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Why choose the School of Education
Ofsted – we are a ‘Good’ provider with Outstanding in Quality of leadership and management across our partnerships.
95% of our Education and Teaching graduates are in employment or further studies 15 months after graduating (HESA Graduate Outcomes, 2023)
Over 90% of students across all courses are employed within the first six months of graduation
100% of our undergraduate Primary Education graduates have secured jobs by the end of their course
Our Early Childhood Education course ranks 8th in its subject table for graduate prospects on track (Complete University Guide, 2024)
All teaching-training staff have QTS and were previously employed as teachers and/or head teachers; we also have teaching staff who are school governors or active members of their national subject associations
About the course
Develop as a creative innovative and reflective teacher specialising in working with the youngest children in primary schools (aged 3-7) on a course that meets the requirements for Qualified Teacher Status.
This course offers all the benefits of our Primary Education PGCE but with a focus on the 3-7 age range. Through specialist placements in Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 you develop a secure understanding of early years teaching and learning supported by experienced early years and primary teachers.
You attend subject-specific sessions lectures and seminars designed to develop awareness and understanding of general professional issues; the content of the National Curriculum; and practical guidance on aspects of teaching such as lesson planning and assessment.
When you successfully complete the course you achieve Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) enabling you to work as an early years or primary teacher.
Why choose this course?
- Study at our Bedford campus home to one of the largest education providers in the region with a long history of teacher education and an impressive graduate employment rate
- Benefit from our well-established links to schools across the eastern region a network that puts us at the forefront of educational developments
- Hone your skills of critical self-evaluation and gain confidence in analysing your own practical experience during your school placements
- Engage with relevant research literature and develop the skills of a reflective practitioner
- Develop your creativity and team-working skills preparing you to influence and lead in educational settings while enhancing your own sense of independence
Course Leader - Michelle Sogga
I am the course co-ordinator for the PGCE Early Years Birth to Five with Early Years Teacher Status and the PGCE Primary Early Years (3-7) with QTS.Ìý I am also phase lead for early years.
I joined the ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ following 17 years of working in schools in the UK and Tanzania.
I started my career in a maintained Nursery School, followed by two years developing teacher training for nursery school teachers in Tanzania.Ìý
Since then I have worked in Nursery, Lower and Special Schools, and have been a Headteacher of maintained Nursery Schools, also leading childcare and Children’s Centre provision.
Course Leader - Michelle Sogga
I am the course co-ordinator for the PGCE Early Years Birth to Five with Early Years Teacher Status and the PGCE Primary Early Years (3-7) with QTS.Ìý I am also phase lead for early years.
I joined the ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ following 17 years of working in schools in the UK and Tanzania.
I started my career in a maintained Nursery School, followed by two years developing teacher training for nursery school teachers in Tanzania.Ìý
Since then I have worked in Nursery, Lower and Special Schools, and have been a Headteacher of maintained Nursery Schools, also leading childcare and Children’s Centre provision.
What will you study?
Studying our Primary Early Years PGCE course will equip you with in-depth knowledge and skills around education, teaching and curriculum. You will start by building your understanding of teaching and learning, as well as how to apply that knowledge into practice in our Evidence Informed Primary Teacher (Level 7) unit.
Based on key literature, you will focus on developing evidence-informed teaching and subsequently be critical of your own practice in The Reflective Primary Teacher (Level 7) unit. This will help you prepare for work within complex and unpredictable early years classroom settings that demand innovative thinking and actions.
In areas of practice, you will have the opportunity to undertake a school placement where you will build your experience to independently plan and deliver lessons based on your observations and learning in our School Experience 1 – The Primary Early Years Teacher unit. You will learn to apply useful management strategies in a school context while aligning with behaviour management policy.
In the second part of this unit; School Experience 2 – The Primary Early Years Teacher; you will continue to develop and apply your experience from the first unit while also learning methods to adapt teaching, effective use of assessment and to promote good progress.
How will you be assessed?
The assessment strategy is based upon the premise that critical evaluation of theoretical perspectives as they apply to your own teaching is an intrinsic element of best teaching practice. Throughout the course therefore you will continually be encouraged to explore what is known about teaching and learning and to demonstrate independence and creativity in evaluating the relevance of that knowledge in your own context.
Sound subject knowledge is a fundamental quality of an effective teacher and you will be expected to demonstrate a commitment to on-going development of that knowledge throughout the course. In addition key to the course is a focus on the development of evidence informed teaching culminating in an extended systematic study of your own practice. By embracing the professional requirements for Qualified Teacher Status within the academic requirements of a Post Graduate Certificate the course supports you in developing the qualities that define the ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ graduate teacher: an independent reflective creative innovative collaborative and resilient professional who is committed to on-going personal and professional development.
The assessment for this course seeks to support you in developing your understanding of the interplay between theoretical perspectives and practice based experience. You will be developing your skills of reviewing and evaluation of evidence critical thinking creativity and independence. The themes for your evidence informed writing are developed from local and national subject priorities and therefore allow you to develop the evidence of your understanding of values and principles underpinning the Teachers Standards as they apply to your working context. By building your work around these themes you will generate rich evidence that can contribute to the assessment of your professional performance: the Profile Review Points. Hence the assessment items are intrinsically connected and in combination allow you to demonstrate your achievement of all learning outcomes. The Profile Review Point is the process by which the mentor reviews your progress in your teaching practice and offers this evidence to your university tutor to review against all the other evidence that they see of you on the course.
The Teachers Standards 2012 provide the framework by which this progress is judged and are supplemented with descriptors which support you in understanding the qualities which define the level at which you meet the standards. The Teacher Standard descriptors are included in the School Experience unit assessment information. Formative use of assessment is embedded throughout the course and is a principle that we would expect you to adopt in your own teaching. You will be supported to become familiar with self- and peer-assessment approaches and to make effective use of feedback on both academic and practice-based aspects of the course to identify targets for your on-going development and plan actions to address them.
The passing of all four units will mean the course will recommend you to the Teaching Regulatory Agency (TRA) for QTS. In exceptional circumstances approved by the head of school it may be possible for recommendation for QTS to be made without completion of the four units. This option is not an automatic entitlement.
Careers
On graduating you can apply for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) enabling you to work as a teacher in an early years or primary education setting. Many of our graduates go on to rewarding employment in local schools.
There are also opportunities to progress to further study at MA/MSc MPhil PhD and EdD levels.
Entry Requirements
- Safeguarding checks, including an Enhanced DBS, and Occupational Health check are required
Entry Requirements
- Safeguarding checks, including an Enhanced DBS, and Occupational Health check are required
Fees for this course
UK
You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for PGCE tuition fees.
See
A limited number of bursaries are available for Primary PGCE courses.
See
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
Scholarship Available
The ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ is proud of its alumni and is delighted to offer a tuition fee discount for those who choose to continue or return to the University for on campus Postgraduate level studies.
We offer a 20% discount on full and part-time Masters courses to those who were successful in completing an Honours Degree with the ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ, DMU’s Bedford campus or the University of Luton.
The Department for Education (DFE) Bursaries and Scholarships
Bursaries and scholarships are available to trainees on tuition fee-based teacher training courses in England that lead to the award of qualified teacher status (QTS).
Receiving a bursary or scholarship depends on:
- highest relevant academic award
- ±õ°Õ°ÕÌý²õ³Ü²úÂá±ð³¦³Ù
Fees for this course
UK
You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for PGCE tuition fees.
See
A limited number of bursaries are available for Primary PGCE courses.
See
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
Scholarship Available
The ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ is proud of its alumni and is delighted to offer a tuition fee discount for those who choose to continue or return to the University for on campus Postgraduate level studies.
We offer a 20% discount on full and part-time Masters courses to those who were successful in completing an Honours Degree with the ÑÇÉ«ÊÓƵ, DMU’s Bedford campus or the University of Luton.
The Department for Education (DFE) Bursaries and Scholarships
Bursaries and scholarships are available to trainees on tuition fee-based teacher training courses in England that lead to the award of qualified teacher status (QTS).
Receiving a bursary or scholarship depends on:
- highest relevant academic award
- ±õ°Õ°ÕÌý²õ³Ü²úÂá±ð³¦³Ù
