PGCE Further Education

Your journey into the teaching profession begins with an intensive Welcome Week, which serves as the essential foundation for your training year. Attendance is critically important, as this week is designed to bridge the gap between your previous professional background and your new identity as an educator.

During these sessions, we will demystify the complexities of the Further Education and Skills (FES) sector, establish our professional community of practice, and ensure you are fully prepared, legally and pedagogically, before you enter your teaching placement. Missing these sessions can significantly delay your ability to begin teaching practice.

Your Personal Academic Tutor

Every student on the PGCE Further Education programme is assigned a Personal Academic Tutor (PAT). Your PAT is a consistent point of contact throughout the academic year, providing a vital link between your academic studies and your practical development. They are there to:

• Support your academic progress and provide guidance on Level 7 writing.

• Offer pastoral support and signpost you to university services if you face challenges.

• Review your PebblePad portfolio and help you reflect on your professional growth.

• Act as a mentor in navigating the "reality shock" that can occur during early teacher training.

You will have scheduled one-to-one meetings with your PAT throughout each semester, but they are also available for "drop-in" support to ensure you feel confident and supported as you develop your educational sense of self.

Core Modules and Delivery

In your first semester, you will undertake two foundational modules:

• Investigating Subject Pedagogy (ISP)
• Professional Practice Block 1 and 2 (PPB1 and 2).

Teaching is delivered via a blended model, comprising weekly on-campus workshops focused on micro-teaching and pedagogical theory, alongside asynchronous online activities.

The First Few Weeks Your journey begins with an intensive induction period.

Week 1 focuses on professional expectations and cohort building, followed by a transition into your teaching placement by Week 3. This allows you to immediately apply theoretical frameworks within a practical FE context.

Blackboard

Virtual Learning Environments You will primarily use Blackboard to access module resources and reading lists. Additionally, you will be introduced to PebblePad, an e-portfolio system essential for documenting your teaching observations and professional reflections.

Preparation

To prepare, please complete the following modules on the Learning Skills Hub. 

• Introduction to Post Graduate Writing
• Critical Thinking

It is also highly recommended that you review the Occupational Standards (SkillsEngland), Learning and skills teacher / Skills England.

You will require a laptop for on-campus sessions and professional business attire for your placement. Please ensure all DBS documentation is ready for immediate verification.

The following are activities are essential tasks and need to be completed at the beginning of your course. They are often statutory training activities, required by the government.

Please complete the activities below and upload your evidence. This is often in the form of a certificate/acknowledgement of completion.

1. Education and Training Foundation: Safeguarding in Further Education and Training

Please follow the link below:

https://learning.etfoundation.co.uk/courses/safeguarding-in-further-education-and-skills-202526

Register and complete the online training. You should then be provided with a certificate, please keep this and bring it with you at the start of your course as we will need this to show that you have completed the course.

2. Female Genital Mutilation: Recognising and Preventing FGM

Please follow the link below:

https://www.virtual-college.co.uk/resources/free-courses/recognising-and-preventing-fgm

Register and complete the online training. You should then be provided with a certificate, please keep this and bring it with you at the start of your course as we will need this to show that you have completed the course.

3. Home Office Prevent Training Certificate

Please follow the link below:

https://www.elearning.prevent.homeoffice.gov.uk/

Register and complete the online training. You should then be provided with a certificate, please keep this and bring it with you at the start of your course as we will need this to show that you have completed the course.

Two books which are really useful and interesting to delve into are:

Armitage, A. et al. (2016) 5th Ed. Teaching in Post-14 Education & Training. OUP.

Tummons, J. et al. (2020) PCET: Learning and Teaching in the Post Compulsory Sector. Learning Matters, Sage Publications

It is useful to note that the University Bookshop offers 10% discount on most titles in print and have some price-beating book bundles. They also price match Amazon on core texts recommended in the module handbooks you will receive when you start in September.