Welcome to the Department of Education
We are a department within the Faculty of Human Sciences, a Faculty of Macquarie University, located in the central part of campus in North Ryde.
OVERVIEW
Macquarie University, with its first student intake in 1967, had the School of Education as one of its founding schools. In 2009, as part of the Faculty of Human Sciences the School has been renamed the Department of Education. The Department of Education has an international reputation for the quality of its programs, its research, scholarship and service to the educational community. Currently, within the department, there are over 30 full-time academic staff supported by administrative staff and sessional academics. Academic staff are involved in teaching, research and community outreach. The Department of Education has strong links with the broader educational community through professional associations and active involvement with education providers at all levels.
The Department of Education offers a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate programs. The undergraduate programs lead both to teaching (primary and secondary) and careers in other educational contexts. In addition, units in Education can be included as electives in a number of other undergraduate programs. A study in Education is a useful adjunct to studies in many other areas of the Humanities, Social Sciences, Psychology and Linguistics.
We are a major Australian provider of undergraduate courses leading to a teaching qualification and each year graduate approximately 250 students as beginning teachers. A commitment to a university-wide program, a developmental model for the practicum and close links with participating schools and teachers are features of our pre-service teacher education programs.
POSTGRADUATE COURSES
The Department has a strong postgraduate focus and offers research programs at the PhD and Masters levels. Coursework Masters degrees in Education, Higher Education, and Educational Leadership cater for a diverse range of interests spanning teaching and learning in school, higher education and other adult contexts, learning with technologies, learning in professional areas such as Medicine, Science and the Environment, and educational leaders and managers. A feature of the coursework offerings is the flexible delivery of many units, it is possible to complete most postgraduate degrees online.
Teacher Education Learning Laboratories (TEL Labs)
The TEL Labs on the ground floor of C5A exist for students who intend teaching in schools. It is a facility that has grown over the years in response to the needs of intending teachers as these needs are often different from those of other university students. Specifically, the TEL Labs exist to provide students with an understanding of the role of various information and communications technologies found in schools, and model their use in modern classrooms.
Within the Labs is one computer laboratory using Intel Macintoshes running both Mac OS X and Windows XP operating environments, and a series of other teaching spaces with Interactive Whiteboards and each teaching space can be turned into a computer laboratory with wireless laptops. There is a variety of educational software and all rooms can access the Internet via wireless hubs. Within the TEL Labs intending teachers are able to practise their pedagogical skills with a range of teaching equipment, prepare resources and consult syllabus documents.
