PLACEMENT IN DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY - 2021/2

Module Overview

This module supports students’ development of personal and professional attitudes and abilities appropriate to a Professional Training placement. The module is concerned with Personal and Professional Development towards holistic academic and non-academic learning, and is a process that involves self-reflection, the creation of a personal record, and planning and monitoring progress towards the achievement of personal objectives. Skills development and learning may occur before and during the placement, and this is reflected in the assessment model as a progressive process. However, the graded assessment takes place primarily towards the end of the placement. Additionally, the module aims to enable students to evidence and evaluate their placement experiences and transfer that learning to other situations through written and presentation skills.

Module provider

Psychology

Module Leader

GILLIGAN-LEE Katie (Psychology)

Number of Credits: 30

ECTS Credits: 15

Framework: FHEQ Level 7

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 2

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

N/A

Module content

The module focuses on achieving the learning outcomes by offering, via the placement experience, the opportunity for students to nurture the employability skills that graduate employers look for and to develop the professional identity, competencies and attributes that support the future employability outcomes for students. This development takes place across a wide range of professional environments in developmental psychology, with great variety in the work undertaken. Nevertheless, all of these offer the same opportunity to achieve the learning outcomes.

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate the learning outcomes regarding the successful acquisition of a placement, and the acquisition of the employability skills and competencies that support students’ graduate employability outcomes.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

• Three reflective diary and online exercises (assessing learning outcomes 1,2,3,4,5)

• Professional Development Review (assessing learning outcomes 1,2,3,4,5)

• 3000-word final reflective report (assessing learning outcomes 1,2,3,4,5,6)

Formative assessment

Formative feedback will be given on the reflective diary and online exercises to inform the content of the PDR and the final reflective report. Visiting Tutors and Workplace supervisors will also provide formative feedback on the PDR and on placement performance.

Feedback

Written formative feedback will be provided on the reflective diary and online exercises, and verbal formative feedback will be given on the PDR during visiting tutor meetings. Students will receive written feedback on the final reflective report.

Module aims

• Enable students to acquire and develop knowledge as it occurs in professional practice
• Apply academic knowledge concerning developmental psychology to work activities and processes in practice
• Enable students to mature through the evaluation of their placement experiences
• Support students to develop and apply new skills appropriate to their professional setting in which they are working
• Enable students to develop the employability skills and attitudes/approach that graduate employers look for and are required of a person working in a professional capacity

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching methods are predicated on experiential learning through the placement experience itself. The mentoring, coaching and assessment role of both the workplace supervisor and the University’s Visiting Professional Training Tutor are focused on ensuring that students achieve the learning outcomes for the module; these relate to:

(1) personal and professional development,

(2) reflective evaluation of placement learning and

(3) application of developmental psychology subject knowledge to the placement.

The learning and teaching is supported by placement visits to the students on placement by a Visiting Placement Tutor to support students’ critical self-reflection and learning and regular mentoring support via phone, email or teleconference. In addition, regular review of the weekly diaries, the Professional Development Review and student development plans (as part of the PDR) provide additional experiential learning.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: PSYM134

Other information

N/A

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2021/2 academic year.