Arts, Learning & Community Certificate/Diploma

The purpose of this innovative course is to provide a bridge between theory and practice of the arts, learning and community involvement. As such it is aimed towards those with a teaching interest in arts education as well as those who wish to deepen their knowledge of arts theory and practice.

Format: Each of the three taught modules will comprise face-to-face sessions where issues will be presented and explained. Follow up online work will extend critical thinking. Opportunities to practice and extend understanding of arts and learning will be afforded in a school based project.

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Module  1 (20 HOURS, 5 ECTS) :

Creative and Imaginative Pedagogies 

20 hours: 3 Saturdays:   25th Feb, 10th March, 24th March (6 f2f hrs x 3), + 2 hours online during one of those weeks

The first module will lead participants through theories of the imagination and creativity and their link to pedagogy. The focus will be theoretical in the first instance but supported with illustration and practical examples for classroom and community settings. Participants will explore a range of creative processes through various materials (text, image, moving image, audio, digital, 3-dimensional) and appraise their potential contribution to creative, higher-order teaching and learning across subject areas and class levels, and other artistic learning environments. The module will afford many opportunities for group discussion and practical experience of arts and learning.

Assessment for Module 1: Written assignment  2,500 words

Module  2  (20 HOURS, 5 ECTS)

Arts Education Policies and Practices

Module 2  (20 hours) Post-Easter 2012 ; 20 hours  (6 f2f hours x 2); + 8 hours online

In this module, policies in arts education will be explored from national and international perspectives. Participants will also have opportunities to explore a range of models of arts practice in the community and to evaluate their relative merits. Key themes of collaboration, teacher-artist partnerships and other creative partnerships will be to the fore. The purposes and functions of arts practice in the community will be discussed with a particular emphasis on the use of arts for social cohesion. A driving question in this module will be to examine how the aims of an arts project can be fully realised so that learning—artistic and educational—can be maximised.

Assessment for Module 2: Written assignment  2,500 words

Module  3 (20 hours, 5 ECTS)

Integrated Arts

Module 3  (20 hours) July: Summer course (Dublin based)

In this module participants will have opportunities to engage with a range of art forms and to explore the resources of the national cultural institutions, galleries, museums and other arts spaces in the urban environment. As a summer module, emphasis will be placed on outdoor as well as indoor resources. Students will be encouraged to employ a range of media and technological tools in their personal encounters with art forms and in the transformation of such experiences into meaningful educational experiences for others.

Assessment for Module 3: Presentation/written assignment 2,500 words

 

Module  4 (5 ECTS)

Reflective Practice in a School-Based Project

Module 4 (School based project) Autumn 2012; Online preparation for school-based work

This unit will consist of an assignment that is based in a school or other educational workplace. Participants will be required to prepare and teach a number of lessons that focus on Arts, Learning & Community, and evaluate the lessons according to specific framework(s) of professional reflection and evaluation. College staff will monitor the work.

Assessment for Module 4: The students will be required to keep a diary of a series of lessons they will have taught in their class. The diary will include reflections, observations and evaluations of these lessons as well as an overall plan of the content of the lessons. A framework for these diaries will be given to the students. (5 ECTS)

 

Diploma in Education: Completion of Dissertation

The students will attend a non-assessed course in research methods and undertake a short dissertation in an area of inquiry related to Arts, Learning and Community. Students will be assigned to tutors on an individual basis and attend additional support seminars in groups. Dissertation (7,500-8,000 words)

Tutors: Regina Murphy, Simeon Murray, guest lecturers and other experienced practitioners.

 

For further information on the course regulations and structure, click here

 

Note: Information is correct at the time of publication but may be subject to change.

Last Updated: Tuesday January 24 2012