Bath Spa University opens doors for budding primary school teachers from buzai232's blog

Bath Spa University is offering the next generation of budding primary school teachers an alternative route into an exceptional teaching career with the launch of its new part-time primary PGCE course.

Bath Spa’s Institute for Education, which has been training teachers and other education professionals since 1946, has launched the course to widen access to teaching.

The innovative new programme opens doors to career changers, who will benefit from continuing to earn an income while studying, as well as to those who may not be able to train to become teachers through a traditional full-time programme.

The 16-month course, which starts at the end of January 2019, responds to recent changes in government funding for primary initial teacher training and will alleviate some of the financial pressure associated with studying to become a teacher.

Bath Spa University is also offering a £500 scholarship to part-time primary PGCE students to thank them for choosing a career in teaching.

Pat Black, Head of Initial Teacher Education at Bath Spa University, said: “Primary school education is so critical for the development of our children’s thinking and learning so we want to ensure they have exceptional teachers to support them. However, the climate for primary schools and their teachers is changing, with many feeling the pressure of funding and bursary cuts which can discourage them from considering what can be an incredibly inspiring and rewarding career. We wanted to do something positive to overcome this and help attract the next generation of talent.

“Our new part-time programme opens doors that would otherwise be closed to some applicants so we’re encouraging anyone who’s thinking about a career in primary school teaching, whether they’re straight out of university or considering a career change, to apply for the course which they can complete around their everyday life.”

The part-time Primary PGCE course, which begins on 21 January 2019, is open to those with an undergraduate degree in any subject and GCSEs (grade C or above) in English, Maths and Science. Training is for three days per week until the final 10-week full-time placement.

This unique timetable will be delivered as part of Bath Spa University’s ‘outstanding’ teacher training programme as rated by Ofsted.