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Preparing for PGCE over the summer

Hi! Just wondering what everyone else is doing over the summer.

I'm reading 'How to Get the Buggers to Behave' which has really good advice about things which seems really obvious but I'm sure I'd never think of!

I'm also stocking up on stickers, colouring in books and other things to take out on placement.

Anyone else? :smile:

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I have an essay to write on behaviour management for the first day, so lots to read for that. We have also been told to read a few different subject knowledge books which I still need to get (as only just been published) and to make sure we are up to date with subject knowledge etc. I have most my other books though from the reading list which I've had a quick flick through. Apart from that I'm planning on getting some clothes for placements and making sure everything is organised so I have everything I need when I start as I think we will be super busy. I think I probably have enough stationery etc already as i'm a bit obsessed with it! I have also been looking at blogs for teaching ideas etc and reading TES.
Best of luck with everything :smile: What uni are you going to and what course?
Reply 2
Avatar for etiquette
etiquette
OP
Glasgow, primary (technically a PGDE but I thought the C would get more replies lol).

Wow, you sound super prepared, although I can't believe you have coursework due already! Could you recommend some blogs please? I'm addicted to some Pinterest posters but they're mostly American.
Lots of people round here will tell you just to enjoy your summer and your free time while you still have it. Personally I'm doing a month-long road trip to California, and chewing through my massive backlog of classic novels I want to read.
Reply 4
Avatar for etiquette
etiquette
OP
California sounds ace, have fun :smile:

I feel like I've been off uni for ages and I want to hit the ground running when term starts.
Reply 5
Avatar for cutebat
cutebat
3
Original post by rainbowworld
I have an essay to write on behaviour management for the first day, so lots to read for that. We have also been told to read a few different subject knowledge books which I still need to get (as only just been published) and to make sure we are up to date with subject knowledge etc. I have most my other books though from the reading list which I've had a quick flick through. Apart from that I'm planning on getting some clothes for placements and making sure everything is organised so I have everything I need when I start as I think we will be super busy. I think I probably have enough stationery etc already as i'm a bit obsessed with it! I have also been looking at blogs for teaching ideas etc and reading TES.
Best of luck with everything :smile: What uni are you going to and what course?


Hi Rainbow world (amazing name!). You said your reading subject knowledge books- is this for primary? If so what books have they suggested? Thanks :smile:
Original post by etiquette
I'm reading 'How to Get the Buggers to Behave' which has really good advice about things which seems really obvious but I'm sure I'd never think of!


When I see comments like this, I am always reminded of Andrew Old's view.

"A well known but unhelpful book is “Getting the Buggers to Behave” by Sue Cowley. Avoid it, as it would be better named “Letting the Buggers Misbehave”. It makes suggestions such as letting older children swear, chew gum and keep their coats on. It even suggests pretending to eat dog food as a way to win the students over, which is, quite frankly, as demeaning a suggestion as you are ever likely to hear."

http://teachingbattleground.wordpress.com/2008/02/23/reloaded-faqs-for-nqts/
Original post by Mr M
"It makes suggestions such as letting older children swear"


Glad to hear it. Older children deserve a bit more freedom, and I definitely think we should begin crawling out the dark ages of stigma behind 'swear words'. Non-directional swear words uttered as general exclamations (rather than targeted at an individual with intent to offend) are perfectly fine, and we should stop teaching kids that these collections of syllables are somehow magically intrinsically offensive. That is utter nonsense. It is absolutely absurd that if a kid stubs their toe and exclaims "damn!" or "ouch!" it will be seen as perfectly acceptable, but if they exclaim "****!" or "****!" this is somehow a 'behaviour issue'. Ridiculous. "****" and "****" are not offensive words used in this context. No-one should be offended or upset by a pupil stubbing their toe and yelling "****!" - no moreso than someone yelling "damn!".

If the teacher wants to campaign against vulgarity in their students' language, then fine. But we should stop treating some words as being magically offensive irrespective of what they actually mean. Words should be about the meanings they convey, not the physical acoustics of the vowel sounds. The sooner we start teaching kids - especially the older kids - that words are only symbols and the important thing is the meaning behind them - the sooner we can get rid of the idea that 'swearing' in a non-offensive non-directional context is a 'behaviour issue'.
(edited 9 years ago)
Squoosh25
...


This is a bit of a thing for you isn't it? I read another thread you created about swearing. If your placement school has a zero tolerance policy for swearing, you could quickly find yourself in very hot water for failing to challenge this behaviour because of your personal view.

Schools are particularly paranoid about swearing since Ofsted graded a former Outstanding school in Warrington as Inadequate in every category after hearing students swear and use the word 'gay' negatively during their visit.
Original post by Squoosh25
Lots of people round here will tell you just to enjoy your summer and your free time while you still have it. Personally I'm doing a month-long road trip to California, and chewing through my massive backlog of classic novels I want to read.


Excellent plan.

I'm starting my NQT year in September and plan to have at least 2 weeks totally off this summer, 2 weeks to move house and sort my new house out, and roughly 2 weeks of doing work / prepping my classroom.

You need to take time to relax and see friends/family while you can. You're about to start the most intense 10 months of your life and deserve this summer to do what you WANT not what you think you should.
Original post by etiquette
Glasgow, primary (technically a PGDE but I thought the C would get more replies lol).

Wow, you sound super prepared, although I can't believe you have coursework due already! Could you recommend some blogs please? I'm addicted to some Pinterest posters but they're mostly American.


Ah exciting!
Haha no not that organised haven't got much done yet, yeah I got sent it before I had even finished my essays for my degree, but I have a couple of months left to do it :smile: We got told that they will be checking what we have read over the summer etc though when we get there, so don't want to start off on a bad footing!
Hmm well, basically I follow pages like 'Teaching Ideas' on Facebook, and they often post great activity ideas and then I normally look at them and most are on blogs so then I normally have a nose around the blog and save any pages/ideas I really like. I haven't looked at loads though, and a lot are american.
Good luck with everything!

Original post by cutebat
Hi Rainbow world (amazing name!). You said your reading subject knowledge books- is this for primary? If so what books have they suggested? Thanks :smile:


Hi, yes, well I'm doing Early Primary, but most are general primary books.
We got told to read the "Primary Mathematics: Knowledge and Understanding (Achieving QTS Series)" and also the Primary English and Primary Science versions. I was waiting for the new ones as they cover what is needed for the new curriculum in September - I believe the maths and science ones have just been released and English is being released at the end of the month. Here is a link to the maths one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1446295494/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE
They're £18 each though and you can't really get them second hand as they have only just been printed! You can find older versions a lot cheaper though :smile: I think they are recommended by lots of uni's as they are part of the 'achieving QTS series' which is meant to be good.
We also had a reading list which was centered around subject knowledge mainly. I didn't buy all of them, just chose a couple from each subject. I have:
Creative Teaching: Science in the Early Years and Primary Classroom
Children, their World, their Education: Final Report and Recommendations of the Cambridge Primary Review -(Think I may have only been told to read this as I'm going to Cambridge and it's their review!!)
ICT in the Primary School: From Pedagogy to Practice
Mathematics in Early Years Education
Teaching and Learning in the Early Years
Teaching English, Language and Literacy
Teaching and Learning Communication, Language and Literacy
Inside the Primary Black Box
Teaching without Disruption in the Primary School: A Model for Managing Pupil Behaviour: A Multilevel Model for Managing Pupil Behaviour in Primary Schools -(Again think this was recommended as a lecturer at Cambridge wrote it - my essay is based on it)
Behaviour in Schools: Theory and Practice for Teachers
The Teaching of Science in Primary Schools

I haven't really found any great books for the other subjects yet, so I guess I will have a look in the library for humanities/arts related books etc when I get there and buy any I really like.
I think you're best to follow your universities guidance on this though as they might want you to read different ones, or might want you to have particular ones for essays etc. We also got told to use the BBC bitesize website for subject knowledge!
Good luck with your preparation!
Original post by Mr M
This is a bit of a thing for you isn't it? I read another thread you created about swearing. If your placement school has a zero tolerance policy for swearing, you could quickly find yourself in very hot water for failing to challenge this behaviour because of your personal view.


Yeah, it's a bugbear of mine. Certainly I'm going to have to conform to the rules of the school, but I can't see myself disciplining something I see as harmless with too much enthusiasm.

Original post by Mr M
Schools are particularly paranoid about swearing since Ofsted graded a former Outstanding school in Warrington as Inadequate in every category after hearing students swear and use the word 'gay' negatively during their visit.


Oh, I am completely against students using the word "gay" as a derogatory term. Unlike the above words which some mod ironically appears to have censored, using "gay" as an insult (even jokingly) is indeed offensive, and should be treated as such. No-one should feel offended that a certain one-syllable word beginning with 'f' meaning "to have sex" has been uttered in a non-hostile way, but certainly people have every right to be offended when a certain social group is used as a derogatory label.

I really hope the slightly hypocritical behaviour I'm going to be forced to maintain doesn't put me off the profession. I'm supposed to be teaching English. I'm supposed to be teaching pupils that words can have a strong, powerful effect on us based on what they mean. How on earth can I do that if at the same time I'm reinforcing the absolutely bonkers stigma that certain words are just "dirty" in of themselves, regardless of what they're supposed to mean, or how the speaker uses them?
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by Squoosh25
How on earth can I do that if at the same time I'm reinforcing the absolutely bonkers stigma that certain words are just "dirty" in of themselves, regardless of what they're supposed to mean, or how the speaker uses them?


I don't particularly care about uniform but I spend much of my time telling students to tuck in their shirts, roll down their sleeves etc. Where rules exist, it is vital they are consistently enforced by every member of staff. Certainty is an essential element of behaviour policies - they fail if there is "wriggle room".

You believe this is "absolutely bonkers" but you should realise that many people really are deeply offended when they hear bad language regardless of the context.
(edited 9 years ago)
Reply 13
Avatar for etiquette
etiquette
OP
Original post by Mr M
When I see comments like this, I am always reminded of Andrew Old's view.

"A well known but unhelpful book is “Getting the Buggers to Behave” by Sue Cowley. Avoid it, as it would be better named “Letting the Buggers Misbehave”. It makes suggestions such as letting older children swear, chew gum and keep their coats on. It even suggests pretending to eat dog food as a way to win the students over, which is, quite frankly, as demeaning a suggestion as you are ever likely to hear."

http://teachingbattleground.wordpress.com/2008/02/23/reloaded-faqs-for-nqts/


Haha, I've just got to that section. Some of it is definitely out there, but I've found some parts really useful- for example, never asking a question you don't want to know the answer to!
Reply 14
Avatar for cutebat
cutebat
3
Original post by rainbowworld
Ah exciting!
Haha no not that organised haven't got much done yet, yeah I got sent it before I had even finished my essays for my degree, but I have a couple of months left to do it :smile: We got told that they will be checking what we have read over the summer etc though when we get there, so don't want to start off on a bad footing!
Hmm well, basically I follow pages like 'Teaching Ideas' on Facebook, and they often post great activity ideas and then I normally look at them and most are on blogs so then I normally have a nose around the blog and save any pages/ideas I really like. I haven't looked at loads though, and a lot are american.
Good luck with everything!



Hi, yes, well I'm doing Early Primary, but most are general primary books.
We got told to read the "Primary Mathematics: Knowledge and Understanding (Achieving QTS Series)" and also the Primary English and Primary Science versions. I was waiting for the new ones as they cover what is needed for the new curriculum in September - I believe the maths and science ones have just been released and English is being released at the end of the month. Here is a link to the maths one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1446295494/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE
They're £18 each though and you can't really get them second hand as they have only just been printed! You can find older versions a lot cheaper though :smile: I think they are recommended by lots of uni's as they are part of the 'achieving QTS series' which is meant to be good.
We also had a reading list which was centered around subject knowledge mainly. I didn't buy all of them, just chose a couple from each subject. I have:
Creative Teaching: Science in the Early Years and Primary Classroom
Children, their World, their Education: Final Report and Recommendations of the Cambridge Primary Review -(Think I may have only been told to read this as I'm going to Cambridge and it's their review!!)
ICT in the Primary School: From Pedagogy to Practice
Mathematics in Early Years Education
Teaching and Learning in the Early Years
Teaching English, Language and Literacy
Teaching and Learning Communication, Language and Literacy
Inside the Primary Black Box
Teaching without Disruption in the Primary School: A Model for Managing Pupil Behaviour: A Multilevel Model for Managing Pupil Behaviour in Primary Schools -(Again think this was recommended as a lecturer at Cambridge wrote it - my essay is based on it)
Behaviour in Schools: Theory and Practice for Teachers
The Teaching of Science in Primary Schools

I haven't really found any great books for the other subjects yet, so I guess I will have a look in the library for humanities/arts related books etc when I get there and buy any I really like.
I think you're best to follow your universities guidance on this though as they might want you to read different ones, or might want you to have particular ones for essays etc. We also got told to use the BBC bitesize website for subject knowledge!
Good luck with your preparation!


Ooo thank you! This is really useful! My uni (St Mary's) have given us a list, but it lists a lot of theory based books and books recommended for 'M' level modules. I saw the QTS series on amazon before and think I will get those. Especially as they are 2014 so incorporate the new curriculum. Thanks so much for your list. Good luck in September! x
Reply 15
Avatar for cutebat
cutebat
3
If anyone has any recommendations for subject knowledge books for humanities please let me know! (primary level)
(edited 9 years ago)
Reply 16
Avatar for etiquette
etiquette
OP
Original post by rainbowworld
Ah exciting!
Haha no not that organised haven't got much done yet, yeah I got sent it before I had even finished my essays for my degree, but I have a couple of months left to do it :smile: We got told that they will be checking what we have read over the summer etc though when we get there, so don't want to start off on a bad footing!
Hmm well, basically I follow pages like 'Teaching Ideas' on Facebook, and they often post great activity ideas and then I normally look at them and most are on blogs so then I normally have a nose around the blog and save any pages/ideas I really like. I haven't looked at loads though, and a lot are american.
Good luck with everything!


Thank you so much, such a helpful post! Good luck too, you sound so prepared I don't think you'll need it!
Original post by Mr M
I don't particularly care about uniform but I spend much of my time telling students to tuck in their shirts, roll down their sleeves etc. Where rules exist, it is vital they are consistently enforced by every member of staff. Certainty is an essential element of behaviour policies - they fail if there is "wriggle room".


Sure, I can appreciate that. I guess the staff have to be consistent as a body.

Original post by Mr M
You believe this is "absolutely bonkers" but you should realise that many people really are deeply offended when they hear bad language regardless of the context.


I'm somewhat sceptical. Does anyone actually have their feelings hurt when they hear a non-aggressive use of naughty word? I think far more likely is that in the cases where people claim to be offended, what they really mean is that they are shocked - because they've grown up in a society where they've learnt to treat these words as having magically 'dirty' properties, irrespective of meaning.

There's no rational reason for someone to have their feelings hurt when someone near them exclaims "s___!" rather than "poo!" upon stubbing their toe. It's this attitude that is the problem here - not the use of the words. As a society, we should be working towards making language about meaning and not having this bizarre superstition towards certain words, because it's completely counter-productive. Think how much time teachers waste disciplining students about this silly issue.
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by Squoosh25
There's no rational reason for someone to have their feelings hurt when someone near them exclaims "s___!" rather than "poo!" upon stubbing their toe.


There's no rational reason to believe in God but 78% of the population of this planet supposedly do.
Original post by Mr M
There's no rational reason to believe in God but 78% of the population of this planet supposedly do.


Right. And some people think that the US government are run by lizard people. Some people think that the movements of the planets can predict the mundane minor details of our day-to-day lives. Some people think that the holocaust never happened.

Over the course of history, we're gradually shrugging off superstition and replacing it with our far more demonstrably effective methods of learning about the universe through our sense of reason, and through our greatest tool for understanding: science. There's still a way to go yet - but in my opinion we should be working towards ousting the petty superstitions as well as the big ones.

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