Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Senior and Middle Schooling) (BASM) - BABEd(SeniorandMiddleSchooling)

This program is offered only to continuing students. No new admissions will be accepted. Students who are interested in this area of study should contact us.

Contact us

Current students

Telephone 1800 007 252 (within Australia freecall), +61 7 4631 2285 (from outside Australia), email usqassist@usq.edu.au or submit a question via USQAssist.

Program focus

This program is designed to prepare teachers for employment in both compulsory (secondary) and post-compulsory education sectors in two of the following areas: English Literature, Drama, History, Visual Arts Practice, German Language, Indonesian Language and Mandarin Chinese Language.

Career opportunities

Graduates of this program can apply for teaching positions in secondary schools throughout Australia. This combined degree broadens the range of students’ knowledge and skills and therefore enhances their appeal to prospective employers in the public and private sectors.

Professional accreditation

Graduates who successfully meet all program requirements will be eligible to apply for registration as a teacher in Queensland.

Note: The Queensland College of Teachers (formerly the Board of Teacher Registration, Queensland) is required to conduct national criminal history checks on all new applicants for teacher registration in Queensland.

Program aims

Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Senior and Middle Schooling) is a four-year full-time equivalent on-campus program designed to prepare students for employment in a range of sectors that serve the needs of middle years (Years 5-10), senior years (Years 11-12) and Graduates from this program typically seek employment in middle schools, secondary schools, senior schools and colleges. Additionally, some graduates may wish to seek employment within the areas encompassed by their Arts majors.

This level of award is required for eligibility to apply for teacher registration in Queensland. Applicants from other states or countries should check local requirements for teacher registration before enrolling in this program.

Program objectives

Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Senior and Middle Schooling) is designed to prepare teachers for employment in both compulsory and post-compulsory education sectors and to satisfy the National Competency Framework for Beginning Teaching as outlined below:

• using and developing professional knowledge and values

• communicating, interacting and working with middle and senior years students and others

• planning and managing the middle and senior years teaching and learning process

• monitoring and assessing student progress and learning outcomes as appropriate for middle and senior years students

• reflecting on, evaluating and planning for continuous improvement of middle and senior years teaching and learning.

Additionally, successful completion of the program entails the achievement of the following objectives specific to the major studies areas completed through Faculty of Arts courses:

• the ability to express thoughts with clarity and coherence

• the ability to comprehend the fundamental nature of the process of communication in a range of forms, including its formal and informal, oral and written, verbal and non-verbal, aural and visual modes

• have competence in the specified aims and objectives of their chosen major

• competence in using computers.

Underlying these objectives is the important principle that teacher education is a continuing process embracing both pre-service and in-service education. Accordingly, graduates of Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Senior and Middle Schooling) program will be competent beginning teachers able to assume a continuing responsibility for their own professional and career development.

Admission requirements

Normal Entry

Applicants who have completed year 12 at a Queensland secondary school (or its equivalent) are eligible for consideration under the standard admission requirements. The Overall Position (or its equivalent) is used as the general basis for selection. Applicants must have obtained at least 'Satisfactory Achievement' or equivalent over four semesters in English.

For Visual Arts Practice Strand – an interview and folio submission is required during Orientation week.

Alternative Entry

Subject to the policies and regulations of the University of Southern Queensland and the Faculties of Education and Arts, applicants who do not hold formal recognised qualifications as mentioned above, but who have extensive relevant industrial, commercial and/or professional training and work experience, may be considered for alternative entry into the program.

Duration

Four years full-time study (ONC) or equivalent through flexible ONC up to a maximum duration of nine years.

Mode of Delivery

Full-time on-campus. Some discipline studies may be offered and/or undertaken in the external mode.

Program fees

Student contribution amount

For domestic students who are offered Commonwealth supported places, the Government pays some money directly to the University, but students are also required to make a contribution. This contribution is called the ‘student contribution’. For more information about student contribution amounts, including the calculation of fees for a particular program of study, refer to USQ fees.

Tuition fee

Domestic fee-paying places are funded entirely through the tuition/direct fees paid by the student. Tuition/direct fees vary depending on the courses that are taken. For more information about Tuition Fees, including the calculation of fees for a particular program of study, refer to USQ Fees.

International fees

International students pay tuition fees. For details about international student fees, refer to the International Fee Schedule provided by USQ International.

Program structure

Students seeking preparation for work in the Catholic Education system may complete a Religious Education course available cross-institutionally through the Australian Catholic University in external mode. Students intending to do this should negotiate with the Program Coordinator to seek possible exemption from the program's elective unit of study.

Program completion requirements

To be awarded the four-year combined Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Senior and Middle Schooling) degree in the Faculty of Education, students must have normally completed 33 units of credit at the undergraduate levels 1 – 4, comprised of four core Education and Arts units, 14 Arts content units, and 15 professional education units. The Arts content studies must include two seven-unit Arts majors.

Areas of Study and Related Courses

Arts Content Studies in the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Senior and Middle Schooling

Arts content studies are such that students develop appropriate tertiary level understanding of both the specialised as well as applied related areas of content they will teach into. This will include the central concepts, relevant knowledge, the structure of the discipline, and characteristic modes of inquiry. Content studies in Arts will provide the avenue for developing high levels of content knowledge with an emphasis on academic competence in two specialist teaching areas.

English Literature

History

Drama

Indonesian Language

German Language

For students who have completed Year 12 or equivalent:

Mandarin Chinese

Visual Arts Practice

Communication and Media Studies

Communication and Media Studies and Creative Multimedia are not to be taken together. Both majors may be subject to a quota. As limited Schools Experience placements are available in Toowoomba, students may need to travel to schools outside of Toowoomba for their teaching experience placements.

Creative Multimedia

Creative Multimedia and Communication and Media Studies are not to be taken together. Both majors may be subject to a quota. As limited Schools Experience placements are available in Toowoomba, students may need to travel to schools outside of Toowoomba for their teaching experience placements.

Required time limits

Students have a maximum of 9 years to complete this program.

Elective courses

Students complete one education elective course in their program. Normally this would be taken in the final semester of the program. Students choose their elective from a list of approved courses (other education courses may be undertaken with approval from the Program Coordinator prior to enrolment). Normally, elective courses will be at USQ levels 1 – 4, however students may (with approval from the Program Coordinator), enrol in a first level postgraduate (Level 5) course.

Practical experience

Students enrolling in combined programs are required to undertake 110 days professional experience. At least 80 days must occur in approved educational environments under direct supervision of a mentor teacher. Mentor teachers must have academic qualifications and experience appropriate for Teacher Registration in Queensland. Some professional experiences may occur outside the Darling Downs region.

Working with children suitability card 'blue card' requirement

The Commission for Children and Young People Act (2000 and 2005) applies to all students over the age of 18 who will be working with children/students under the age of 18 in Queensland settings as a component of their program of preservice education. Students under the age of 18 are not able to apply until they reach 18 years of age.

All pre-service educators will have to complete the application consenting to a criminal history check so that a suitability check may be carried out. Preservice educators must be in possession of the 'Blue Card' and a positive notice prior to commencing any placement or activity in a school or centre or training setting.

This is the key element in the process that will result in a determination that the student is either 'suitable' or 'unsuitable' to work with children. Students who are deemed 'unsuitable' will not be able to undertake professional experience or Professional Context Experience (PCE) placements in Queensland settings.

Students who do not possess a current 'Blue Card' will be unable to complete the professional experience component of their programs and will be unable to meet graduation requirements.

Detailed information about the Blue Card application process is available from the following website http://www.usq.edu.au/education/profexp/bluecard.htm

IT requirements

Students will be expected to have access to a computer with common productivity software (e.g. word processing, email, web browser). Specific information about computer requirements and standards is available from the following website http://www.usq.edu.au/ict/students/standards/default.htm.

Residential schools

As part of their elective or Arts content studies, students may enrol in courses that have residential school components. Students who choose to enrol in such courses will be expected to meet the residential school requirements associated with the chosen course.

Exit points

Students who are unable to complete the full 33 unit requirement of this program may, subject to Program Coordinator approval, be eligible to exit this program with the following qualifications. The relative number of professional education units and content units are detailed for each exit qualification. Students who wish to exit at these points must meet the requirements outlined in the following table:

Exemptions

Within relevant USQ policies, exemptions will, in general, only be granted where a student has completed formal studies of an equivalent nature and level to the course or courses for which an exemption in requested.

Students transferring from other programs or from other universities may be eligible to apply to the Program Coordinator for exemptions.

Other information

Transition arrangements for education courses for students previously enrolled in Combined Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education (Secondary)

The following transition arrangements based on the year of first enrolment will apply:

1. Students who enrolled in the program in or before 2004, will complete the previously accredited program. All Education courses in that program will continue to be offered through the Faculty of Education.

2. Students who enrolled in 2005 will move into the third year of the current program in 2007.

3. Where students have not followed the recommended enrolment pattern of the previously accredited program, their study plan will be developed in consultation with the Program Coordinator.

Recommended enrolment pattern

Students should not deviate from this pattern without first discussing it with the Program Administration Office or the Program Coordinator.

Notes

All students enrolled in the Secondary education programme must successfully complete 100 days Professional Experiences — 80 days supervised and 20 days NSE/PCE (Non Supervised Experiences.) NSE/PCE should be commenced in Year 1.
For pre-requisite and third level sequence requirements, please check the Faculty of Arts entry in the current Handbook.