Handbook

The Bachelor of Education (Primary) (Honours) is an undergraduate initial teacher education program developed in partnership with the New South Wales Education Standards Authority.

The inclusion of an embedded honours track, along with specialisations in English and Mathematics, reflects the nexus between high expectations in initial teacher education and the provision of high quality, inspirational teachers in primary schools in this program.  

There is an emphasis on applying the latest research into evidence-based practice and ensuring our staff model the use of the most up-to-date technologies and approaches to curriculum. The program addresses contemporary and emerging developments in education, curriculum requirements, community expectations, and our local and national employer needs and workforce demands.   

The embedded honours provides students opportunity to extend interests developed in their specialist area of education (e.g., English, Mathematics, or in an alternative area of interest within primary education) by undertaking a self-directed minor thesis, supported by a supervising academic. The honours thesis must demonstrate synthesis and application of knowledge and skills developed in coursework components of their program either in English or Mathematics, which supports a teaching specialisation, or in an alternate area of interest.

Students develop a proposal for educational research in a research methods course in university term 1 of year 3. In year 4 they apply their knowledge of research methodologies to implement this proposal in the form of a thesis. 

The program will be accredited by the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA), enabling graduates to teach in both government and non-government primary schools in all states of Australia and overseas.  The program supports students to meet the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers at graduate level.

Academic lecturers and local teachers with experience in primary education work together to provide core education courses and discipline-specific curriculum and pedagogy studies within the six key learning areas of the primary curriculum:  

• English  
• Mathematics  
• Science and Technology 
• History and Geography  
• Creative Arts  
• Personal Development, Health and Physical Education 

The journey to becoming a graduate teacher is enriched through the dynamic interaction of practice and theory through school-based experiences during the program. Students engage in an integrated program of discipline studies, educational studies and time in schools in years 2, 3 and 4. They engage in in-school experiences in year one. The third year includes a four-week block of professional experience (practicum) in university term three where they teach their first whole-class lessons under the careful supervision and scaffolding provided by an expert supervising teacher. This solid block of professional experience is a great foundation to their coursework and deeper research-oriented investigations in Year 4. Their professional learning journey culminates in the fourth year with a nine-week block of professional experience (practicum) at a different school complemented by the completion of a Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment designed so that pre-service teachers can demonstrate their readiness for the classroom at Graduate level.   

This program is available face-to-face or distance (online with some face-to-face, i.e. multimodal). Should you need to pursue the entire program fully online, please reach out to the School to address your study plan needs: education@unsw.edu.au. Fully online mode is only available to domestic students and students not on an international student visa.