PGCE - Current Students Thread

Feeling really down. I have this interview next week and it's making me feel sick. I don't really want the job but I feel really ungrateful not going. Plus I've already told them, and my school, that I'm going.

I don't know what to do.

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Reply 5545

Ratchit99

7

Original post by Airfairy

Feeling really down. I have this interview next week and it's making me feel sick. I don't really want the job but I feel really ungrateful not going. Plus I've already told them, and my school, that I'm going.

I don't know what to do.

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Just consider it as good experience for when you do an interview that you actually care about :smile:

Reply 5546

But remember if they ask you whether you would take the job if offered it, that's the point at which to back out, and not doing so then but backing out if they offer you the job is considered a huge professional faux pas.

Reply 5547

Original post by Ratchit99

Just consider it as good experience for when you do an interview that you actually care about :smile:

I guess. I just hate interviews, and feel super nervous for this one because I don't have any experience teaching the area they want me to teach.

Original post by Carnationlilyrose

But remember if they ask you whether you would take the job if offered it, that's the point at which to back out, and not doing so then but backing out if they offer you the job is considered a huge professional faux pas.

I didn't realise this. I thought if you accepted it and then backed out that was bad. I didn't realise you can't turn it down if offered!

When they ask if you if you are still a firm candidate, if you aren't, how is a good way to say no politely?

Reply 5548

Pineapple pie

2

Original post by Airfairy

When they ask if you if you are still a firm candidate, if you aren't, how is a good way to say no politely?

You could tell them that the school is fantastic but you realise that you are not the right person for the job and thank them for the opportunity and their time.

Depending on the school and set up you could say something like " I feel this position would better suit a more experienced teacher"
This is how a friend of mine felt at a recent interview where the head was very clear that they wanted to take the school from good to outstanding and they needed the teacher to have the vision to make changes and lead the provision.
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Reply 5549

Original post by Pineapple pie

You could tell them that the school is fantastic but you realise that you are not the right person for the job and thank them for the opportunity and their time.

Depending on the school and set up you could say something like " I feel this position would better suit a more experienced teacher"
This is how a friend of mine felt at a recent interview where the head was very clear that they wanted to take the school from good to outstanding and they needed the teacher to have the vision to make changes and lead the provision.
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Yeah that sounds good and not impolite. I will remember this!

Do you need to wait until they ask you if you're still interested? My uni said you can leave at any point of the interview day but I can't imagine how you'd just break away at one point.

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Reply 5550

Original post by Airfairy

Yeah that sounds good and not impolite. I will remember this!

Do you need to wait until they ask you if you're still interested? My uni said you can leave at any point of the interview day but I can't imagine how you'd just break away at one point.

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Pineapple Pie has it spot on. You can pull out at any time, using the same form of words as suggested by PP. They will be grateful for your saving them time.

Reply 5551

alabelle

Original post by Samus2

I'm not writing lesson plans and can now plan/resource a lesson in about 30-40 minutes and I do them in the morning before school. On Monday I had a 5 period day and planned and resourced them all in an hour and a half and they went well.

Book marking I do in my frees, same with evaluations.

Saturday's I use to catch up with general admin (uni work mainly). And yeah - honestly, my teaching is so much better since I stopped planning my lessons by minutes because the progression is much more natural.

My marking is 'outstanding' supposedly and a set of 32 books with extended writing in them (history joy!) it takes me about 4 hours to do a set and every other week, due to the nature of my timetable, I have most of Tuesday and Wednesday free so I mark books on those two days...

I don't know why this placement is so different. But I'm no longer stressed, I go out and socialise on both Friday and Saturday evenings and I actually feel like I'm doing okay.

I have an exercise book which my mentor/class teachers write notes in for each lesson and then set me three targets at the end of each lesson which are easy to implement next lesson.

How do you get away with not doing lesson plans? Is it different for secondary? We are expected to plan (in detail) every lesson we teach. I also was doing my evaluations weekly but my tutor found out and told me it was useless for me to do that as it was too long after the lesson. I preferred doing them in one batch too though!

Reply 5552

Original post by alabelle

How do you get away with not doing lesson plans? Is it different for secondary? We are expected to plan (in detail) every lesson we teach. I also was doing my evaluations weekly but my tutor found out and told me it was useless for me to do that as it was too long after the lesson. I preferred doing them in one batch too though!

It's not different for secondary, it's different for schools/mentors. In both my placements I've had to do lesson plans. Not only that but I use them heavily in the lesson - they are a script for me, so I'd do them even if I didn't have to. However there are some trainees on my current placement who were moaning that they hate this current school because at their last school they didn't do one lesson plan, even for formal observations! I think that is rare.

Original post by Carnationlilyrose

Pineapple Pie has it spot on. You can pull out at any time, using the same form of words as suggested by PP. They will be grateful for your saving them time.

Brilliant, thank you. Maybe I will go then.

Reply 5553

Lucy_jucie

1

Is this meant to be the crunch point, honest I could easily drop out right now, I have 7 weeks of teaching left and just feel exhausted, overwhelmed and don't know if I want this career. I dread going in every day I just need this to be over :-(. Positive is I love teaching I just hate everything else

Reply 5554

I wonder if in my modding capacity for this forum I should start a sticky for those having a positive experience of the PGCE. Is only having a negative sticky a bit daunting for potential new entrants for the profession? In my gnarled and grizzly old state of mind, I am inclined to believe that this thread tells more of the truth, but wonder what the rest of you think. Shall I create and stick a happy thread?

Reply 5555

Ratchit99

7

Original post by Carnationlilyrose

I wonder if in my modding capacity for this forum I should start a sticky for those having a positive experience of the PGCE. Is only having a negative sticky a bit daunting for potential new entrants for the profession? In my gnarled and grizzly old state of mind, I am inclined to believe that this thread tells more of the truth, but wonder what the rest of you think. Shall I create and stick a happy thread?

Think it would probably be good for current peeps too, we all need to read some positivity sometimes.

On a side note, all sorted on my side, go back in to my placement school monday but its a case of see how i go and theres the option to move placement if things dont improve.
I have actively decided not to to through to NqT and talked to my employing school yesterday, they were dissapointed but very kind about it all, and i feel like a weight has been lifted. Just need to finish the course!

Reply 5556

Squoosh25

3

Original post by Carnationlilyrose

I wonder if in my modding capacity for this forum I should start a sticky for those having a positive experience of the PGCE. Is only having a negative sticky a bit daunting for potential new entrants for the profession? In my gnarled and grizzly old state of mind, I am inclined to believe that this thread tells more of the truth, but wonder what the rest of you think. Shall I create and stick a happy thread?

I say be realistic about it, and don't deliberately skew things. Positivity is important, but what's even more important is being realistic. I was reading this thread for over a year before my PGCE started, and I'm still reading it now (being half-way through my PGCE). Despite being very negative, the thread really helped me, because it meant that the course pushing me to the point of complete exhaustion and then beyond did not come as a surprise.

The (realistic) reports of negative experiences are completely necessary to preserve PGCE students' confidence. To the extent I could, I knew what I was getting in for, that that helped me keep a sense of perspective. I think it would be far, far more dangerous to give people false hope. If the course is presented as sunshine and rainbows, then people who take it and find that that isn't the case are going to not only feel disappointed, but feel like failures. The reality is that this course is very demanding, and only the minority of people on it are comfortable and happy. Knowing that you're not alone is far more uplifting than thinking that you're a failure in a sea of people breezing through it.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 5557

Original post by Ratchit99

Think it would probably be good for current peeps too, we all need to read some positivity sometimes.

On a side note, all sorted on my side, go back in to my placement school monday but its a case of see how i go and theres the option to move placement if things dont improve.
I have actively decided not to to through to NqT and talked to my employing school yesterday, they were dissapointed but very kind about it all, and i feel like a weight has been lifted. Just need to finish the course!

I'm glad you feel better for it. If you finish the course then at least you can apply for your NQT year later on if you change your mind. I don't think anyone who has not gone through this course/job can understand what a struggle it can be. I know full well that other jobs have stresses and strains, but the particular nature of the stresses and strains of teaching can't truly be known until you have been there.

Reply 5558