EDU-10033 - Module Specification
School of Social Sciences
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Programme/Approved Electives for 2024/25

Available as a Free Standing Elective

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2024/25

Is learning a matter of conditioning or making impressions on a blank sheet, or is the mind itself active in exploring the world around it? Do we learn individual items one by one or in a random way? What is the relationship between language and learning? Why do some people learn easily at school and in higher education while others encounter enormous or insuperable difficulties? What are the most effective learning strategies to adopt? This module will introduce students to contemporary and historical theories of learning. It makes use of these in an exploration of educational practice at various levels and encourages students to reflect on their own learning in the context of higher education.

To enable students to reflect critically on some of the more significant contributions to our understanding of the nature and processes of learning and their relevance to educational practice and students' learning in higher education.

Intended Learning Outcomes

articulate the central contribution of a number of theorists to an understanding of the learning process and some of the limitations and reservations to which they are subject: 1
apply their knowledge to some substantial areas related to learning and education
: 1
recognise and contribute to debates about formal and informal contexts for learning
: 1
communicate ideas and arguments about different educational learning environments and the values underpinning their organization: 1
identify how they best learn, and the strengths and weaknesses of their individual approach to learning: 1
drawing on a range of sources of information, recognise, analyse, sythesise, evaluate, and identify problems and solutions: 1
comment on ways in which theorists contribute to educational studies and educational practice
: 1

Study hours

11 hours lectures
11 hours workshops
11 hours of structured engagement with online resources
30 hours directed study (recommended reading)
37 hours of private study
50 hours preparation period for assessment (including draft)

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment