In this two-year, special track master’s programme, you choose one specialization at the start of your studies which you will follow online over three semesters, and you follow four core courses during the residential weeks in Leeuwarden.
The core courses are based on broad trends and issues that are relevant to international educators globally, such as the impact of marketization on educational practice, the challenges and opportunities provided by multicultural/multilingual environments and the implications of various approaches to teaching and learning. You will make connections between these and other themes and your classroom and school contexts.
This course provides a critical overview of international education within a global perspective through an introduction to key theories, priorities, policies and practices in contemporary international education. The course begins with an interrogation of the term ‘international education’, highlighting the power dynamics at play in its conceptualization. From here, the course moves through three key themes: theoretical frameworks for international education, global reforms, and the education market. The course aims to highlight the complex ways in which economic, political and social forces shape international education in an era of globalization, especially in relation to questions and experiences of inequality.
This course provides an overview of some of the most urgent and important issues facing international schools at this time, focusing on ethical and political matters affecting the work of international educators and providing theoretical resources to assist students in their responses to these issues. Contemporary global issues will be critically assessed through consideration of their local manifestations. The course is structured around three themes: contexts of international schools, tensions between policies and practices of international schools, and alternative educational models.
In this course, students explore and reflect upon the concepts of learning and teaching through a variety of interactive methods designed to recognise, value, and capitalize on the diversity within the student group. Students familiarize themselves with a range of international curricula and their inherent philosophies and approaches to learning and assessment practices. The course encourages students to reflect upon current tensions in international education and how these are currently approached by schools in the core areas of learning, teaching, curriculum, and assessment.
This hybrid course provides students with a critical understanding of education research and academic writing. Students explore the philosophical concerns around the potentialities and limitations of research as an approach for gaining understandings of international education. There is a strong emphasis on the practical implications of educational research through research-based educational design. Students apply research knowledge, skills and attitudes to the wider profession and engage with nascent research in international schooling.
This specialization consists of three courses:
Multilingualism in Educational Spaces
Transdisciplinary learning and teaching
Diversity as a resource
In these courses, students engage with a wide range of concepts and practices, such as: pedagogical approaches that support diversity in the classroom, multilingualism, language integrated learning, transdisciplinarity, and transferable skills.
This specialization consists of three courses:
The global context of International Education reform
Educational leadership and change in international schools
Teacher leadership and development in international schools
In these courses, students explore the implications of leadership and of change in the contexts of international schools and international education. Examples of topics explored in these courses include definitions of effective change implementation, concepts and practices related to teacher leaders, macro-level reform and its local translations, and the impact of technology on educational practice and policy.
Do you want to know more about the core course content and different specializations of this program? Please view this interactive chart.
The content, course tasks and assessments draw on contemporary research in international education. Opportunities to strengthen and hone research and academic writing skills are embedded in all courses, including on-going individual support by an experienced mentor, and culminating in a final summative assessment. This assessment allows students to identify and connect educational queries on classroom and/or school level through a critical investigation of the professional workplace in conjunction with a theoretical analysis on the topic of interest.
The courses follow a formative approach to assessment, inspired by the university’s commitment to design-based education. Students learn in a variety of settings, e.g. workshops, lectures, seminars, projects, individual research, scenario-building, etc.
*Slide right to see the whole course overview
| Study load | Specializations | Core courses |
10 - 15 study hours per week 30 ECTS per year | Autumn or Spring Module 1: Multilingualism in Educational Spaces Specialization 2 Module 1: The global context of international education reform |
July (residential) Core course - Teaching and Learning, Curriculum and Assessment in International Schools
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10 - 15 study hours per week 30 ECTS per year | Autumn or Spring Autumn or Spring Specialization 2 Module 2: Educational leadership and change in international schools
| July (residential) Core course - International Education in a Global Perspective Core course - Contemporary Issues in International Schools |
The programme’s normal study duration is two years part-time with each year covering 30 ECs. 1 EC is the equivalent of 28 hours of study with an average of 15 study hours per week (excluding the residential period and final assessment).
If you're confident this degree is the one for you, then why not apply online straightaway? Or pick one of the other options to help you take the next step.
