Course Outline
UCC PME is a two-year 120 credit level 9 full-time teacher education course, designed to qualify graduates as post-primary secondary school teachers. It is fully recognised and accredited by the Teaching Council of Ireland for the purpose of registration as a professional post-primary teacher in Ireland and the EU.
Deferrals are not permitted on this programme due to the competitive nature of the programme.
Application for this programme is online through the PME PAC site at PAC PME
The PME combines two-year-long school placements with university lectures and tutorials, which develop student teachers' requisite professional knowledge, skills, understanding and competence. Students are introduced to best practice in teaching, learning and educational research with special emphasis on meeting the diverse needs of learners, on the curriculum and on current issues in education. Students are encouraged to integrate educational theory and practice through extensive reflection on their own professional classroom practice. They are supported in their development by experienced teachers in schools and tutored by specialist School of Education staff in nurturing their professional identity as teachers. It will be necessary to limit the number of students admitted to the programme; UCC's current quota is circa 120 students per year. Within this quota, a subject quota of 10 applies to Business Studies and Business related degrees.
It is organised in partnership with co-operating second-level schools, normally located within a 50 km (30 mile) radius of Cork city. During PME school placements, students only teach the subject(s) for which they hold recognition by the Teaching Council of Ireland.
At the end of the course, you will have acquired the professional knowledge, understanding and skills that you need to teach your subject or subjects in a second-level school. You will have gained practical experience in two contrasting school settings, and developed your ability to respond flexibly to the diverse and changing educational needs of students aged 12 to 18 years. You will have been challenged, encouraged and invited to question and deepen your beliefs and assumptions about the purpose of education, the nature of teaching and learning and the role of the teacher in the 21st century.
Students should note that the following post-primary teaching subjects are currently supported on the programme: Business Studies (including Accounting and Economics), CSPE*, English, French, Gaeilge, Geography, German, History, Italian, Maths, Music, Religious Education, Science (including Biology, Chemistry and Physics), Spanish.
*CSPE: Students presenting with CSPE must have a second teaching subject.
Important Note: A minimum number of students is required for the subject-specific modules to run each year (cross-subject support may be provided if student numbers are low).
For Year 1; Responsibility for securing a placement school from the list of UCC School of Education PME co-operating schools rests entirely with the student. School placement should not be secured until students have been offered a place on the PME programme. After selection by the school, students must sign a placement form and are contracted until the end of the school year to carry out their teaching placement in the school in question. Students must ensure that there is a minimum of twelve students in their placement class group for supervision purposes.
For Year 2; Each student is expected to have a contrasting placement experience in a different school context for Year 2. The placement school for Year 2 will again be selected by the student but, the choice will be mediated by the School of Education Placement Co-ordinator and must be approved by the School of Education.
As part of their University programme, some students are required to undertake placement and training that involves dealing directly with patients, clients or service users. This programme is subject to the University's Fitness to Practise Policy - full details may be found here: Policy Students will be required to start on their school placement anytime from 19th August 2019 onwards.
*Note: To be eligible for appointment to an incremental salaried teaching position in a secondary school, a teacher must be registered. It is the Teaching Council alone which has the authority to determine what constitutes adequate qualifications for registration purposes. See www.teachingcouncil.ie for registration details.
Irish Language Requirement: While the Irish requirement has been removed for the generality of second-level teachers who do not use Irish in their everyday work, teachers of Irish and teachers employed in Gaeltacht schools and in other schools where Irish is the medium of instruction will be required to be fully proficient in Irish. A special course in spoken Irish, run by An Gaeilge Labhartha, UCC, will be available to students during their Professional Master of Education studies.
Why Choose This Course
Teaching as a profession is both challenging and rewarding. The best teachers are those who combine a passion for their subject with the skills necessary to teach it to a variety of learners, and who enjoy interacting daily with a variety of young people. Good teachers can make a real difference in young people's lives. The PME in UCC is a ground-breaking and innovative teacher education programme, which is excellent preparation for teaching at second level. It incorporates the latest research in the field of education studies with a key emphasis on fostering innovative and inclusive classroom pedagogies.
Placement or Study Abroad Information
Two school placements in two contrasting post-primary schools (one in Year 1 and one in year 2) is an integral part of this course. For practical reasons, placement schools must normally be within 50 km (30 miles) of UCC. Students may also elect to complete a placement in an Irish medium immersion post-primary school setting.
Comment
Course Practicalities
Once offered a conditional place, students must arrange a first-year school placement from the list of co-operating schools provided. Commencing and registering for the programme is dependent on securing a school placement. Second-year students also organise their second placement in a contrasting school setting mediated by the School of Education Placement Co-ordinator. You must teach a specified number of lessons per week in both Years 1 and 2, as laid down by the School of Education to meet the requirements of the Teaching Council. School placements last for the full school year, during which student teachers are expected to participate fully in school life. College lectures and tutorials commence in late August/early September and are held on specific days in both academic years.
Assessment for the PME is primarily by continuous assessment with a small number of written exams. Continuous assessment includes project work related to the various modules culminating with the writing up of a larger piece of professional classroom/school research at the end of Year 2. There is a strong emphasis on the integration and application of theory and practice throughout all assignments. School placement is assessed over a series of visits to the placement school by the allocated university tutors. Students must pass both the school placement and course-work modules in both years in order to be awarded the PME.
Examinations
Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards 2019/20
The PME brings together the strengths of academic and school practice-based professional expertise. Those who teach on the programme have extensive first-hand experience in schools, and many of them have also published extensively in the field of educational studies, as well as in curriculum and textbook design. The full-time academic staff are supported by a team of part-time tutors and supervisors, who are experts in the teaching of specific subjects. The full-time staff of the School of Education who teach on the PME are:
Mr Kevin Cahill Research profile KCahill
Dr Tracey Connolly http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/tconnolly
Dr Alicia Curtin http://research.ucc.ie/profiles/A013/acurtin
Mr Michael Delargey http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/mdelargey
Dr Siobhan Dowling http://research.ucc.ie/profiles/A013/sdowling
Professor Kathy Hall http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/khall
Dr Declan Kennedy http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/dkennedy
Dr Karl Kitching http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/kkitching
Dr Fiachra Long http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/flong
Ms Jacinta McKeon http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/jmckeon
Dr Brian Murphy http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/bmurphy
Dr Máire Ní Riordáin Research profile M O Riordáin
Dr Stephen O'Brien http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/sobrien
Dr. Dan O'Sullivan http://publish.ucc.ie/researchprofiles/A013/danosullivan