About Secondary Initial Teacher Training
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Overview
The primary aim of all our teacher training programmes is to enable you to be recommended for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
Over the training programme we want you to develop into the best teacher you can be. This in itself will soak up a large part of your energy and commitment.
Trainees often report that planning for lessons can sometimes take 4 hours for each one hour lesson. It will get faster as you become more skilled and more confident but you need to be under no illusions that gaining QTS is demanding in its own right. If you pass all your assignments and meet the Teachers' Standards, then recommendations for QTS will be made by UEL.
A few years ago the QAAHE, the organisation, which scrutinises university awards in the UK, decided that universities would have to change what the ‘P’ stands for in PGCE to make the level of the qualification clear:
The PGCE qualification you will be completing is set at Masters level/Level 7 assignment work hence you will get a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE)
Most universities in the UK, including UEL, now set their courses at Master’s (‘M’) level. What is consistent across all M Level study in every institution is the opportunity for the practitioner i.e. the trainee teacher, to explore research and academic literature in greater depth.
A great deal of initial teacher education places key emphasises upon the role that reflection plays in the ongoing formation of classroom skills. Added to reflective practice is the need to try and engage with the research literature – and most importantly of all, to link the theory and your own practice together. This is no different at 'M' level.
Without the context of your own reflective practice, many issues and themes in the academic study of education might seem slightly obscure or abstract. But linked to your practice, they hopefully provide you with some powerful tools to begin to think about your own teaching and classroom experiences in more depth.
The introduction of M level learning into teacher education programmes provides an opportunity to really try and immerse yourself in some key and powerful debates around education, schooling and practice. All through your professional role, remember that the best teachers fully admit to still being learners themselves.
This learning can focus upon both practice and theory – and, most importantly, the interplay between the two. Studying at 'M' level allows you the opportunity to achieve this.
You will be registered for PGCE with Masters level credits. This includes 2 assignments at 30 credits (i.e. 60 credits). The assignments and study will be around:
- Becoming a Reflective Subject Practitioner
- New and Emerging Technologies in Secondary Education
As teaching increasingly moves into a Masters level profession you can expect to see a flood of books on the market introducing trainee teachers to 'M' level debates, issues and thinking.
Suggested Reading
Writing at M Level
Writing at M level is a step up from the writing you will have done for your first degree and you can usefully start to prepare for M Level writing by reading one or more of the texts listed below:
Poulson, L. and M. Wallace. (2004). Learning to read critically in teaching and learning. London: SAGE
Sewell K. (2008) Doing Your PGCE at M-Level - A guide for students, London: SAGE
Wallace, M. and A.Wray (2006). Critical reading and writing for postgraduates. Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore, Washington DC: SAGE
Ward S. Eden C., (2009) Key Issues in Education Policy, London, SAGE
Wyse, D. (2006). The good writing guide for education students. London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi: SAGE
Reading at M Level
Remember that at 'M' level, it would be expected that a significant part of your reading would come from academic peer reviewed journals. Below are a few examples of the sorts of journals and journal articles that you might examine when reading at 'M' level. You might like to take a look at a couple of the articles to get a sense of the level of interpretation, analysis and reflection that is an essential part of 'M' level studying and is what separates this level of study from 'H' level/undergraduate studies.
Access to these articles is possible though the UEL library e-journals archive once you are enrolled as a UEL student when you will be able to set up an Athens account.
Who Is Conducting Teacher Research? Full Text Available: Hahs-Vaughn, Debbie L.; Yanowitz, Karen L.. Journal of Educational Research, Jul/Aug 2009, Vol. 102 Issue 6, p415-426, 12p, 3 charts; (AN 40634538)
Database: Academic Search Complete
Teachers' approaches to finding and using research evidence: an information literacy perspective. Full Text Available By: Williams, Dorothy; Coles, Louisa. Educational Research, Jun 2007, Vol. 49 Issue 2, p185-206, 22p, 1 chart, 2 graphs; DOI: 10.1080/00131880701369719; (AN 25084781)
Secondary school pupils' satisfaction with their ability grouping placements. Full Text Available By: Hallam, Susan; Ireson, Judith. British Educational Research Journal, Feb2007, Vol. 33 Issue 1, p27-45, 19p, 6 charts; DOI: 10.1080/01411920601104342; (AN 23828435)
Database: Academic Search Complete
From ‘consulting pupils’ to ‘pupils as researchers’: a situated case narrative. Full Text Available By: Thomson, Pat; Gunter, Helen. British Educational Research Journal, Dec 2006, Vol. 32 Issue 6, p839-856, 18p, 2 charts; (AN 23068371)
Technology enhancing learning: analysing uses of information and communication technologies by primary and secondary school pupils with learning frameworks. Full Text Available By: Passey, Don. Curriculum Journal, Jun 2006, Vol. 17 Issue 2, p139-166, 27p, 3 charts, 2 diagrams; DOI: 10.1080/09585170600792761; (AN 21806740)
Database: Academic Search Complete
A content analysis of school anti-bullying policies: progress and limitations. Full Text Available By: Smith, Peter K.; Smith, Cherise; Osborn, Rob; Samara, Muthanna. Educational Psychology in Practice, Mar 2008, Vol. 24 Issue 1, p1-12, 12p, 1 chart; DOI: 10.1080/02667360701661165; (AN 30049776)
Perspectives on pupil creativity in design and technology in the lower secondary curriculum in England. Full Text Available By: Rutland, Marion; Barlex, David. International Journal of Technology & Design Education, Mar 2008, Vol. 18 Issue 2, p139-165, 27p, 1 diagram; DOI: 10.1007/s10798-007-9024-6; (AN 31315128)
Database: Academic Search Complete
Recommended Reading
As teaching increasingly moves into a Masters level profession you can expect to see a flood of books on the market introducing trainee teachers to 'M' level debates, issues and thinking. Four books worthy of initial exploration are:
- Sewell K. (2008) Doing Your PGCE at M-Level - A guide for students, London, Sage
- Burton D, Bartlet S [eds] (2009) Key Issues for Education Researchers, London, Sage
- Ward S. Eden C., (2009) Key Issues in Education Policy, London, Sage
- Kidd W., Czerniawski, G (2010) Successful Teaching 14-19 Theory, Practice and Reflection, London, Sage
Remember that at 'M' level it would be expected that a significant part of your reading is to come from academic peer reviewed journals. Below are a few examples of the sorts of journals and journal articles that you might examine when reading at 'M' level.
You might like to take a look at a couple of the articles to get a sense of the level of interpretation, analysis and reflection that is an essential part of 'M' level studying and is what separates this level of study from 'H' level/undergraduate studies.