Caption: Pictured (L to R) Dr Justin Rami, School of Policy & Practice, DCU; Dr Sean Lyons, Dean of Faculty, Engineering and Informatics, TUS; Prof. Charlotte Holland, Prof. School of STEM Education, Innovation and Global Studies, DCU Institute of Education; TUS President Prof. Vincent Cunnane, Prof. Anne Looney, Executive Dean, DCU Institute of Education; Dr Niall Seery, Chair, Technological Education, TUS; Rónán Dunbar, Lecturer, TUS Athlone Campus; Dr Paul Grimes, Assistant Professor in Mathematics Education, School of STEM Education, Innovation & Global Studies, DCU Institute of Education. Photo: Nathan Cafolla.

DCU and TUS Launch Joint Technology, Engineering and Graphics Teacher Education Degree

28/04/2023

Dublin City University (DCU) and the Technological University of Shannon (TUS) have today launched a joint Bachelor of Education in Technology, Engineering and Graphics (BEd TEG). This four-year degree programme will qualify students to teach Technology, Engineering, and Design and Communication Graphics subjects at post-primary level.

This programme falls within the STEM disciplines and is the only programme of its kind for the three subject areas located across two higher education institutions. The first two years of study will take place at the TUS Athlone campus, and the final two years at the DCU Institute of Education, St. Patrick’s Campus in Dublin.

The geographic locations of DCU and TUS mean it is well placed to attract students interested in becoming teachers in Technology, Engineering and Design and Communication Graphics from the northern, midlands and eastern regions of Ireland.

Commenting on the introduction of the programme, Executive Dean Anne Looney, DCU Institute of Education, said:

“The teachers who graduate from this degree programme will have the best of both worlds - the engineering education expertise of TUS and the teacher education expertise of DCU - and will be in high demand in schools and other settings.

Subjects like Technology, Engineering and Design and Communication Graphics challenge students to work with materials, ideas and technologies to design creative solutions, to work in teams and to solve problems - the kinds of skills and processes that are at the heart of workplace innovation and global sustainability.

This programme - and the team behind it - puts the students right at the cutting edge of international developments in this kind of teaching, learning and assessment.”

This DCU-TUS partnership provides graduates of the programme with a significant advantage in terms of future employment within the post-primary sector, given the option to teach three subjects across the curriculum.

Furthermore, the BEd TEG programme aims to address some of the specific actions identified in the STEM Education policy statement (2017-2026) which includes an "Increase in uptake of STEM subjects for learners of all backgrounds, ability and gender”.

A review of statistics over the last four years from the State Examinations Commission (2022-2019) reveals the proportion of female students choosing to study Technology, Engineering or Design and Communication Graphics continues to be quite low.

In recent years, less than one in five students studying these subjects at Leaving Certificate level were female. This course aims to address this issue through the marketing of the programme, with the aim of encouraging more young female students seeking to become teachers to embrace the STEM disciplines of Technology, Engineering and Design and Communication Graphics.

TUS President Prof. Vincent Cunnane welcomed the collaboration with DCU Institute of Education, which he said draws on TUS’s core expertise in technology, engineering and design:

“Students of our new Bachelor of Education in Technology, Engineering and Graphics will gain a modern experience of technological education through hands-on applied activity, using state-of-the-art advanced technologies and approaches.

The teaching team has an established reputation in engineering, technology and design education and research. That coupled with students’ exposure to the near-to-market research taking place right across TUS, will ensure graduates of this programme are ready to introduce their own students to the latest workplace processes and technologies in a way that is engaging, impactful, and inclusive.”

The BEd TEG is accredited by the Teaching Council of Ireland and will qualify graduates to teach all three of Technology, Engineering, and Design and Communication Graphics subjects at Leaving Certificate level. Teacher education graduates can also gain employment in industry, media, governmental and non-governmental organisations and other settings.

The programme also provides for the opportunity to participate in Student Teacher Internship (STInt) Programme in year three.

For more information on the programme: DCU -TUS Bachelor of Education in Technology, Engineering and Graphics (Post-Primary)