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Changing Horizons in Geography Education - HERODOT Network ...

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the two majors will be balanced at this level to a total value of 100−110 ECTS credits,respectively. To this value a total of 50 ECTS credits related to teach<strong>in</strong>g professioncan be added. Teach<strong>in</strong>g practice is also allowed for <strong>in</strong> the teacher stream. In order forstudents to be able to start their job with more experience, a further 30 ECTS creditsof school practice is provided for them, if this was a residential system, they can thendo teach<strong>in</strong>g practice for another half year at school under real life circumstances.Details regard<strong>in</strong>g this issue have not been elaborated yet.If the geography profession enforces its <strong>in</strong>terests adequately and if it can demonstratethat it can provide valuable tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g for society <strong>in</strong> Hungary, then the <strong>in</strong>stitutionsof higher education will be able to ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong> the number of the admitted studentswhose education is f<strong>in</strong>anced by the state because there is demand for it (admittedas full time students). On the basis of what we know now, it can be estimated thatapproximately 900−1000 students can beg<strong>in</strong> their undergraduate <strong>Geography</strong> studies<strong>in</strong> the new system <strong>in</strong> 2006. From among them 200−300 students will be able to enterthe master grade of the teacher tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> 2009, this number meets the needs forteachers. Actually, there is no problem with hav<strong>in</strong>g 200−300 researchers professionally<strong>in</strong> the sense that there is a model for the tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g of geographers as far as thecontent of the education is concerned. The situation of the students who leave thesystem by complet<strong>in</strong>g undergraduate level cannot be solved – at least provisionally– by say<strong>in</strong>g that there is no demand for people with such qualifications on the labourmarket, we do th<strong>in</strong>k that the successful <strong>in</strong>stitutions will create tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g that studentswill f<strong>in</strong>d attractive and that the labour market accepts. The <strong>in</strong>stitutions of highereducation <strong>in</strong> Hungary have a regional scope that is that the majority of their studentscome from their respective geographical region. It suggests that there will be greatcompetition between the <strong>in</strong>stitutions at Masters level and not undergraduate level.Therefore, the situation concern<strong>in</strong>g Masters level education may have a surprise upits sleeve regard<strong>in</strong>g this issue and generate high competition between <strong>in</strong>stitutions.This whole situation will further be complicated by the fact that there will also bean undergraduate programme called Earth Science, however, it has similar outputweaknesses with that of the BSc programme of <strong>Geography</strong> (it is an undergraduateprogramme that is not considered to be a teach<strong>in</strong>g tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g programme). Therehas also not yet been discussion of how we will admit students com<strong>in</strong>g from otherundergraduate programmes <strong>in</strong>to the graduate programme and who will accept theBSc degree <strong>in</strong> <strong>Geography</strong> for entry to Masters level courses.The structure of the <strong>Geography</strong> undergraduate programmeThe plan for the new <strong>Geography</strong> undergraduate programme has been preparedcollectively by the national <strong>in</strong>stitutions of the higher education and submitted to theHAC with request for foundation/accreditation. The education structure is simple,as it is based on a module system framework. The modules are divided <strong>in</strong>to threegroups, the basics, the professional core material and the differentiated professionalgroup. For each module (and for the courses <strong>in</strong> “core subjects” thereof) m<strong>in</strong>imumand maximum credit po<strong>in</strong>ts have been determ<strong>in</strong>ed by a committee <strong>in</strong> order that theundergraduate programmes <strong>in</strong> Hungary can be developed <strong>in</strong> parallel and that they165

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