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PGCE - Current Students Thread

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Reply 1920

You'll be fine! I find that teaching a whole day is easier because you build up a momentum. Good luck :smile:

I'm mostly worried about getting flustered/losing or forgetting resources because I'm in 4 different classrooms over the course of the day. If I was in one classroom all day I think it would be a lot less scary.

Reply 1921

myblueheaven339

Original post by myrtille

I have days where I'm in lots of different rooms. Just make sure you've got everything sorted and a big bag to carry it in! Can you leave your resources in the room until your lesson? That way they'll be ready for you.

This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

Reply 1922

smartarse1983

Original post by myrtille

I teach 5 in a row on a Wednesday ( by contrast I have 1 lesson on a Thursday). I get to school v.early, and I have cardboard folders for each lesson, and I just go around and leave them on the bookshelf in each room (rooms are usually open as the cleaners are still in its so early). so that way I only need to shuttle myself, my pencil case, my planner, some detention slips, a board clicker and a marker between classrooms. I still get flustered, and by lunch I usually can't remember my own name, let alone which language I am supposed to be teaching, but you do get into the flow.

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 1923

AndyXL

Original post by John Mullen

Thanks. I hope so too but really at a loss at the moment about what I am going to do next. Loved the A-level side of things, and wished I could just teach that but It was never going to happen. teaching the lower years didn't agree with me e.g. behaviour, pastoral side of things.

Interested in tutoring, but don't know where to start, how much work I would get, and whether I could make a career out of it.

I've also just quit the PGCE too :-)

I was in a similar position to you - I had a real dilemma over whether I should finish the year or not, but in the end, I decided there was no point in dedicating 100% of my time and energy over the next 4 months, to something I didn't want to do.

I also loved A-Level, but it was everything else that just wasn't what I thought it would be, and the rewards simply weren't great enough.

It's weird to not be going into school (this if my first complete week off since quitting), but it is great, although I do feel guilty about not doing anything.

I now need to work out my next steps, but I have no regret at all about quitting the PGCE - it was definitely the right decision, and I'm glad I'm out of a profession I know I couldn't commit myself too.

Reply 1924

John Mullen

Original post by AndyXL

We are living parallel lives here!

Reply 1925

myrtille

Original post by smartarse1983

It went OK! :smile:

I put any worksheets I needed in the classrooms in the morning, and when possible loaded powerpoints onto teachers computers before registration/at break so I wouldn't have to mess around with my memory stick. So in my bag I just had a folder with lesson plans, class lists and some pens/board markers.

I did have a brief moment of confusion as to whether I was supposed to be speaking French or Spanish, but soon got into it again. Three out of five lessons went pretty well, so I don't think that's too awful for my first week of this placement. Just a couple of classes I really need to crack, behaviour-wise, but they're pretty badly behaved for my mentor as well so not sure how much success I can expect... :s-smilie:

Reply 1926

bigdon

Just wanted to say that this thread is a lifeline for us to reflect on the fact that we aren't alone.
My peers seem to be 'oh its do wonderful' types and kiss up at any given opportunity.

I must have thought about quitting 40 times.

Can I ask Andy XL - glad you feel better now you've quit, however what now happens with your student loan repayment, etc?

Good luck to everyone suffering

Reply 1927

AndyXL

Original post by bigdon

It's quite complicated, but here's what happens with loans, grants etc:

1. Student bursary (monthly payments for certain subjects). You do not have to pay back the bursaries for the months you were on the course; these are written off. However, if you quit a few days or a few weeks after receipt of the bursary for that month, this is repayable.

2. Tuition fees - check the cut off date for this. I quit my course at the beginning of March, and the University has told me they will refund the Student Loans Company half the fees (£4,500), so my student loan for fees only remains £4,500.

3. Other student loans - you keep whatever money you got, but in addition to half the tuition fee loan, this is added to your student loan total (which you repay out of your salary when you earn over a certain threshold).

4. Student grant - now this one I'm not 100% sure on, but I think, in the same way as the bursary, it simply gets written off, but I need to double check with this.

So to sum up, the financial consequences of quitting the course depend on the time of month in relation to the bursary, and the time of year when the University charges tuition fees. If you leave it until after Easter to quit, the full tuition fee might be payable.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Whilst searching for jobs is hard work, I'm hugely relieved to have quit the PGCE, and it was definitely the right decision.

Reply 1928

xxmijxx

Easter is coming everyone! I'm not sure this is necessarily a good thing as I don't feel I've progressed as much as I'd like however a welcome break from the busyness! Is anyone else a bit worried abut how fast time is flying by?

Reply 1929

sunfowers01

I feel very anxious when I'm in class or when it's nearly time to go to work. Does anyone else get this? I constantly doubt my ability as a teacher.

Reply 1930

myrtille

I might be weird but I don't normally feel that anxious about the lessons themselves.

What I dread is going home after school in the knowledge that I will have to work another 5 hours that evening just to keep on top of planning!

I've done all my planning for school tomorrow to leave cover work for the teachers and now have got to plan an interview lesson for tomorrow. Hoped to have a break from lesson planning at the weekend since we break up for Easter on Friday, but have got 2 more interviews next week as well (unless I get the one tomorrow, of course!). It's just non-stop at the moment...

Reply 1931

Piggsil

Original post by myrtille

Just a bit of advice, I would definitely go to all the interviews before deciding which job you want :yep:

Reply 1932

smartarse1983

Is it becoming increasingly normal for schools to ask you to teach full lessons at interview? My Uni gave me the impression that 20 to 25 mins would be the norm, but of the 3 interviews I've attended, I've had to teach full hour lessons at all 3.

Reply 1933

myrtille

Original post by Becca

Just a bit of advice, I would definitely go to all the interviews before deciding which job you want :yep:

We've been told by the university that this isn't possible as you normally have to make a decision on the day. Apparently some schools might let you have 'til the following day to think about it but I doubt they'd let me have a week.

To be honest, the first and second are the ones I'm most interested in anyway though, so fingers crossed!

smartarse - For my first interview I was asked to teach a 40 minute lesson. The 3 I've got coming up are 25 minutes, 30 minutes and 1 hour. So there doesn't seem to be any particular rule to it.

Reply 1934

balloon_parade

Original post by Becca

Just a bit of advice, I would definitely go to all the interviews before deciding which job you want :yep:

You can't do that unfortunately! At the end of an interview you will be asked "Are you a firm candidate?" If you say yes you are entering a verbal contract so basically, if they offer you the job you will say yes. If you say yes and then decline the job it is massively frowned upon and they will not be happy, especially as even getting short-listed is so hard at the moment.

It is a massive dilemma, especially if you have a couple of interviews near each other and the one you like best is second!

Here is TES thread with expert advice on this very topic: http://community.tes.co.uk/forums/t/650798.aspx

Reply 1935

noodles!

Original post by smartarse1983

I went to 5 interviews - did 3 full hours, 1x 30 min and 1x 20 min. The full hour ones are so much better, it ends up being more of a case of 'look at what I can actually do' rather than 'look at all these things I'm trying to cram into this small amount of time'.

It's good of your uni to warn of the shorter lessons though, I guess. Hope they have given you tips on preparing for such lessons (nobody did for me!)

This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad app

Reply 1936

Piggsil

Original post by myrtille

Original post by balloon_parade

Oh, how poo! I never actually went through a "normal" interview in the UK, so shows what I know. Although maybe it wasn't quite this bad even a few years back.
Good luck with your interview(s), myrtille!