Education Studies

What is Education Studies and what can I do with it?

Education Studies engages with the fundamental questions concerning the aims and values of education and its relationship to society.

The Education Studies Tripos equips students to enter a wide range of careers relating to education, including administration in both local and national government; arts and museum education; educational journalism; educational activities within the community (including drama and music); educational careers within the media, etc. The emphasis on understanding contemporary issues in society means graduates can embark on careers in other areas such as human resources and other forms of management. For those who decide to enter the teaching profession, it provides an excellent preparation for the Postgraduate Certificate in Education. The degree also provides a very sound basis for proceeding to higher degree work.

What does the course aim to offer?

• to draw on a wide range of intellectual resources, theoretical perspectives and academic disciplines to provide an understanding of education and the contexts in which it takes place;
• to enable students to study the foundation disciplines of education - history, philosophy, psychology and sociology - and to appreciate their contribution to our understanding of educational policy and the process and practice of education;
• to provide the opportunity to study another academic subject alongside education and to develop enjoyment and rigour in academic enquiry within this field;
• to gain skills in analysis and critical thinking which will be useful in whatever walk of life is chosen
• to equip students with the skills to conduct research and enquiry within the field of education thus enabling them to pursue postgraduate study in education
• to prepare students who wish to enter teaching with a high quality introduction to education as a basis for proceeding to a PGCE.

Other academic subjects that can be taken with Education Studies

Biological Sciences
Classics
English and Drama
English
Geography
History
Mathematics
Modern Foreign Languages
Music
Physical Sciences (chemistry or physics)
Religious Studies

Most of the teaching on these subject studies areas is the same as that offered to students in the relevant faculties and departments. For instance, the Geography teaching is done by the Geography Department. In some cases, however, subject specialists from within the Education faculty offer lecture courses on their own areas, such as specific courses on English, Drama or Film.

This wide variety of subjects to be taken with Education Studies makes the course extremely flexible. As the description of the course below makes clear, there are various combinations available to be chosen from

• the academic disciplines of education,
• more thematic education courses
• and courses from the other academic subject

Prelim to Part I - Foundation Courses

Students are required to take four papers. All students will follow two foundation courses in Education Studies:

Education Studies I - Introduction to the Foundation Disciplines of Education - history, philosophy, psychology and sociology. This course will look at the contribution theory and research in these areas has made to the understanding of education policies and practices.

Education Studies II - Developmental and Socio-cultural Perspectives on Education. This course would take a thematic approach and would look at key issues in education from a number of perspectives. It will be concerned with education processes and practices.

Subject Studies - the other two papers will be in the subject the student is studying along side education.

Part I

In Part I students take five papers

• Education Studies - All students will take two papers in Education Studies, covering the four foundation disciplines of education.
• Subject Studies - All students will take two further subject papers.
• For the final paper students can choose to do either:
  another subject studies paper
  or
  a further paper in Education Studies. This paper will build on the Education Studies II - Developmental and Socio-cultural Perspectives on Education as taught in the Prelim.

Part II

In Part II students take five papers. Part II has a flexible structure that allows student to either take all five papers from Education Studies, or to combine Education papers with those from other subjects and 'Triposes' (more Subject Studies).

Papers are chosen from the following sections, the first two of which are compulsory for all students:

Section I - Research and investigation in education. An 8-10,000-word dissertation related to the investigation and analysis of an educational problem. In preparation for the dissertation students follow a course that covers the major approaches and research methods used to investigate educational issues.

Section II - Advanced topics in Education Studies. One paper chosen from the following:-
History of Education
Philosophy of Education
Psychology of Education
Sociology of Education
Students must then choose three further papers, which can be from the following sections:

a. Up to three further papers from Section II above
b. One paper from Section III below (Curriculum Studies)
c. Up to two papers from Section IV below (Subject Studies)
d. The paper offered in Section V below (Professional Studies)

Section III - Curriculum Studies
The papers in this section cover issues relating to teaching, learning and classroom practice in the following areas:-
Children and Literature
Research perspectives on Mathematics and Science
Teaching and Learning about the Social and Physical world
The Arts and Education.

Section IV - Subject Studies. Papers chosen from those offered by the relevant faculties and departments, or from the specialists in the Education Faculty (there is a large schedule of those available which is too cumbersome to include here, but can be found in the guide to courses of the University of Cambridge).

Section V - Professional Studies
This paper focuses on relationships between principles, policy and practice at the level of individual schools and LEAs, concerning a range of issues which are part of the wider professional responsibility of all teachers.

Why a flexible degree structure?

Those who are most interested in education theory within the foundation disciplines of education, and its implications for education policy, can concentrate their choices in this area, building on the compulsory papers in the Prelim to Part I and Part I and one compulsory paper in Part II, by taking up to three further papers from the Advanced Topics in Education. They can also do their Research and Investigation dissertation in one of the foundation disciplines.

Students who have decided on a teaching career can specialise in courses which will best prepare them for further training by taking the additional education paper in Part I, Professional Studies and one of the curriculum papers in Part II. In addition they can do their Research and Investigation dissertation in the professional/curriculum studies area.

Students who wish to maintain a equal balance between education and subject studies, or who want to enhance their subject knowledge to make secondary teaching an option, can do so by taking three subject studies papers in Part I and two further subject studies papers in Part II.

The course offers a rich and rigorous examination of all aspects of education, combined in varying amounts with degree level study of another academic subject. Few academic disciplines have more flexibility and few have a central core which is more urgent and vital to our culture's development.

Application and Interviews

All applicants need to have GCSE grade C (or equivalent) in English language, mathematics or a science subject, and a language other than English (ancient or modern). Note that applicants wishing at some later stage to enter the teaching profession will need mathematics and a science subject at this level or higher.

Conditional offers typically ask for 3 A Levels (or equivalent qualifications where relevant and appropriate) and applicants should be taking one A Level course in their chosen 'Main Subject'. Offers are typically AAA.

It is usual for applicants to have two short interviews as part of the admissions process. The first interview will be with a Director of Studies in your chosen specialist subejct. The second interview will be conducted by a member of the Education Studies team. Applicants for the course will not be expected to have a detailed knowledge of the disciplines of education (as these may not have been studied at all before) but will be expected to have some general knowledge of, and intelligent interest in, some of the current issues in education (such as may be discussed in newspapers or in Educational Supplements).

For specific information about Subject Studies please see the Faculty of Education website.

Further information

For more information about the Education Studies Tripos please contact the Faculty of Education:
Undergraduate Office
Faculty of Education
184 Hills Road
Cambridge
CB2 2PG
T +44 (0)1223 767678
ksw30@cam.ac.uk
Or you can visit:

The Faculty of Education on the University of Cambridge website.

 Director of Education Studies at Clare College is Sue Brindley (sb295@cam.ac.uk)

 

 

Back to Admissions

Guide to Subjects

 

      Faculty of Education