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The rationale that underpins the BSc Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science Education courses is that good teachers, as well as being committed to and capable of promoting fruitful learning among their pupils, also need to be proficient, constructive critics of their own work. This means developing among student teachers, the attitudes and practices of proactive, co-operative, reflective practitioners. In this module, with the aid of video recording and editing technology, student teachers will practise and develop the skills of lesson planning and lesson delivery and will engage in practical tasks that are designed to encourage critical reflection in a safe environment. These include video recording, editing and presenting in conjunction with group and classroom discussion. Through engagement with Junior Cycle curriculum and methodology classes, students will begin the process of developing skills for curriculum planning and development. Another component of the module is the introduction of restorative practices. Working as reflective practitioner’s student teachers will need to develop skills in building positive, sustainable relationships by evaluating how they communicate. This module will seek to scaffold communication by demonstrating a value based restorative approach to building and maintaining relationships. Student teachers will be given the opportunity to work in restorative circles and will be supported to practice restorative questions and conversations. The programme will enable participants to reflect on their emotional intelligence, use of empathy and understanding of fairness. By studying anger, blame and shame student teachers will evaluate their ability to problem solve and transform how they communicate. This module continues to explore the complexity and breadth of the teacher’s role in teaching and learning of science, maths, and computer science in semester two. The theoretical underpinnings of STEM education are explored in tandem with school-based experience in a post-primary school. The concept of curriculum alignment will be explored in general and in subject-specific context. Students will continue to develop skills in becoming critically reflective practitioners, including participation in cooperative learning groups and peer evaluation. The module is designed to prepare student teachers for their first placement experience. They will develop teaching and presentations skills and receive feedback from peers and lecturers. They will also learn to deliver professional feedback to colleagues. Meanwhile, they will explore restorative practices through discussion and practice-based sessions. The placement experience affords student teachers the opportunity to observe teaching (including team teaching), to lead group discussions and to assist in the development of a variety of instructional materials.
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