Education Program (After-Degree)
Vision
Shaped by a Christian Liberal Arts tradition, we prepare outstanding educators to joyfully take up teaching and learning through a transformative mindset of hope and grace as a means of serving the common good in public education.
Mission
We will provide a rigorous, competency-based curriculum that will engage students to become reflective, innovative, and engaging teachers.
The Bachelor of Education (After Degree) (B.Ed.) is a 60-credit program designed to prepare teachers with an accredited university degree to work in the public school system. The Ambrose School of Education offers two pathways to obtain a Bachelor or Education (After Degree) for degree holders or for those about to complete their degree: (1) The regular pathway takes place during the weekdays, Monday to Friday, and is completed in 2 years. (2) The alternative pathway takes place on evenings and weekends and is completed in 2.5 years. Our goal as professors and leaders in the program is for a successful graduate to have met the requirements of the competencies of the Government of Alberta’s Teaching Quality Standard (TQS) so to be eligible for an Alberta Interim Professional Certificate.
The B.Ed. program includes a number of distinctive features. The program is competency based, grounded in research, and designed to prepare students to teach effectively in classrooms made up of diverse learners. Our main program goal is to prepare a successful graduate who can design inclusive learning experiences to accommodate all children, including those with exceptional learning needs and cultural diversity. We have partnerships with Calgary and area school districts including the CBE, Rocky View Schools, Palliser, Calgary Catholic, Foothills, Golden Hills, and Charter schools in which students are placed for their 17 weeks of in-school experiences.
There are four distinct and integrated Program Components: Learning Theory and Application; Curriculum Design and Program Development; Society and Culture – Methodologies and Practices; and Field Experience. Each Program Component is made up of three distinct but not separate courses, and each course is interdisciplinary in a developmental and graduated (cumulative) way.
Profile of the Graduating Student
The successful graduate:
- holds a high view of teaching as a vocation;
- holds Christian values;
- believes strongly in the primacy of learning for children in schools;
- has a thorough understanding of, and confidence to work with, inquiry-based learning;
- possesses knowledge of curriculum and learning theory;
- displays a readiness to engage in shared praxis;
- possesses an ability to build positive relationships with children, parents, and colleagues;
- believes in the intrinsic value and uniqueness of each child;
- is confident with inclusive learning and teaching practices;
- is sensitive to cultural realities and differences;
- can articulate a clear philosophy of learning and teaching.
Program Conformity to Competencies
Courses in the B.Ed. program are designed and sequenced to articulate the competencies of the Teaching Quality Standard outlined below:
- The Teaching Quality Standard: Quality teaching occurs when the teacher’s ongoing analysis of the context, and the teacher’s decisions about which pedagogical knowledge and abilities to apply, result in optimum learning for all students.
- Fostering Effective Relationships: A teacher builds positive and productive relationships with students, parents/guardians, peers and others in the school and local community to support student learning.
- Engaging in Career-Long Learning: A teacher engages in career-long professional learning and ongoing critical reflection to improve teaching and learning.
- Demonstrating a Professional Body of Knowledge: A teacher applies a current and comprehensive repertoire of effective planning, instruction, and assessment practices to meet the learning needs of every student.
- Establishing Inclusive Learning Environments: A teacher establishes, promotes and sustains inclusive learning environments where diversity is embraced and every student is welcomed, cared for, respected and safe
- Applying Foundational Knowledge about First Nations, Métis and Inuit: A teacher develops and applies foundational knowledge about First Nations, Métis and Inuit for the benefit of all students.
- Adhering to Legal Frameworks and Policies: A teacher demonstrates an understanding of and adherence to the legal frameworks and policies that provide the foundations for the Alberta education system.
Teaching Quality Standards (TQS)
The integrated design of the B.Ed. program components and courses gives students an opportunity to develop the knowledge, skills and attributes (KSAs) of the Teaching Quality Standards of Alberta which provides a framework for the preparation, professional growth, supervision and evaluation of all teachers.
Teacher Qualifications for Salary Purposes
How students are evaluated for salary purposes is determined by the Teacher Qualification Service of the Alberta Teachers’ Association, not by Alberta Education or Ambrose University. In some cases, courses may not be considered for salary purposes. To determine how qualifications may be considered, please refer to the Principles for the Evaluation of Years of Teacher Education for Salary Purposes available on the Alberta Teachers’ Association website, or by writing to the address supplied below. Forms used to apply for evaluation of qualifications for salary purposes may be obtained on the Alberta Teachers’ Association website or by writing to:
Teacher Qualifications Service
The Alberta Teachers’ Association
Barnett House, 11010 - 142 St.
Edmonton, AB Canada T5N 2R1
Career Paths
Teachers with Interim Professional Certification awarded upon completion of the B.Ed. (After-degree) in Elementary Education from Ambrose are certified to teach Kindergarten through Grade 12. Students who graduate from Ambrose and are awarded Interim Professional Certification to teach will be eligible to teach in other provinces or International schools in similar ways as any graduate from any other accredited education degree program in Alberta. Graduates will be eligible for Teaching Qualification Services assessment in similar ways as any graduate from any other accredited education degree program in Alberta.
Bachelor of Education (After-Degree) 60 credits
60 credits in 12 required courses (across 4 curriculum components) which are designed to articulate the competencies of the Alberta Teaching Quality Standard
- 18 credits in Curriculum Design and Program Development
- 18 credits in Learning Theory and Application
- 12 credits in Society and Culture: Methodologies and Practices
- 12 credits in Field Experience
- Living Exhibition Portfolio
Please note that the evening/weekends blended pathway and waitlist are full for Winter 2025. The website will be updated when more information becomes available.
Required Courses
Learning Theory and Application
The B.Ed. program includes three graduated and integrated courses in Learning Theory and Application (LTA). These are courses about how people learn, individually and in groups, and how teachers can design experiences and create conditions so that diverse learners, including complex learners and learners from various cultural backgrounds, including First Nations learners, can be engaged in meaningful and engaging learning communities. Students will examine the relationship between learning and children’s growth and development, human behaviour, and assessment in elementary schools.
Curriculum Design and Program Development
The B.Ed. program includes three graduated and integrated courses in Curriculum Design and Program Development based on Alberta Education’s Program of Studies, Elementary Education. The CDPD courses develop students’ understanding of the requirements of curriculum design and program development in elementary school classrooms, the role of the teacher in translating the requirements into lesson and unit plans for teaching so that all learners can learn, including learners with special learning needs and those from various cultural backgrounds, and an exploration of the various orientations and methods regarding curriculum decision-making in schools. Students will examine the role of technologies in education, as well as community, societal, political, and school variables that influence curriculum design and program development in elementary schools.
Society and Culture: Methodology and Practices
The B.Ed. program includes three graduated and integrated courses in Society and Culture: Methodologies and Practices (SCMP) designed to provide students of education and teaching with opportunities to understand the professional, ethical, administrative, and social foundations and practices of education in Canada and other socio- cultural contexts, including First Nations. The courses are intended to sensitize students to perspectives and issues regarding First Nations learners, as well as children and families representing various cultures. The courses are designed for B.Ed. students to gain an understanding of various familial and societal perspectives and issues regarding inclusion of all learners, including students with special learning needs, in elementary schools. Students will examine current and past societal and cultural perspectives and practices that have influenced educational practices and children’s learning.
Field Experience
The B.Ed. program includes three (3) graduated Field Experience (FE) courses integrated throughout the two-year program designed to augment and support the course work in the core education courses in the program. The FE courses are designed to give students a developmental and systematic experience in understanding the life of the school (FE 500), the life of teachers and teaching (FE 600), and an introduction to curriculum design and program planning (FE 700). The FE courses are integrated with the core education courses to give students a progressive and applied (theory to practice) understanding of the role of the teacher in a school, in teaching with other teachers and with responsibilities to the Program of Studies and professional practice of translating the Program of Studies requirements into programs and instruction in the elementary school.
Bachelor of Education (After-Degree) Program Requirements (60 credits)
Curriculum Design and Program Development (18 credits)
CDPD 500 Introduction to the Principles and Practices of Curriculum Design and Program Development (6)
CDPD 600 Understanding and Application of Principles and Practices of Curriculum Design and Program Development (6)
CDPD 700 Synthesis of Principles and Practices in Curriculum Design and Program Development (6)
Field Experience (12 credits)
FE 500 Introduction to Field Experience (3)
FE 600 An Understanding and Application of Field Experience (3)
FE 700 Introduction to the Life of Curriculum Design and Program Development (6)
Learning Theory and Application Requirements (18 credits)
LTA 500 Introduction to Principles and Applications of Learning Theory (6)
LTA 600 An Understanding and Application of Learning Theory (6)
LTA 700 A Synthesis of Learning Theory (6)
Society and Culture: Methodology and Practices (12 credits)
SCMP 500 An Introduction to Society and Culture: Methods in Practice (6)
SCMP 600 An Application of Society and Culture: Methodology and Practices (3)
SCMP 700 A Synthesis of Society and Culture: Methodology and Practices (3)
General Requirements for Completion and Graduation:
- Completion of a total of 60 credits (as outlined above)
- A Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of at least 2.7