Objectives
Our full time, one year PGCE programme will help bring your graduate expertise, skills and enthusiasm to the imaginative and practical teaching of English to children of all abilities from 11 to 18. The programme formally assesses you for the 11-16 national standards for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) set by the Training and Development Agency (TDA), but goes beyond this. Education is complex and challenging. Recognising the level of intellectual engagement that this means, we offer credits at both Professional and Postgraduate levels, which means that you can accummulate up to 60 Master's level credits on this programme.* In the Plymouth PGCE you will work in a series of strong groups. One is the whole cohort of all subjects where you will learn about wide professional issues: here we explore the educational issues that affect teaching and young people to be independent and prepared for our rapidly changing society. Another is the English subject group, where you will enjoy mutual tuition and support. You will also work in the University of Plymouth"s newest academic accommodation - the purpose-built Rolle Building. The whole PGCE programme is designed to build your capacities towards meeting the teaching challenges and opportunities of the twenty-first century. The Programme Aims are to: -prepare each student for entry into the profession as a subject specialist with the levels of knowledge, personal qualities and standards of professional competence necessary to stimulate the imagination of children and to maintain and improve standards in schools -engender in each student an appreciation of the fascination of teaching, of the range of possibilities for continued professional development and of the relationship between educators and society. More widely, we recognise the real career opportunities that teaching offers. You can accummulate up to 60 credits, which you might use later towards a Masters level qualification. We also work with the University"s Continuing Professional Development (CPD) teams to help newly qualified teachers (NQTs) complete their Master's degree in the early stages of their career. In this way, we provide opportunities for your whole career trajectory, from initial training through to higher degree level. In our last Ofsted inspection we received the highest grade possible and inspectors noted that our partner schools feel they have a close relationship with the faculty and share a strong commitment to providing high-quality training and support for students. (*subject to final approval)
Course description
Why choose an English Secondary PGCE at the University of Plymouth?
Two very good reasons:
-It"s stimulating and enjoyable
-It"s very successful
You will study the full range of the schools" English curriculum, including teenage fiction, creative writing, multicultural reading, linguistics, web page design, media and much more. All study is done in practical settings where you are a student and a teacher in every session. This course is no place for passengers. The University of Plymouth prepares flexible, knowledgeable and challenging English teachers of rthe twenty-first century.
You"ll find yourself exploring the practicalities of storytelling, poetry and playwriting, improvising Shakespearean role play and learning in a fast-moving group. This is a group you will know well for the whole year; you are not isolated or training alone. The group makes becoming an English teacher at Plymouth friendly, fast-paced, intellectually rigorous and, above all, collaborative. You will become one of a strong and forward thinking team.
Your year will take you into two of our partner English departments, making your way alongside the school mentors who will coach you through the early stages towards independent teaching. Whatever your initial specialism in English, you will widen your capacity, and step into the demands of A level English language. We specialise in making language study realistic and a natural part of literature and media. You"ll be surprised at what you learn in one short year.
Towards the end of the year competition for jobs in the South West region is demanding. Only the best is good enough. University of Plymouth PGCE English graduates find good teaching posts in local schools, as well as further a field. In their early years of teaching, former students continue working on our Integrated Masters Programme to gain the award of MA. Once part of the University of Plymouth partnership you will be part of something big - taking you well into your successful English teaching career.
Further study, research and employment opportunities
The programme includes job application and interview skills; our students have a very good record of obtaining first teaching posts and are well prepared for a teaching career in secondary education.
General programme structure
Two thirds of your PGCE year will be spent in South West schools. You will be placed on two main secondary school placements as well as shorter visits to primary schools. You will be supervised jointly by a school mentor and a Faculty tutor.
We provide serial school practice days in your first placement school so you are not "thrown in at the deep end". Serial school practice gives a range of graduated practical experience. That weekly experience helps develop early confidence and acheivement, building towards competence and taking responsibility in the classroom.
Learning and assessment
We believe in the holistic nature of teaching and so rather than separate theory and practice, we have developed an integrated programme of school and Faculty work with each module planned, taught and assessed by a partnership of school mentors and faculty tutors.
All modules are assessed by coursework or by practical teaching. Assessment is designed to ensure that you can achieve the Professional Standards required by the DfES.
-You will maintain Professional Development and Subject Knowledge Profiles which will chart your development in meeting the Professional Standards.
-In all modules there will be a number of short tasks as well as the main assessment activity. These will usually involve presentations, preparing for seminars, ICT tasks or preparation for work in schools.
-All the assignments are based around school experience and are designed to be learning experiences shared with other students, mentors and tutors. You will be expected to draw on your experience of teaching as well as providing evidence of reading and reflection.
-We recognise that some of the assignments may require you to develop new skills, eg academic writing, the use of particular computer software, and that sometimes students can be anxious about this. For this reason considerable tutorial support is provided and you are encouraged to use it
