Our Primary PGCE has a long-established and well-deserved reputation as a high quality provider of initial teacher education and training. 

The course combines campus-based sessions, which critically engage you with the principles that underpin practices, with school-based work, enabling you to apply this knowledge and extend your skills in a range of classroom situations. 

Primary PGCE tutors have a wealth of expertise and experience in schools and higher education teaching and are based in a School of Education renowned nationally and internationally for educational research.  This ensures students benefit from learning to teach in an environment conducive to developing as both skilled Newly Qualified Teachers and informed reflective practitioners.

Aims of the Course

The PGCE Primary course aims to:

• Prepare you to teach across the full range of the Primary Curriculum.
• Introduce you to the wider context of teaching. The course will cover issues such as responding to diversity in school and the inclusion of Special Needs Education.
• Equip you with classroom management and planning skills.
• Support you in taking increased responsibilty for your own professional development.
• Provide a range of specialist options, available options include Early Years, Social Inclusion, Mathematics and many more.
• Provide a variety of placements in schools of contrasting character and location.
• Enable you to meet the required professional standards for Qualified Teachers Status (QTS).

Structure of the Course

Within our Primary PGCE we offer three different routes:

• Age 5-11: Upper Primary (X171) covering KS1 and KS2
• Age 3-7: Lower Primary (X121) covering FS and KS1
• Age 5-11: Primary with French (XR11) covering KS1 and KS2

The majority of taught sessions are arranged to allow students from all these routes to benefit from working together. 

However, where appropriate, sessions are taught in age-phase groups (e.g. Lower Primary and Upper Primary).  It is important that everyone applying to follow our Primary PGCE understands that KS1 is a key component of the training for all students, whichever route they choose.

The PGCE Primary course is organised into these four components:

• Primary Professional Strand
• Curriculum Strand
• Specialist Studies Strand
• School Placements

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