Specializations & Academic Expertise
Werklund School of Education academics are committed to developing new ideas and insights that address local, national and international challenges, while also nurturing new generations of visionary thinkers. They apply their teaching and research expertise to the following seven academic disciplines.
Adult Learning
Adult Learning is informed by a rich heritage rooted in a commitment to human, community and social development. As a hub of interdisciplinary research, the focus is on adult learning and adult education. Students come from multiple and diverse contexts and interest areas which include: post-secondary and continuing education; business and industry; NGOs; community development and international organizations.
Counselling Psychology
Counselling Psychology values the importance of developing full human potential and enhancing quality of life within the context of life-long learning. Toward this end, an overarching social justice approach is emphasized, which includes a strong conceptual foundation, an ethical orientation, and ongoing skill development
Curriculum & Learning
Curriculum and Learning explores how critical approaches to curriculum and theories of learning provide meaningful ways of thinking about schooling, knowledge, teaching, learning, research, and the nature of pedagogical relationships. Curriculum and Learning encompasses issues of content, context, and teaching in both formal and non-formal educational settings.
Language & Literacy
Language and Literacy explores various dimensions of literacy, linguistic and cultural diversity, especially as they relate to the acquisition, use, teaching, and learning of languages, multiliteracies (multiple meaning-making systems, including print, visual, oral, audiovisual, and gestural texts), and new literacies and digital media.
Leadership
Leadership researchers and practitioners analyze and resolve educational policy and leadership issues specifically related to: the direction and management of schools; school systems; post-secondary institutions; and both governmental bodies and non-governmental organizations concerned with public and private education.
Learning Sciences
As theories about knowledge change in concert with rapid advancements in the learning sciences, Learning Sciences specialists need to consider the cultural, social, political and economic implications for learners and for learning in diverse contexts. Studies in learning sciences seek to balance the practice of education and research in education as a hands-on, minds-on discipline that emphasizes knowing and doing.
School & Applied Child Psychology
The School and Applied Child Psychology contributes to enhanced learning and mental health outcomes for all individuals within a wide variety of settings. Practitioners serve as educational leaders in the effective application of educational and psychological principles to the learning environment at both the individual and systems levels.