Primary Partnership ITT Programmes PGCE vs PgCE Primary mentoring Frequently asked questions Useful-contacts

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Our Primary ITE Programmes 

PGCE vs PgCE

Our Primary Postgraduate Initial Teacher Education (ITE) course has two routes to achieving Qualified Teacher Status (QTS):

• PGCE with QTS
• QTS only

Both lead to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and enable students to teach across various ages. Both routes are also taught together and provide students with extensive school-based experience through three placements in Partnership schools and alongside several taught days at the University. Schools within our partnership can recruit students for either of these routes.

Students can choose to complete a Primary PGCE Postgraduate Certificate in Education course or a Primary Professional Graduate Certificate in Education course. All courses lead to Qualified Teacher Status. Students may make their decision depending on their circumstances and motivations for completing the course.

Students who would like to gain their Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and would prefer to opt out of the Masters level assignments may choose one of the Primary Professional Graduate Certificate courses.

Students who are keen to explore the theory underpinning teaching in more detail and would like to gain 60 masters level credits from completing assignments may choose to complete one of the Primary Postgraduate Certificate in Education courses.

The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) may also be beneficial to those students who want to teach abroad in future, as the PGCE is an internationally recognised teaching qualification.

Click here to learn more about our pathways on our main site

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Assessment Only

As an experienced teacher it is possible to gain QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) or EYTS (Early Years Teacher Status) without additional training through the Assessment Only route. The route to QTS or EYTS is only available to teachers who have substantial experience of teaching in either the public or private sector but do not already have QTS or EYTS.

As many schools are unfamiliar with Assessment Only we are very happy to talk to school leaders about the route and its process.

Find out more about the Assessment Only route

Our Primary Lead Partners

Primary Mentoring 

As well as being rewarding and exciting, mentoring a student-teacher on any of our primary programmes provides a fantastic professional development opportunity. We provide training on the details of each specific programme placement as well as wider training and support on issues such as observing and giving feedback, identifying and meeting targets and having challenging conversations. You have the opportunity to support a beginning teacher as they develop, and to develop your own leadership skills in working with other adults. You will become part of our community of practice, with access to a well-developed certification programme and support from the programme team at the IoE.  

If you are interested in mentoring a primary student-teacher within your school or setting, please contact our placements coordinator.

Frequently Asked Questions

I would like to offer placements but I lead an infant-only school. Is that a problem?

No. We ensure that over the course of their training our trainees get a broad and balanced experience across a range of school years, so we can place them in infant, junior or all-through primary schools at different points in their training.

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My school is a specialist setting for children with SEND. Can we get involved?

Yes. We have specialist routes on our Primary PGCE programme for those wanting to teach in a special school, and frequently have trainees who would like to carry out one of their placements in a special school setting. There are also other ways to get involved, for example offering enrichment weeks or visit day placements for trainees.

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How much time would a trainee need to take over the class?

This depends upon the stage of their training. Trainees at the beginning of their training on our postgraduate programmes or in the first year of our undergraduate programme are often working with groups, individuals or teaching one-off lessons, building up to teaching around the equivalent of two days per week. By the end of their initial training they will be taking on the full responsibilities of a class teacher, for around four days per week. We would be happy to meet with you and discuss what kind of placement would work best in your school.

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A prospective candidate does not have a degree yet – can they study alongside work?

We offer a Foundation Degree in Children’s Development and Learning in partnership with local FE colleges where candidates can study alongside work. You need to work in an early years (birth-5 years) or educational (4-11 years) setting for at least 2.5 days a week. College attendance is required for one afternoon and evening per week.

There is then the opportunity to do a top-up year to gain BA Children’s Development and Learning. Once they have successful obtained your degree, you can then progress on to one of our postgraduate Primary ITT programmes.

Useful contacts

 

Role	Name	Email
Head of Initial Teacher Education	Dr Catherine Foley	c.m.foley@reading.ac.uk
Programme Director – Primary Postgraduate Initial Teacher Education	Scarlett Murphy	s.l.e.murphy@reading.ac.uk
Assistant Director – Primary Postgraduate Initial Teacher Education	Phil Smith-Stevenson	p.smith-stevenson@reading.ac.uk
Assistant Director – Primary Postgraduate Initial Teacher Education	Georgia Aspinox	g.aspinox@reading.ac.uk
BA Primary Education (QTS) Programme Director (Academic)	Stephanie Sharp	s.sharp@reading.ac.uk
BA Primary Education (QTS) Programme Director (Professional)	Cara Broadhurst	c.broadhurst@reading.ac.uk
Assessment Only Programme Director	Harvey Grout	Assessment Only Team
Admissions Team		teachertraining@reading.ac.uk
Placements Team		IoE School Placements
Primary PGCE Administration		Pgceprimary@reading.ac.uk
BA Primary Education (QTS) Administration		Primarypartnership@reading.ac.uk