Course summary

We offer students an exceptional training experience – if you’re looking for a lifelong, challenging and exciting career, teaching may be for you. The programme aims to prepare you for entry to the teaching profession through placements, lectures, seminars, practical workshops and directed study. There is significant emphasis on the principals of teaching and learning with frequent reference to the latest research. You will develop the skills and understanding needed to teach and assess the full range of core and foundation primary subjects for children aged 3-7 or 5-11. You will also develop the knowledge required to cultivate management and leadership skills. A key focus will be to enable you to understand the teacher’s wider role, including through the holistic support of children’s health and wellbeing. The course gives high priority to developing your abilities of analysis and evaluation. You will be coached in inclusive practice so that all children, including those with special educational needs and disabilities, can be highly successful. You will work within a supportive learning environment where pastoral care of students is a priority. We were founded as a teaching college 175 years ago, and following the introduction of new quality requirements, our Initial Teacher Training (ITT) courses leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), have successfully achieved reaccreditation in 2022 by the Department of Education. Our ITT courses have also recently been rated ‘Good’ by Ofsted, with inspectors highlighting their ‘unique’ emphasis on sustainability and the University’s strong partnership with schools. Study style This PGCE gives a high priority to school-based learning and to developing your analysis, evaluation and autonomous learning and development skills. We work with a range of primary schools and early years settings, enabling us to place trainees in at least two different schools throughout the course of training. School placements are assessed through the scrutiny of evidence by students, school staff and university tutors – while professional development and subject knowledge are assessed through written assignments. Strong collaboration between expert colleagues across the university and our partnership promotes inspirational research-informed training for aspirational teachers. Our highly professional trainees take responsibility for their own learning and make an immediate impact on pupil progress. We want all of our trainees to make a significant contribution to children’s lives and to feel enriched by successful careers in teaching.