Pathway Years & Thematic Semesters
Executive Summary
At Reach University, pathway years and thematic semesters enable students to focus on one subject and make connections across coursework while also supporting efforts to maximize university resources and keep costs low for students.
Pathway Years
In this approach, each year has a clear and structured focus. These are outlined below, and a sample is available here.
Foundational: In this first year, students learn the foundations of collegiate learning, as well as metacognition and mastery. They start at their placement and begin getting better at their job today by developing professional skills and learning about classroom culture. In each course, they connect their field experience with their coursework.
Intermediate & Advanced: In these years, students focus on content and pedagogy, and are expected to pass their licensure exam.
Clinical: In this final year, students teach in the classroom.
Thematic Semesters
In this approach, the institution of higher education would offer three (for example) thematically-related courses together during one term (e.g. all of the math classes offered during the same semester). This enables students to focus on one subject and make connections, and also enables a single instructor to teach the courses together, rather than having three instructors teaching three courses.
In Practice
Reach University's use of pathway years and thematic semesters is shown below.
