanding of the following:
1. The origins and growth of the field of international education and current debates about what constitutes an
‘international education’.
2. The contested nature of globalisation and its implications for international schools and their staff, students, curriculum and assessment.
3. Key concepts, theories and approaches in intercultural and international education.
4. The theory and evidence underpinning second language teaching
methodologies.
5. Approaches to teaching, learning, assessment and administration in international schools with culturally diverse staff and students.
6. Theory and evidence concerning governance, leadership and
These are achieved through the following teaching/learning methods and strategies:
Guided reading with structured tasks Moderated asynchronous online forums Facilitated synchronous online and face-to-face sessions
Group work, discussions and debates Guided critical reflection
Dissertation supervision
Formative feedback on tasks and assignments
Assessment:
Annotated bibliography Literature review
Reports on the development of data collection instruments
Reflective case studies on international school policies and practices
Education business or marketing plan
management, particularly in regard to international schools.
7. Practical responses to leadership and management issues in international schools.
8. Research methodology, including ethical considerations and the utility of selected research methods in
international education.
9. Selected issues in international education that are most of interest to students, their schools and Nord Anglia Education.
Proposal for international education research project (IERP)
Dissertation on IERP
Skills and other attributes Intellectual skills
Participants will demonstrate the ability to:
1. Analyse, synthesise and evaluate theory, evidence and frameworks from relevant academic and policy
literature.
2. Use theory, evidence and frameworks to critically reflect on and enhance their own, their schools’ and Nord Anglia Education’s practices.
3. Identify areas of current practice in their schools or in Nord Anglia Education more generally that would benefit from education research and development.
4. Formulate research questions, develop a methodological approach for conducting an international
education research project, and reflect on the effectiveness of the approach.
5. Develop creative, theoretically- informed and research-based responses to issues in international education.
These are achieved through the following teaching/learning methods and strategies:
Guided reading with structured tasks Moderated asynchronous online forums Facilitated synchronous online and face-to-face sessions
Group work, discussions and debates Guided critical reflection
Dissertation supervision Assessment:
Annotated bibliography Literature review
Reports on the development of data collection instruments
Reflective case studies on international school policies and practices
Education business or marketing plan Proposal for international education research project (IERP)
Dissertation on IERP
Practical skills
Participants will demonstrate the ability to:
1. Identify, access and collate relevant academic and policy literature concerning international education.
2. Use ICT to communicate effectively with tutors and peers, as necessary for a blended learning programme.
3. Write for, and present research to, different audiences, including academics and colleagues.
These are achieved through the following teaching/learning methods and strategies:
Guided reading with structured tasks Moderated asynchronous online forums Facilitated synchronous online and face-to-face sessions
Group work, discussions and debates Guided critical reflection
Dissertation supervision Assessment:
Fac approved August 2017 checked June 2018 4. Develop a coherent and context-
sensitive approach to the organisation and delivery of international schooling.
5. Plan and manage an international education research project of practical relevance to Nord Anglia Education.
Participation in online forums for modules in the programme Annotated bibliography Literature review
Reports on the development of data collection instruments
Reflective case studies on international school policies and practices
Education business or marketing plan Proposal for international education research project (IERP)
Dissertation on IERP
Generic/transferable skills
Participants will demonstrate the ability to:
1. Communicate effectively for
professional and academic purposes.
2. Follow developments in theory, research and frameworks to continue to critically reflect on existing or new practices in educational settings.
3. Plan and manage small-scale
research and development projects in educational settings.
4. Work effectively both individually and in teams, including in managerial roles.
5. Reflect on their own professional development needs, and those of their staff, and select appropriate strategies to meet these needs.
These are achieved through the following teaching/learning methods and strategies:
Guided reading with structured tasks Moderated asynchronous online forums Facilitated synchronous online and face-to-face sessions
Group work, discussions and debates Guided critical reflection
Dissertation supervision Assessment:
Participation in online forums for modules in the programme Annotated bibliography Literature review
Reports on the development of data collection instruments
Reflective case studies on international school policies and practices
Education business or marketing plan Proposal for international education research project (IERP)
Dissertation on IERP
16. Statement of how the programme has been informed by the relevant subject benchmark statement(s)/professional, statutory and regulatory body guidelines (UG: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/ASSURINGSTANDARDSANDQUALITY/SUBJECT-GUIDANCE/Pages/Honours-degree- benchmark-statements.aspx
PGT: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/AssuringStandardsAndQuality/subject-guidance/Pages/Master%27s-degree-benchmark- statements.aspx)
There are no relevant benchmark statements or professional, statutory or regulatory body guidelines which apply to this programme.
17. In cases of joint honours programmes please provide a rationale for the particular subject combination, either educational or academic
Not applicable.
18. Programme structure
Please complete the following table and, if appropriate, to include joint, major/minor or other variations Code = code of each module available for the programme
Title = title of each module available for the programme, plus its credit level and credit value
Status = please indicate whether the module is introductory (I), core (Cr), compulsory (Cp), one or more of however many modules must be passed to progress (CrCp), (P) professional (i.e. module testing skills/competency that has no credit level or value but is a professional body requirement) or optional (O) for each type of programme. For postgraduate programmes use the "single honours" column
Pre-requisite/Co-requisite = where appropriate please indicate whether the module is pre-requisite to another module or co-requisite by noting pre or co and the module code that it is pre/co-requisite to.
Assessment = please indicate in broad terms the assessment for the module e.g. written examinations, coursework
(Note: the availability of optional modules may vary slightly from year to year; the following are the modules available at the commencement of the programme)
Code Title Credit
Level
Credit Value
Status (I, Cr, Cp, CrCp, P, O) for each type of module
Pre-requisite/ Co- requisite
(Please note the module code)
Assessment
Single Joint Major/
Minor
Single Joint Major/
Minor First Year
7SSER001 International education and international schools
7 30 Cp N/A Coursework
7SSER002 Intercultural education and international schools
7 15 Cp N/A Coursework
7SSER003 Research methods for international education I
7 15 Cp N/A Coursework
Second Year
7SSER004 Second language
acquisition and teaching in international schools
7 15 Cp N/A Coursework
7SSER005 Research methods for international education II
7 15 Cp N/A Coursework
Fac approved August 2017 checked June 2018 7SSER006 Leadership and
management in international schools
7 30 Cp N/A Coursework
7SSER007 International education research project and dissertation
7 60 Cp N/A Dissertation
If a Master’s programme, are level 6 credit levels permitted within the programme? No
Maximum number of credits permitted with a condoned fail (core modules excluded); 30 credits Are students permitted to take any additional credits, as per regulations? No
Are students permitted to take a substitute module, as per regulations? No
Are there are any exceptions to the regulations regarding credits, progression or award requirements? (where relevant the information should also differentiate the particular requirements of pathways within a programme or nested/exit awards)
Students with 120 credits can gain the Postgraduate Diploma exit award (this may include the credits for the dissertation). Students with 60 credits may exit with a Postgraduate Certificate.
Other relevant information to explain the programme structure
The programme has been developed specifically for staff at Nord Anglia Education and, distinctively, is offered through blend ed-learning (predominantly distance-learning). The programme is therefore only available as part-time study and no optional modules are offered.
19. Marking criteria
The College criteria for assessment of postgraduate work will be applied as follows:
Distinction
A mark of 70 or above is awarded when students show:
-Wide reading
-Relevant literature has been selected and interpreted
-A very good grasp of the major substantive and theoretical issues relevant to the chosen topic
-A well-developed understanding of the relationship between theory and practice, where appropriate
-Independent analytical thinking, critical insight, sophisticated reasoning and creativity -Very well structured, well-focused and coherent argument
-Very well presented with accurate and appropriate referencing.
Merit
A mark of 60-69 is awarded when students show:
-Relevant literature has been selected and interpreted
-The student has read around the topic and has looked at a range of ideas and synthesised relevant points to make a coherent argument
-A grasp of the relationship between theory and practice, where appropriate -Some evidence of critical insight and creativity
-Well presented with accurate and appropriate referencing.
Pass
A mark of 50 or above is awarded when students show evidence of most of the following:
-The most obvious literature has been interpreted and used correctly but you are left thinking 'yes but you've missed out a couple of key authors'
-The argument is coherent in parts but is weak in others
-There is some evidence that the student understands what has been read -Some evidence of critical insight or creativity
-There will be indications that the student has grasped fundamental concepts and procedures in the field
-The work is adequately presented and referenced.
Fail
A mark of below 50 indicates a fail when students do not satisfy the above criteria. The work will show many of the following faults:
-Relevant literature has either not been interpreted correctly or used inappropriately -The student has not looked at a range of relevant ideas;
-The student has not synthesised relevant points to make a coherent argument;
-Research involved in the writing of module work may be poorly organised and inadequately discussed.
-Work may also be given a mark below 50 for poor presentation i.e. of a standard not consistent with that expected for work at this level. The general impression will be that this work is not yet at Master’s level.
20. Will this Programme report to an existing Board, and if so which one? If a new Assessment Sub Board is to be set up please note name of Board here
“Master’s in International Education” Programme Assessment Sub-Board 21. Please confirm that the process for nominating External Examiners has
commenced, and if known, note whom the nominated External Examiner(s) may be Dr David Phillips
Fac approved August 2017 checked June 2018
22. Measures to help ensure that the programme is inclusive to all students
It is anticipated that students will have a range of academic and professional experience.
Tutors will use formative assessment familiarise themselves with students’ experiences, and respond with differentiation strategies to ensure programme content and delivery methods are inclusive. The blended (online/offline) delivery of the programme permits some flexibility in content and methods.