Education and Special Educational Needs BA (Hons) (with Foundation Year)

EDUCATION

A degree in Education is a dynamic and stimulating opportunity to study the individual, social, and political forces that shape education, in all its forms. If you are interested in how and why we learn, both formally and informally, in the UK or abroad, then studying Education will challenge and excite you in equal measure.

Studying Education at Liverpool Hope will help you to develop academically as you engage with evidence and research, professionally as you link theory to practice, preparing you for a wide variety of work contexts, and personally as you think more deeply about your own values and aspirations. Our degree will bring education to life, tackling important questions such as ‘Can education help overcome inequality in society?’ and ‘How does modern technology transform the learning and teaching experience?’. It is structured around the four key disciplines of education: psychology, sociology, history, and philosophy. Each discipline provides a different lens through which key ideas and issues in education can be understood.

By studying Education at Liverpool Hope University, you will become a Hope Education Professional: inspired to put educational theory into practice, able to critically evaluate current policy, and willing to make a difference in the world. Single honours students complete a placement as part of the course and combined honours students will be offered optional placement opportunities. The degree is an ideal foundation for those who decide to go on to train to become a teacher, and a variety of other professions, at Liverpool Hope University or elsewhere.

SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS

The Special Educational Needs course will equip you to become a passionate advocate for disability rights and equality in your chosen profession. There are more than 16 million disabled people in the UK, and graduates with expertise in special educational needs and disability are in demand in a wide range of areas including education, health, social work and social care, local government, and business. In recognising the contributions of disabled people, we encourage you to replace needs with knowledge.

A supportive team of disabled and non-disabled academics will enable you to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence you need to become a future leader in this area. You will learn about the historical, social and cultural factors that shape our understanding of special educational needs and disability. Your understanding of academic theories and models will be deepened by activities which challenge you to explore how this knowledge can be applied in professional settings. As well as tutors’ extensive professional experience, course content is informed by input from a range of guest speakers, and from our partner organisations, which include disabled-led and self-advocacy groups, education and care providers, charities, and disability arts organisations.

The Special Educational Needs course at Liverpool Hope is unique in that it is informed and enriched by the work of the Centre for Culture and Disability Studies, an internationally recognised centre of excellence in disability studies research, and the only UK research centre to focus on disability and culture. 

You can also study Special Educational Needs via a Single Honours degree with the course.