English Language Teaching (Distance Learning) MA

This course is in clearing

Overview

Course options

Select year

MA

  • MA English Language Teaching (Distance Learning), home applicant, part time

    • Home Applicant
    • Part time
    • Pound 1450 per 30 credit module
  • MA English Language Teaching (Distance Learning), international applicant, part time

    • International Applicant
    • Part time
    • Pound 1450 per 30 credit module

What makes this course different

Flexible study

This course has been designed with flexibility in mind. It allows working teachers the freedom to continue working while pursuing their studies and you can complete it from two to six years.

Tutors with first-hand experience

Tutor knowledge on the course is informed by first-hand experience of English language teaching in the classrooms of east London, with its rich multilingual and multicultural heritage.

Collaborative learning

The course is grounded in collaborative learning, which means that your knowledge will be enhanced and informed by the direct experiences of your fellow students as much as by your tutors.

Course modules

NOTE: Modules are subject to change. For those studying part time courses the modules may vary.

Download course specification

Your future career

Your future career

The MA English Language Teaching degree is partly a professional qualification, which will make it much easier to secure a job teaching English to speakers of other languages. This could be in the UK in a mainstream school or a specialist language school, or abroad, anywhere in the world.

Perhaps you already have a BA in English Language Teaching or have a degree in a different subject with a certificate in language teaching.

If so, this course will upgrade your professional standing and afford you promotion opportunities within the education sector. 

For example, you could become the head of English language teaching in your school or the leader of the school's English as a Second Language (ESL) panel.

Instead of teaching, you could choose a different route, perhaps taking up a government position as a curriculum coordinator or as a member of the board for a certain subject, helping to devise language learning policies and learning materials. 

That could be in your home country if you are one of our international students. Past graduates have gained this sought-after qualification to secure high-ranking positions within the education department in their countries.

Explore the different career options you can pursue with this degree and see the median salaries of the sector on our Career Coach portal.

How we support your career ambitions

We offer dedicated careers support, and further opportunities to thrive, such as volunteering and industry networking. Our courses are created in collaboration with employers and industry to ensure they accurately reflect the real-life practices of your future career and provide you with the essential skills needed. You can focus on building interpersonal skills through group work and benefit from our investment in the latest cutting-edge technologies and facilities.

Career Zone

Our dedicated and award-winning team provide you with careers and employability resources, including:

  • Online jobs board for internships, placements, graduate opportunities, flexible part-time work.
  • Mentoring programmes for insight with industry experts 
  • 1-2-1 career coaching services 
  • Careers workshops and employer events 
  • Learning pathways to gain new skills and industry insight

Mental Wealth programme

Our Professional Fitness and Mental Wealth programme which issues you with a Careers Passport to track the skills you’ve mastered. Some of these are externally validated by corporations like Amazon and Microsoft.

Our Mental Wealth programme

We are careers first

Our teaching methods and geographical location put us right up top

  • Enterprise and entrepreneurship support 
  • We are ranked 6th for graduate start-ups 
  • Networking and visits to leading organisations 
  • Support in starting a new business, freelancing and self-employment 
  • London on our doorstep

What you'll learn

The course consists of four modules and a dissertation, which includes research methods training. 

It is informed by a variety of areas within the field of applied linguistics, ranging from a description of English to an examination of how a language is acquired.

For instance, in the Second Language Acquisition module, you will learn about the developmental stages of language acquisition and how learning a second language when the brain has matured differs from learning your first language during the various stages of childhood.

In the ELT and its Contexts module, emphasis is placed on the sensitivity to local culture and beliefs and how they inform your teaching.

For example, how do you avoid coming across as patronising? And how can you incorporate an inter-language stage such as Indian English or Malaysian English into the teaching process so that your learners do not feel alienated by a language that belongs to a different culture and tradition?

Through study and active data collection, you will also become familiar with the principles and practices of action research.

How you'll learn

Teaching on the course is carried out exclusively by distance learning, supported by online group discussion and independent study.

There will be an introductory tutorial on the uses of WebCT two weeks before the course begins and you will receive an introduction to distance learning.

Because we want you to develop a sense of community with your fellow students on the course, we have devised a series of online ice-breaker activities to help you become familiar with each other as well as the nature of online research.

You will study one module per term. Each module consists of reading material and a series of self-check and interactive tasks in which you discuss the issues raised in the light of your own teaching context and educational background.

As a distance learning student, you are required to study between 12 and 15 hours a week. You will be in communication with and supported by the module tutors through email, Skype or Moodle (our virtual learning environment), which you will also use to submit your coursework.

Additionally, you can access our state-of-the-art library and online resources to support your learning and professional development, just as if you were studying on campus.

How you will be assessed

Due to the practical nature of the course, there are no examinations. Assessment is by a 14,000-word dissertation and written assignments for each module (either one of 5,000 words or two of 2,500 words each). Assignments vary in form and may include essays, book or article reviews, the creation and evaluation of pedagogic materials and small-scale action research projects. Research methods training is an integral part of the dissertation and forms part of the overall assessment.

Campus and facilities

Who teaches this course

This course is delivered by School of Childhood and Social Care

The teaching team includes qualified academics, practitioners and industry experts as guest speakers. Full details of the academics will be provided in the student handbook and module guides.