Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Master of Teaching (Secondary)
Course information for - 2023 entry
Offered at 1 locations
- Duration
- 4.5 years full-time or equivalent part-time
- ATAR
- New
- Start dates
-
Semester 1 intake: Not availableMidyear (Semester 2) intake: Beginning July 2023Applications open April 2023
Overview
The Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Master of Teaching (Secondary) is a teacher education course that is both rigorous and stimulating. Our intellectual program provides you with the opportunity to combine a liberal arts degree in western civilisation and a masters level teaching course.
This innovative pathway allows you to become a secondary school teacher with a teaching major in archaeology, drama, economics, geography, environment and society, history, mathematics, study of religions or visual arts.
Offers will be made to applicants based on high ATAR results and will also be assessed against other criteria, namely “Ramsay Attributes” (i.e. potential to make a positive contribution in Australia and the world as demonstrated through resume, references and a personal statement).
ACU is offering scholarships to domestic students undertaking this degree, funded by the Ramsay Centre. You can read more information below under Scholarships.
Professional experience
Supervised professional experience is at the heart of all our pre-service teacher education courses and the faculty will find appropriate placements to suit the needs of your course. Professional experience units are planned as a specific sequence allowing for progressive development of both classroom-based proficiency and an understanding of the relevance of theory to practice and practice to theory. These units apply skills, techniques and processes taught in the Foundations Studies and Professional Studies units.
The practicum will be supported by other forms of in-school experiences, such as school-based tutorials and workshops.
Placements will usually be arranged for the scheduled placement period in the professional experience calendar though this may not always be possible. The Professional Experience program consists of a minimum of 80 days of teaching rounds, usually broken into three blocks.
Work placement
A challenging and rewarding career in secondary education is a unique opportunity for you to inspire and positively influence the lives of all young people who enter your classroom. Become the teacher who is confident, adaptable, and able to design and implement engaging and flexible learning experiences to meet the needs of your students. This is a graduate entry, preservice teacher education course for those who want to become secondary school teachers.
This course will enable you to adopt a research-based approach to reflective practice. You'll able to consider the implications and applications of this approach to your own professional development and its contribution to your students' learning and wellbeing.
This course provides you with 80 days of valuable professional experience through a range of school and community-based placements. You will have the flexibility to study this course fully online or on campus.
Community engagement
Students undertake a 50-70-hour community engagement experience as part of WCIV300: Making a Difference: Community Engagement in Local, National and International Contexts. Building on the key ‘Ramsay Attribute’ of making a positive impact on the world around us, this unit encourages students to make meaningful contributions to different communities through volunteer work with people experiencing disadvantage or marginalisation. Core ideas of the western intellectual tradition and key imperatives of ACU’s Mission combine with the transferrable skills students learn throughout their degree to offer a transformative experience that promotes empathy and compassion for diverse local, national and international communities and supports a range of future career paths.
Professional recognition
Graduates are eligible for registration as secondary school teachers in government, independent, Catholic, and other faith-based schools.
Course details
Course structure
To complete the Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Master of Teaching (Secondary), a student must complete 400 credit points (cp).
Sample program map
| Year - Study period | Unit 1 | Unit 2 | Unit 3 | Unit 4 | Unit 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 - Semester 1 | WCIV100 The Desire to Understand: Introducing the Western Intellectual Tradition | WPOL100 The Birth of Politics: Origins of Western Political Thought | WCIV101 Form and Beauty: Origins of Western Art and Architecture | Major 1 | |
| Year 1 - Semester 2 | WLIT100 Greek and Roman Classics: Origins of Western Literature | WPHI101 Thinking the Real: Western Metaphysics | Major 2 | Major 3 | |
| Year 2 - Semester 1 | WLIT200 Medieval and Renaissance Masterpieces: the Rise of the English Literary Tradition | WPOL200 The Rise of Liberalism: Authority, Society and Freedom | WCIV200 Doctrine, Myth and History: Religion and the West | Major 4 | LNTE110 Literacy and Numeracy Diagnostic AND LNTE100 LANTITE - Literacy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students AND LNTE101 LANTITE - Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students |
| Year 2 - Semester 2 | WLIT201 The Age of the Novel: 1600-1900 | WPHI201 Truth and Knowledge in Western Philosophy | Arts Elective | Major 5 | |
| Year 3 - Semester 1 | WLIT300 Romanticism to Postmodernism: Movements Toward the Literary Present | WPOL300 Politics and People in British, American and Australian Democracies | WCIV300 Making a Difference: Community Engagement in Local, National and International Contexts | Major 6 | |
| Year 3 - Semester 2 | WCIV301 Scientific Revolutions and the Western World | WPHI301 The Good, the Right and the Beautiful: Western Ethic and Aesthetics | Major 7 | Major 8 | |
Year 4 - Semester 1 | EDXX599 (TA1) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment 1 | EDXY599 (TA2) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment 1 | EDES591 Foundations of Teaching 2: The Nature of Learning data-versionlabel=2 > | EDET595 Effective Teaching 1: Professional Practices data-versionlabel=2 > | |
Year 4 - Winter Term | EDES590 Foundations of Teaching 1: Understanding Adolescents data-versionlabel=2 > | EDES600 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories, Cultures and Education | |||
Year 4 - Semester 2 | EDES601 Special Education and Inclusive Practice data-versionlabel=2 > | EDES690 Literacy and Numeracy across the Secondary Curriculum data-versionlabel=2 > | Education Elective | EDET695 Effective Teaching 2: Engaging Learners data-versionlabel=2 > | |
Year 5 - Summer Term | EDES691 21st Century Skills across the Secondary Curriculum data-versionlabel=2 > | Education Elective | |||
Year 5 - Professional Term 2 OR Semester 1 | EDXY699 (TA1) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment 2 | EDXY699 (TA2) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment 2 (Pre: EDXY599) | EDET692 Applied Educational Assessment Across the Secondary Curriculum data-versionlabel=2 > | ||
Year 5 - Professional Term 4 | EDET696 Effective Teaching 3: Teacher Inquiry and Evidence-based Practice data-versionlabel=2 > |
This is a sample program only and units will vary depending on your campus and mode of study. Please refer to the handbook for the prerequisite units and the current listing.
AQF framework
Exit Points
A student who has successfully completed the following requirements may exit from the course with that qualification. Note that none of these qualifications will lead to teacher registration.
- Diploma in Liberal Arts: 80 cp from Parts A-D.
- Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation): 240 cp from Parts A-D.
- Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies: 40 cp from Parts E-G.
- Graduate Diploma in Educational Studies: 80 cp from Parts E-G.
A student who has successfully completed the Master of Teaching (Secondary) but does not meet the LANTITE requirements may exit with the Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies or Graduate Diploma in Educational Studies if they meet the requirements of those awards.
Additional course information
Literacy and Numeracy Test in Initial Teacher Education (LANTITE)
Students will be required to demonstrate they have achieved approved benchmarks in literacy and numeracy as demonstrated through the Literacy and Numeracy Test in Initial Teacher Education (LANTITE). Successful completion of LANTITE is a requirement for course completion.
If you have started your ITE course at another institution and wish to transfer to ACU to complete your studies, please be sure that you have read and understand the requirements for receiving credit for previous studies and those on completing LANTITE.
Entry requirements
Applicants must comply with the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy that includes meeting a minimum ATAR requirement.
International applicants need to meet the English Language Proficiency requirements as defined in the Admission to Coursework Programs Policy.
Eligibility for this course is determined via multiple factors. Applicants are assessed on each of the following to determine suitability for this course:
- Personal statement or essay,
- ATAR/Selection Rank, International Baccalaureate (IB), or equivalent,
- Performance at interview, and
- Demonstrated suitability for teaching, as evidenced by completion of the relevant State assessment, which will be provided in the application process.
To be eligible for admission to the course, an applicant must have completed the following prerequisites at year 12 level, or equivalent:
| State | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
New South Wales | English (Advanced) (Band 2) or English (EAL) (Band 4) |
Disclaimer: The course entry requirements above are for 2023 Admission. Refer to your relevant Tertiary Admission Centre website for future years' entry requirements.
View transparency admission information
English language requirements
International English Language Testing System (IELTS): No score less than 7 in reading and writing; no score less than 8 in listening and speaking
Pearson Test of English (PTE): A minimum of 65 in reading and writing and a minimum of 79 in listening and speaking
Test of English as a Foreign Language - Academic (TOEFL): No score less than 24 in reading, 27 in writing, 28 in listening and 26 in speaking
ACU English Language Test: A++ (85 or above)
Cambridge Advanced English (CAE): A minimum of 185 in reading and writing and 200 in listening and speaking
Adjustment factors
If you’re currently completing Year 12 you may be eligible for adjustment factors that can boost your rank and help you get into your desired course.
Adjustment factors may be applied to your TAC application if you study particular subjects, attend schools geographically close to our campuses or in certain regional areas, apply as an elite athlete or performer or meet certain other criteria.
Inherent requirement
There are essential components of a course or unit that demonstrate the capabilities, knowledge and skills to achieve the core learning outcomes of that course or unit. You will need to be able to meet these inherent requirements to complete your course.
Learn more about inherent requirements for your course and how they affect you
Pathways
Pathways into course for current or recent Year 12 students
Access to the Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Master of Teaching (Secondary) will be via Direct Entry and tied to a scholarship application. There are no other relevant entry pathways.
As detailed in the Memorandum of Understanding between ACU and the Ramsay Centre (see Sections 6.3.4, 6.3.5, and 6.3.6), students eligible for scholarships will normally be selected by a Committee (comprising senior ACU and Ramsay Centre staff) on the basis of high ATAR results, and will also be assessed against other criteria, namely ‘Ramsay Attributes’ (i.e. potential to make a positive contribution in Australia and the world as demonstrated through CV, references and a personal statement).
Non-scholarship students will be selected on the basis of ATAR.
Fees
Course costs
All costs are calculated using current rates and are based on a full-time study load of 40 credit points (normally 4 units) per semester.
A student’s annual fee may vary in accordance with:
- the number of units studied per semester;
- the choice of major or specialisation; and
- elective units.
The University reviews fees annually.
Payment options
You should be able to concentrate on getting good marks instead of worrying about how you’ll pay your fees. We have a number of options that can help you ease the financial burden, including government assistance, scholarships and income support.
Scholarships
ACU is offering Ramsay Scholarships to students undertaking the single degree (Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation); the double degrees (Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Bachelor of Laws; and the Bachelor of Arts (Western Civilisation)/Master of Teaching (Secondary). These scholarships, funded by the Ramsay Centre, are worth $32,000 per year for up to five years ($160,000) depending on the duration of the course. Students eligible for scholarships will be selected by a committee, comprising senior ACU and Ramsay Centre staff.
Applicants who wish to be considered for a scholarship will need to meet the essential requirements for admission to the BAWC:
- Provide details of their academic achievements, leadership experience and community engagement activities using the Applicant Resume Form;
- Provide a 750-1500 word written submission, that can be either:
- An essay response to the following question: How should champions of Western Civilisation reply to its critics today?
OR
- An existing piece of written work on an Arts/Humanities theme (for example, an essay from the Year 12 curriculum which addresses a topic based on studies of literature, history, philosophy, religious studies etc)
- Attend an interview
- The Applicant Resume Form and essay response should be uploaded as a part of the application to study.
Scholarship applicants will also:
- be an Australian citizen or Australian permanent resident at the time of application;
- in the ordinary course:
- complete year 12 in the year of application; or
- have completed Year 12 in the preceding 3 years
- have not undertaken preliminary study at a tertiary level, other than secondary school advancement programs or first year Bachelor level study
You could be eligible for one of the hundreds of scholarships we award each year to help students from across the university with the cost of studying, accommodation or overseas study opportunities. Some of our scholarships are awarded on the basis of merit, but these aren’t just for the academically gifted; ACU also recognises excellence in community engagement and leadership. We also offer a range of scholarships for those who may be struggling financially or who have faced other barriers to accessing education.
How to apply
Domestic applicants
Direct application
Apply nowYou can apply Direct to ACU if you are not a recent school leaver and have not already applied through VTAC, UAC or QTAC.
Deferment
Deferment is available for one year. Find out more about deferment: Deferment Information.
Staff Profile
Professor Robert Carver
Director, Western Civilisation Program
Professor Robert Carver’s main teaching and research interests lie in Renaissance literature, Renaissance humanism, the influence of classical texts and ideas on Western culture, and the origins and development of the novel – from ancient prose fiction to contemporary Australian writing.
Professor Carver graduated from the Australian National University with a University Medal in English and Latin. He won a Commonwealth Scholarship to Magdalen College, Oxford, where he was awarded his doctorate (DPhil) in 1992. Following stints at Trinity College, Oxford, and the British Academy, he taught at Oriel College, Oxford, before moving to the University of Durham in 1997. At Durham, he served as Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, and Associate Professor of Renaissance Literature in the Department of English Studies, taking on the role of Deputy Head of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities between 2007 and 2010.
His publications include an Oxford Classical Monograph, The Protean Ass: The Metamorphoses of Apuleius from Antiquity to the Renaissance (OUP, 2007), translations from the Latin writings of the twelfth-century mystic Hildegard of Bingen, and numerous scholarly articles on ancient, medieval, and Renaissance literature.