PGCE Primary

Institution Trinity College, Carmarthen, University of Wales
Method At the institution
Location Wrexham
Type Postgraduate
Course fee By request

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PGCE Primary

Entry requirements Entry Requirements You must be a graduate with a good honours degree, whose previous education is appropriate to the primary curriculum. In addition, you must possess GCSE (Grade A - C) in English Language, Mathematics, and a Science subject (and Welsh as a first language for those following the Welsh medium course).
Academic title PGCE Primary
Course description This one year course seeks to provide the necessary subject knowledge and professional competence to enable you to pursue a career as a primary school teacher by achieving the Qualified Teacher Status in Initial Teacher Education Training of Primary School Teachers. The programme takes full account of the National Curriculum and in particular its needs within Wales. It aims to provide you with a thorough understanding of the statutory curricula for primary schools, the National Curriculum and the Foundation Phase,and to achieve this in a caring, supportive and encouraging environment. With our partner schools, we aim to ensure that you achieve your full potential in becoming both an effective and reflective practitioner who is able to teach in today’s primary classroom and to deal with the challenges of tomorrow.

Content and Structure

The PGCE Primary scheme is designed to offer a holistic approach to the teaching of the Primary School Foundation Phase and Key Stage 2 (7-11). The course also acknowledges the benefit of an element of specialised subject teaching at Key Stage 2. There are two elements to the course, College-Based Studies and School-based Studies:

College-based Studies (20 weeks) - There are five main areas:

    * Core National Curriculum Subjects - English, Mathematics, Science and Information Technology (and Welsh for Welsh-medium trainees). It is a requirement that trainees prove their knowledge and understanding in the core subjects during the course before they can be accredited with Qualified Teacher Status.

    * Non-core Subjects - Creative Arts, Humanities with Religious Education, Technology and Information Technology.

    * Foundation Phase - You will look at the educational provision for children under 7 years including the number of different settings within schools: nursery units, nursery classes, reception classes and mixed reception classes. You will have practical experience in promoting play, planning for play, and observing and assessing learning through play.

    * Professional Teaching Studies - This element of the course will involve the study of children’s learning, teaching strategies, assessment, class and school management, current education issues, including cross-curricular themes.

    * Subject Specialism in Teacher Education and Curriculum Leadership

School-based Studies

The School-based Studies section of the course consists of an observation period spent at a school in your own area, which will enable you to become accustomed to school life. Thereafter, there are two teaching experience blocks, one over six weeks in the Autumn term and one of ten weeks in the Summer term. These studies are designed to enable you to acquire the knowledge, skills and understanding for the effective support of children and their learning. You will undertake the day-to-day duties and tasks carried out by teachers as well as taking part in some group teaching activities.

The Bilingual Context

Trinity is well renowned for its leading role in bilingual education and the College, and its partner schools, have a long-established expertise so that a specific emphasis can be placed on the needs of pupils and teachers in diverse linguistic contexts. As an integral part of the programme, Trinity offers a Welsh learners’ course for beginners, developers and for those more familiar with the language who wish to improve their standards of written and oral usage. The College awards certificates to those who have followed the course and also provides opportunities for those who wish to enter for external certificates of proficiency in the Welsh language, eg the Cynllun Colegau Cymru, (a scheme which operates in Welsh colleges offering ITET courses).