Why study this course
Earn while you learn on this work-based programme
National Student Survey for 2021 showed 91% overall satisfaction with the Professional Studies programme
Study with the support from a research active academic team who have relevant practice experience
You will have the opportunity to work towards the Early Childhood Graduate Competencies completed at level 6
Course summary
Are you ready to expand upon your Foundation Degree or diploma relating to Early Childhood? Do you want to progress your qualification into a full honours degree? Do you want to do it all without leaving work? Our BA (Hons) Early Childhood Education in Practice top up degree is a course designed to be studied for alongside your career working with young children.
Key facts
|
Award |
BA (Hons) |
|---|---|
|
UCAS code |
L521 |
|
Duration |
1 year |
|
Mode of study |
Full-time |
|
Start date |
September |
|
Awarding institution |
Bishop Grosseteste University |
|
Institution code |
B38 |
About this course
Having already completed a suitable Foundation Degree or Higher Education Diploma in Early Childhood, the BA (Hons) work-based degree programme is a combination of practice-based learning and campus-based teaching sessions that take place once a week, allowing you to continue working or volunteering throughout the course. The programme is the natural progression for those who have previously studied our Foundation Degree Early Childhood Education in Practice.
Throughout the one-year programme, you will integrate your previous learning experience of working with young children into your studies. The course provides you with an insight into effective management and leadership within the children’s workforce, where you will have the opportunity to develop your understanding of the complex factors that contribute to children’s learning and development.
Building on your previous knowledge and understanding gained from your foundation degree, this course aims to stretch and deepen your understanding of how to support children by exploring alternative and international perspectives to child development. You will be able to collaborate with students from other related courses who work in a variety of contexts such as schools and youth services to increase your employability by broadening your perspectives on working with children and young people.
Throughout the programme, the BA (Hons) Early Childhood Education in Practice combines the full and relevant criteria of the Department for Education as well as the graduate competency requirements of the Early Childhood Studies Degree Network (ECSDN) and includes elements of assessed practice. This means that after successfully completing the BA (Hons) Early Childhood Education in Practice you will have the opportunity to obtain this sector-recognised accreditation.
Entry requirements
Applicants will typically have 240 HE credits from a Foundation degree or a HE Diploma in a relevant field of study.
In line with the criteria for Full and Relevancy, Early Childhood Education students will be required to have a Level 2 functional skills qualification in English and Mathematics or a BGU approved equivalent qualification.
Applicants are expected have a current (or prospective) voluntary or paid employment in a relevant setting for a minimum of 360 hours per academic year equating to 12 hours per week of study.
Typically, applicants are expected to have three years of experience in a voluntary or paid role working with children.
Students must complete and submit a workplace agreement that sets out the tripartite partnership between the student, the setting and the BGU and clearly identifies the student holds a current DBS as a condition of enrolment.
Applicants with alternative qualifications can contact our Admissions team for advice as BGU is committed to widening access and participation and adheres to a strict policy of non-discrimination.
Further information
In accordance with University conditions, students are entitled to apply for Accredited Prior Learning, AP(C)L, based on relevant credit at another HE institution or credit awarded for experiential learning, (AP(E)L). If you’ve recently completed or studied a particular module as part of a previous qualification, this may mean that you’re not required to undertake a particular module of your BGU course. However, this must be agreed in writing and you must apply for this.
How you will be taught
This course allows you to study and continue to work. It is a flexible qualification covering the broad range of settings and contexts in which services such as education, health and social care are provided for 0 – 8-year-olds. Students undertaking the course remain in employment, or as volunteers, over the academic year in the same manner as the Foundation Degree.
The top up degree offers opportunities to critically evaluate practice through a detailed analysis of the systems, procedures and changes that contribute to your field of study. This course will promote your professional formation as a reflective practitioner and modules will cover topics such as leading people and teams, promoting quality, new models of practice and contemporary issues such as current political and social trends.
In addition, the undertaking of an independent research study will support your continuing development as a leading practitioner within the children’s workforce.
Assessment
A variety of assessment methods are used including presentations, discussions, debates, poster presentations, essays, portfolios of work, case studies and reflections. All assessments allow you to reflect on your practice and theory as you evidence your learning, building on your personal strengths to develop clear communication skills to share your knowledge and understanding.
Careers & Further study
Graduate opportunities have enabled our students to attain managerial positions within their sector, to lead practice with their setting. Many go on to further study to become teachers through our PGCE routes, or gain a professional status. Others take on professional roles in areas such as special educational needs, mentoring, subject support, school, family and welfare liaison roles in the wider educational community and with local authorities working with the full range of age groups and sectors.
What Our Students Say
Discover what life is like at Bishop Grosseteste University from our students.
Support
Studying at BGU is a student-centred experience. Staff and students work together in a friendly and supportive atmosphere as part of an intimate campus community. You will know every member of staff personally and feel confident approaching them for help and advice, and staff members will recognise you, not just by sight, but as an individual with unique talents and interests.
We will be there to support you, personally and academically, from induction to graduation.
Fees & Finance
A lot of student finance information is available from numerous sources, but it is sometimes confusing and contradictory. That’s why at BGU we try to give you all the information and support we can to help to throughout the process. Our Student Advice team are experts in helping you sort out the funding arrangements for your studies, offering a range of services to guide you through all aspects of student finance step by step.
Undergraduate course applicants must apply via UCAS using the relevant UCAS code. For 2023 entry, the application fee is £27, and you can make a maximum of 6 choices. For 2024 entry the application fee is £27.50.
For all applicants, there are full instructions at UCAS to make it as easy as possible for you to fill in your online application, plus help text where appropriate.
Ethical considerations of doctoral methodologies Podcast
Dr Nyree Nicholson is a Programme Leader on our work-based Foundation Degree programmes. The title of her doctoral research was “Supporting children with identified speech, language and communication needs at two-years-old: voices of early years practitioners”. Nyree utilised a narrative hermeneutic methodology with conversational interviews to explore the lived experiences of fifteen early years practitioners.
Samantha Hoyes is a senior lecturer in Early Childhood Studies and is currently part way through her PhD. Her focus is on working motherhood in the 21st Century and how working mothers make sense of their identities. Applying a post-structuralist feminist approach, Sam has utilised photo elicitation interviews to explore working mothers lived experiences. Sam's sample will consist of 10-15 working mothers living in Lincolnshire with a child/ children aged 0-5 years at the time of data collection. She is currently around halfway through her initial data collection.
In this podcast, Nyree and Sam discuss the methodological approaches taken in the research process and share the ethical considerations they encountered throughout the research process.
For any more question or queries please contact Samantha.hoyes@bishopg.ac.uk and nyree-anne.nicholson@bishopg.ac.uk
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