Secondary PGCE (QTS)

Interview Information
Goldsmiths Teacher Education
 Supporting the Development of Exceptional
Teachers for World Class Schools

The Teacher Education Partnership believes that to achieve this vision and to make a difference to
the life chances of young people, it needs to be committed to:
 Promoting Reflection: to develop a strong sense of identity that is built upon a close
connection between research and experience.
 Recognising Inclusivity: to be rights-respecting and recognise and challenge the political,
social, economic and cultural dimensions of practice.
 Celebrating Creativity: to take informed risks and use imaginative and innovative strategies
to support learning.
 Developing Confidence and Engagement: to participate fully in steering the course of the
profession locally, nationally and globally.
 The Secondary PGCE (QTS)

All students enrolling on the PGCE (QTS) programme will study at master’s level
(level 7) but you will exit the programme with either:
A Post Graduate Certificate in Education (QTS) which is a Level 7 qualification or
A Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (QTS) which is a Level 6
qualification.

The final qualification you achieve will depend upon the outcomes of your two
academic assignments. All modules need to be passed to graduate with a PGCE (QTS)
qualification.
The programme consists of three modules

School Experience
Studies and Professional Issues and Research in Education
(SPIRE)
Subject Studies
 School Experience

 The PGCE (QTS) programme is built around the 120 days you will spend in school.
 During this time you will be placed in a minimum of two different schools and gain experience in KS3,
4 and 5.
 Goldsmiths will place you in a school which we consider to be within a reasonable travel time from
where you live (we define a reasonable travel time as up to 90 minutes).
 We work with a partnership of 200 schools so we have a lot of really supportive placements to choose
from.
 Whilst in school, you will be supported by one of our mentors and your placement will be overseen by
a professional co-ordinating mentor. You will also have the support of a subject specialist university
tutor.
 Our school experience expectations are developmental and we will never throw you into the deep
end. Instead there will be a gradual build up of responsibility for teaching and learning. By the end of
the programme you will feel fully prepared to start your induction year.
 School Experience: Professional Studies

 These sessions, usually led by teachers and leaders from our partnership
schools, contain everything that is really important but are not directly related
to the curriculum.
 Sessions this year have included: safeguarding; planning, assessment and use of
data; behaviour management; special educational needs and disabilities in
mainstream schools.
 Additional professional studies sessions will be held in school and will draw
upon the practical experience of staff in the school you are working in.
 We ask you to bring to the sessions your own experience both as a pupil and
a student teacher as a starting point for discussion and reflection.
 Assessment of School Experience

 You will be assessed at key points in the programme against each of the Teachers’
Standards and our internal assessment criteria.
 Regular observations and feedback sessions will take place across school experience with
your mentor and your university tutor.
 You will be expected to self-assess and reflect upon your own professional development
and we will guide and support you in developing this skill.
 You will collate evidence across your school experiences that will show that by the end of
the programme you have the knowledge skills and understanding to meet the Teacher’s
Standards.
 Studies and Professional Issues in Research
and Education (SPIRE)

 Teacher Education isn’t just about teaching and learning. At Goldsmiths we see education
as a window through which to view the world, something with the power to define who
we are and how we live. This belief underpins our approach to education and is at the
heart of the SPIRE module.
 In this module you will consider your own professional practice and will carry out an
extended investigation which will draw together theory, policy and your own professional
practice.
 This year the areas students considered included: creativity; inclusion; communication and
relationships in the classroom and democracy in education.
 This module will be assessed by a written assignment of 4,000-5,000 words.
 Subject Studies

 In this module, you will have the opportunity to reflect on your own and observed
pedagogies and relate these to different aspects of your subject specialism.
 We place a strong emphasis on active and collaborative learning with many opportunities
to learn from each other, to discuss and reflect with your fellow students.
 Through the Subject Studies module you will be supported to develop your critical
awareness of a variety of approaches, learning strategies and innovative materials
appropriate to the secondary classroom.
 This module will also be assessed by a written assignment of 4,000-5,000 words.
 Careers and the future

 Goldsmiths is an established and very well respected provider of teacher education.

 Lots of the mentors we work with trained with Goldsmiths and many Head Teachers
and Senior Leaders also started their professional journey on the Goldsmiths
programme.
 As a Goldsmiths’ student you will have access to our careers team as well as a lot of
support from tutors and teachers in school to help you in applying for and getting a
teaching job at the end of the programme.
If you have any further questions then please
ask your interviewer.

We are looking forward to speaking to you!