Post Graduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning course is an in-service study for practicing teachers. The course is an enjoyable and valuable professional development experience. The ideas and experiences that you will encounter on the course will enhance your practice in supporting learning and will enhance your wider professional development.

Being a student at this course is a hard work and at times you may have moments of frustration and exhaustion, but at the same time you will have an opportunity to discover your own strengths and to capitalise on them.

You will become a part of a learning community of students coming from a variety of backgrounds and you will discover new things about yourself, experience a ‘rainbow’ of emotions and get professional satisfaction.    

 Aims of the course

The aim of the PGC in Teaching and Learning is to provide a wide range of opportunities for participants professional development. This includes support for immediate teaching practice and related concerns, exchanging advice and guidance and the opportunity to share experiences with peers, engagement with research in education, assistance in planning for learning, teaching and assessment.  More specifically the course aims to:

• Engage participants with the educational literature and encouraging a scholarly approach to their practice;
• Provide a means to foster reflection;
• Enhance the quality of participants’ learning experience through sharing good practice principles and expertise;
• Promote digital learning opportunities;
• Encourage professional networking in wider communities of practice;
• Facilitate a variety of professional development opportunities;
• Support engagement with pedagogic issues in specific disciplines through curriculum design and assessment;

What will you be expected to achieve?  

Learning Outcomes

Learning outcomes are statements on what successful students have achieved as the result of learning. These threshold statements of achievement are linked to the knowledge, understanding and skills that a student will have gained on successfully completing a course.

On completion of the course the successful student will be able to

Knowledge and understanding

1. Demonstrate awareness of broad notions, concepts and theories of teaching, learning, assessment and material design;
2. Provide an underpinning rationale for their approach to teaching/ supporting learning informed
3. by educational literature and current best practice;
4. Demonstrate an awareness of the impact of the broader external and institutional context on the student experience and curriculum development;
5. Have enhanced their own professional practice through critically evaluation and reflection. 

Specific skills

1. Design and develop teaching and assessment strategies;
2. Promote student learning through assessment and feedback;
3. Evaluate learning materials and processes with reference to current research and developments in the subject/field;
4. Support student learning in a variety of contexts using traditional and e-learning tools.

Key transferable skills

1. Communicate appropriately in the professional context;
2. Act autonomously taking professional responsibilities employing critical thinking;
3. Work as part of a team;
4. Plan on-going professional development;
5. Utilise e-technologies to support learning and teaching.

Course structure
In order to be awarded a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning, a student must pass modules worth at least 60 credits. Course structure can be subject to change each academic year following feedback from a variety of sources.

Modules are described as:
Core modules are ones that must be undertaken and passed by all students on the course.
Option modules are related to your specific course from which you must choose.