General information on the reformed teacher training program

At the beginning of the winter semester 2007/08, teacher training at RPTU in Kaiserslautern was converted to Bachelor/Master degree programs with subsequent state examination as part of the Bologna Process. The subject of biology can be studied at RPTU in Kaiserslautern for the following teacher training specializations

• Teaching at grammar schools (LAG)
• Teaching degree at Realschulen Plus (LAR)
• Teaching at vocational schools (LABBS, as a second subject)

can be studied. It is possible to start the course in both the winter and summer semesters.

For all teacher education students, the program begins with the six-semester teacher-education-focused bachelor’s degree program. At the start of the program, students only commit to a subject combination; the school-type-specific specialization must not be determined until the third year of the bachelor’s program (in the LABBS program, the specialization is determined by the choice of subjects). The teacher-training-oriented bachelor’s program includes

• if you choose one of the specializations LAG or LAR: the study of two subjects of equal weight, as well as the subject of educational sciences, plus three required teaching practicums (45 days in total);
• if the LABBS specialization is chosen: the study of a vocational subject (first subject), a second subject, and the subject of educational sciences, plus three required school practicums (totaling 45 days);
• if you choose another school-type-specific specialization (elementary school, special education school), you must transfer to a university that offers this specialization no later than after the second year of study—the modules completed at TU Kaiserslautern will be recognized. In this case, it is strongly recommended that you obtain information early on regarding the organization of studies at the other university.

To successfully complete the bachelor’s program, students must earn a total of 180 credit points (Lp), distributed as follows (if biology was chosen as one of the subjects):

• If the LAG or LAR specialization is chosen:

• If choosing the LABBS specialization:

• Examination regulations
• Module handbooks
  • Bachelor Ed. Biology Gym/RS+
  • Bachelor Ed. Biology BBS
  • Master Ed. Biology Gym
  • Master Ed. RS+
  • Master Ed. BBS
• Study plans
  • Teacher Training Biology Gym
  • Teacher Training Biology RS+
  • Teacher Training Biology BBS

Certificate program:

• Certificate Extension Examination Teaching Qualification for Grammar Schools (Module Handbook)
• Certificate Extension Examination for Teaching Qualification at Realschulen Plus (module handbook)
• Certificate Extension Examination for Teaching Qualification at Vocational Schools (module handbook)

Older study program documents:

Module handbook until 2013
Module handbook 2014

After successfully completing the Bachelor's degree course, students are awarded the title of Bachelor of Education (B. Ed.) and can continue their education in one of the Master's degree courses (depending on their choice of teaching specialization).

• Master's degree course for the teaching profession at grammar schools (4 semesters)
• Master' sdegree course for the teaching profession at Realschulen Plus (3 university-related semesters plus 6 months of preparatory service)
• Master's degree course for the teaching profession at vocational schools (4 semesters)

can be continued with the same combination of subjects. The Master's degree (title: Master of Education, M. Ed.) also marks the end of the university examinations.

The recognition of university examinations as a First State Examination is regulated in the State Ordinance on the Recognition of University Examinations for Teacher Training-related Bachelor's and Master's Degree Courses as a First State Examination for Teaching Qualifications. The ministry responsible for teacher training(Landesprüfungsamt für das Lehramt an Schulen)is responsible for recognition.

The main educational goal of the consecutive, modular degree programmes is to enable
students to plan and implement qualified, modern biology lessons. In
the degree programmes, students are taught solid subject-specific and didactic foundations that enable
future teachers to impart biological knowledge in a lively and reflective manner in the classroom
. This includes, in particular, an understanding and sense of responsibility with regard to
environmental and health-related topics, as well as the problems of implementing bioscientific
findings in biotechnological applications and critically assessing the resulting
opportunities and risks.

Accordingly, in addition to the necessary basics
in chemistry, the subject-related courses cover the fields of botany, zoology, human biology,
ecology and physiology (in the Bachelor's degree course), which are central to biology teaching, as well as the increasingly important fields
of cell biology, molecular genetics, microbiology and biotechnology (in the Master's degree course). The
modules of the Bachelor's degree course are exclusively compulsory, while the second year
of the Master's degree course offers two compulsory elective modules in which students can choose courses
from different areas of study. Both degree programmes contain
roughly half theoretical and half practical courses. The subject didactics modules
interlink the scientific and didactic aspects of biology: in the lectures and
seminars, students learn and discuss the theoretical foundations for teaching
biological content and promoting and evaluating the learning process, and in the practical courses,
experiments relevant to schools from various areas of biology are carried out and their implementation
practised in the classroom.