Program

Economics / Education (Sec) - 4058

Program Summary

Faculty: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Contact: School of Education

Campus: Sydney

Career: Undergraduate

Typical Duration: 4 Years  

Typical UOC Per Semester: 24

Min UOC Per Semester: 6

Max UOC Per Semester: 24

Min UOC For Award: 192

UAC Code: 422130

Domestic Entry Requirements: See Domestic Entry Requirements

International Entry Requirements: See International Entry Requirements

Award(s):

Bachelor of Economics

Bachelor of Education (Secondary)

View program information for previous years

Program Description

The dual degree program, Bachelor of Economics Bachelor of Education (Secondary), is a four-year program (192 UOC) for intending secondary school teachers. The program is a nationally accredited pre-service qualification.

Students undertake studies to qualify as a secondary school teacher in two teaching specialisations (i.e., economics and business studies). The program covers both theoretical and practical aspects of education, including 80 days supervised professional experience in at least two different secondary schools.

In addition, students acquire a knowledge of economics as well as an understanding of local and world economic issues. Students also develop analytical skills which have wide applications in business, finance and policy. Depending on interests and career goals, students are required to choose one of the following three majors: economics, econometrics and financial economics.

Program Objectives and Graduate Attributes

The program objectives for the Bachelor of Economics component of the dual degree are as follows:
  1. Demonstrate understanding and application of economic concepts and processes
  2. Demonstrate critical thinking and problem solving skills
  3. Understand, analyse and use quantitative data to assist in making economic and business decisions
  4. Present complex issues in coherent written statements and oral presentations
  5. Demonstrate understanding of the global economic context in which business and governments operate
  6. Understand the social and ethical dimensions in their chosen disciplinary areas.

Program Learning Outcomes

You should achieve the following Program Learning Outcomes upon successful completion of the Bachelor of Education (Secondary):
  1. Know students and how they learn
  2. Know the content and how to teach it
  3. Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning
  4. Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments
  5. Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning
  6. Engage in professional learning
  7. Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community.

Requirements for the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) in Dual Mode

Program Structure

The requirements for the Bachelor of Education component of the dual degree (96 UOC) are:
  1. Education Core (66 UOC)
  2. Prescribed Education methods (24 UOC)
  3. Prescribed Education elective (6 UOC)

Core

The Education Core courses comprise:

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

Professional Experience

EDST2002, EDST6760 and EDST6765 provide students with a total of 80 days of professional experience in secondary schools and other educational settings.

Prescribed Education Methods

The Prescribed Education Methods comprise:

Prescribed Education Electives

The Prescribed Education Elective comprises one of the following courses:

English Proficiency

Proficiency in English is essential in all courses that form a part of the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) component of the dual degree. It is expected that all applicants will have a Higher School Certificate minimum Band 5 in Standard English, English as a Second Language or Advanced English, or an overall IELTS score of 7.5, with a minimum of 8.0 in Speaking and Listening and a minimum of 7.0 in Reading and Writing, or the equivalent.

Participation and Enrolment Requirements

For accreditation as a teacher in NSW, all teacher education students will need to meet the following participation and enrolment requirements set by the NSW Educations Standards Authority (NESA).

Assessment of Suitability for Teaching

It is a NESA requirement that all UNSW Bachelor of Education students successfully complete a full year (48 UOC) of studies in their specific disciplinary content area (e.g., Maths, Science, Economics, Arts, etc.) before undertaking any discipline-specific curriculum and pedagogic studies (Methods) or professional experience placements in schools. At the end of their first semester they must also complete a motivational statement as to why they want to be a teacher, which is scored on a 2-point scale: No – incoherent, irrelevant, or inappropriate reasons, or Yes - coherent and valid reason. If students score ‘No’, they will be counselled out of the program.

In addition, before their first supervised professional experience placement, all teacher education students must successfully complete:

  1. The National Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education.
  2. The Classroom Readiness Questionnaire. The Classroom Readiness Questionnaire is a pre-professional experience self-assessment tool that requires students to provide evidence of success across six areas (subject content, inherent requirements, professional language/literacy/numeracy, oral communication, classroom management, and commitment to the profession). Their self-assessments are then endorsed (or not) by at least two staff members who teach them.
  3. A situational judgement test. This test is a scenario-based measurement tool designed to assess individuals’ judgement in a contextualised workplace setting. This test evaluates a number of key non-academic capabilities deemed necessary for teaching (e.g., adaptability, empathy).
We also undertake extensive evaluation of teacher suitability for their specific teaching areas. We do this via: (a) including a compulsory microteaching assessment in Methods courses, (b) using direct observation of all professional experience placements, including the first semester placement as a teaching assistant, (c) multiple critical assessment tasks, (d) a teaching performance assessment, and (e) a set of inherent requirements used by a range of UNSW teacher education providers. We continually monitor and evaluate the relationship between these measures, the performance during professional experience, and graduate outcomes, including level of self-efficacy.

English Language Proficiency

It is a NESA requirement that all teacher education students have very high levels of English language proficiency, thus in addition to satisfying UNSW entry requirements, see www.unsw.edu.au/english-requirements-policy, oral and written communication skills are assessed regularly as part of all coursework and professional experience. By graduation it is expected that all teacher education students will be able to demonstrate English language proficiency equivalent to a Band 5 NSW HSC- level or an IELTS 7.5, with 8.0 for speaking and listening.

The National Literacy and Numeracy Test

The National Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students is designed to assess initial teacher education students’ personal literacy and numeracy skills to ensure teachers are well equipped to meet the demands of teaching, and assist higher education providers, teacher employers, and the general public to have increased confidence in the skills of graduating teachers.

The test has been introduced to assess those aspects of initial teacher education students’ personal literacy and numeracy skills that can be measured through an online assessment tool. At UNSW, students must successfully complete both components of the LANTITE test prior to enrolling in their first Professional Experience course. You are supplied with information for the tests though Moodle and the link is provided at https://teacheredtest.acer.edu.au. Successful completion of the LANTITE test will be recorded as two zero credit courses, EDST6600 LANTITE (Literacy) and EDST6601 LANTITE (Numeracy) on a student’s academic record.

Working With Children Check

Before their first professional experience placement, all teacher education students must obtain a current Volunteer Working With Children Check (WWC) and attend a UNSW-based 2-hour child protection lecture delivered by the Department of Education – Employee Performance and Conduct Directorate. They must provide a copy of their WWC clearance number to the Professional Experience Office (PEO) via the Online Placement System (OPS). The PEO verifies all WWC numbers in the Office of the Children’s Guardian verification page for employers (https://wwccheck.ccyp.nsw.gov.au/Employers/Login) and classifies students as ‘eligible’ for placement, or not. All EDST 6765 Professional Experience 2 students must then obtain a valid paid WWC clearance. For more information about volunteer and paid WWC Checks, find the link here: https://www.kidsguardian.nsw.gov.au/child-safe-organisations/working-with-children-check.

All students must also familiarise themselves with the NSW Department of Education Code of Conduct and the document Responding to Allegations against Employees in the Area of Child Protection. All students are provided access to the policy via the Professional Experience Handbook specific to their year of placement.

Anaphylaxis Training & Certification

The NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) and the Department of Education (DoE) has mandated the completion of anaphylaxis e-training for all permanent, temporary, and casual employees who work in schools, including teacher education students. All UNSW teacher education students must complete the anaphylaxis e-training module provided by the Australian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) in conjunction with practice using an adrenaline auto-injector training device prior to commencing their first placement in schools.

The e-training is a free, online module available at http://etraining.allergy.org.au/. On successful completion of the online module, participants will receive a certificate of completion which should be printed immediately. The Professional Experience Office will then arrange practice using the adrenaline auto-injector training device. Students are then required to upload their signed certificate to the OPS. NESA and the DoE require that students also present a copy of their certificate of completion to principals at the commencement of their professional experience placements. Students should also retain a copy of the certificate for future use within the two years of the certificate’s currency.

The NSW DoE advises that student teachers who do not successfully complete this training, as verified by the university and the principal of their placement school, will not be able to undertake professional experience activities in NSW public schools. The training is required to be successfully undertaken every two years. This is the only training that will be accepted by the DoE to meet the requirement of anaphylaxis training for initial Teacher Education Students.

Award with Distinction

You are eligible for the award of your Pass Degree "with Distinction" if you achieve a Weighted Average Mark (WAM) of at least 75 in all courses and complete at least 50% of the requirements of your award at UNSW.

Honours

After completion of 144 UOC, including all of the requirements of the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) component of the dual degree, high achieving students may apply for admission into honours in the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) (Honours) program 4509. A minimum WAM of 70 in the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) component of the dual degree is required for entry into Honours.

Bachelor of Education (Secondary) (Honours) program 4509

Academic Rules

To qualify for the award of the degree at Pass level, a student must:
  1. enrol in the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) in Dual mode and complete 96 UOC;
  2. complete the method requirements for one or two areas of teaching specialisation
  3. complete at least 30 UOC of Level 1 courses before enrolling in Level 2 courses
  4. complete at least 30 UOC of Level 2 courses before enrolling in Level 3 courses

Requirements for the Bachelor of Economics in Dual Mode

Program Structure

The requirements for the Bachelor of Economics component of the dual degree (96 UOC) are:

BEc Dual Mode (96 UOC)

  • Compulsory Economics course (6 UOC)
  • Economics Major requirements (60 UOC)
  • Economics Electives (12 UOC)
  • UNSW Business School First-Year Elective (6 UOC)
  • UNSW Business School Electives (12 UOC)

Economics Requirements

You are required to complete at least 13 Economics courses including:

Business School Requirements

You are required to complete 3 Business School courses:

Teacher Accreditation Requirements

In order to satisfy the requirements for teacher accreditation you must use two of the three required business courses (first year business requirement plus two electives) to take at least one accounting or finance course and one unit of business management. This can be accomplished, for example, by taking ACCT1501 or FINS1613 to fulfil the first-year requirement, and choosing MGMT1001 as one of the two business electives.

Course Substitution Options

There are courses in the School of Mathematics and Statistics (Faculty of Science) and the School of Actuarial Studies (Business School) that are alternatives for the quantitative methods courses in Economics: ECON1202 and ECON1203. Therefore:
  • Any one of the following courses is an acceptable substitute for ECON1202: MATH1031 or MATH1131 or MATH1141 or MATH1151.
  • Any one of the following courses is an acceptable substitute for ECON1203: MATH1041 or MATH2089 or MATH2099 or MATH2801 or MATH2841 or MATH2901 or ACTL2002 or ACTL2131.
If you complete the sequence MATH1131/MATH1231 or MATH1141/MATH1241 or MATH1151/MATH1251 you may use this as a substitute for the sequence ECON1202/ECON1203. These substitutes for the compulsory core courses count towards the 16 Business School courses (96 UOC) required for the degree.

Note: ECON1202 and ECON1203 may not be good substitutes for the indicated MATH and ACTL courses depending on your program. You should check with your program authority regarding course substitutions.

Honours

High-achieving students should consider applying to the Honours program BEc (Hons) 4502. For information on Honours in Economics students may also refer to the School of Economics Honours information page.

Academic Rules for the Bachelor of Economics

Please refer to the Program Structure for the academic requirements relating to this program.
Rules relating to the award of the degree of Bachelor of Economics shall apply wherever relevant. Students are advised to consult the Academic Rules for further information.


Sample Program

Bachelor of Economics Bachelor of Education (Secondary) - Example only
  Semester 1Semester 2UOC 
Level 1ACCT1501 Accounting 1A (6) or FINS1613 Business Finance (6)*

ECON1101 Microeconomics 1 (6)

ECON1203 BE Statistics (6)

EDST1104 Social Perspectives in Education (6)

ECON1102 Macroeconomics 1 (6)

ECON1401 Economic Perspectives (6)

ECON1202 Quantitative Analysis (6)

EDST1101 Educational Psychology (6)

 48
Level 2ECON2101 Microeconomics 2 (6)

ECON2206 Intro Econometrics (6)

EDST2003 Learning and Teaching Introductory Perspectives (6)

EDST1108 Indigenous Perspectives (6)

MGMT1001 Management (6) or MGMTxxxx (6)*

ECON MAJOR (6)

EDST2002 Professional Engagement (6)

EDST LEVEL 2 ELECTIVE (6)

 48
Level 3EDST4084 Managing the Classroom (6)

EDST6760 Professional Experience 1(6)

EDST6715 Business Studies Method 1 (6)

EDST6716 Economics Method 1 (6)

ECON MAJOR LEVEL 3 (6)

ECON MAJOR LEVEL 3 (6)

ECON ELECTIVE (6)

EDST4080 Special Education: Inclusive Strategies (6)

 48
Level 4ECON MAJOR LEVEL 3 (6)

ECON ELECTIVE (6)

EDST4096 Gifted and Talented Students (6)

BUSINESS ELECTIVE (6)*

EDST6765 Professional Experience 2/Internship (12)

EDST6745 Business Studies Method 2 (6)

EDST6746 Economics Method 2 (6)

 48


* Please refer to Business School Requirements above.

Fees

For information regarding fees for UNSW programs, please refer to the following website:  UNSW Fee Website.

Important Information

The Academic Rules for the UNSW BEc BEd (Secondary) and the online enrolment facility provide students with a wide range of course choices. The online enrolment facility checks that students meet the enrolment requirements for individual courses but not that a course complies with Program Rules. Students are responsible for ensuring they are enrolling in accordance with the Academic Rules outlined above. Students should not assume that because they have enrolled in a course online that the course is automatically credited to their degree program.

Further Information

Contact the UNSW Arts and Social Sciences Student Centre for advice.
Tel: + 61 2 9385 2289
Email: arts@unsw.edu.au
Location: Room G1 Ground Floor, Morven Brown building (C20)
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm
Frequently asked questions

Glossary of Terms


Area(s) of Specialisation