The Student Room Group
Discovering Higher and Degree Apprenticeships with UWE Bristol, get free advice >>
Uni students - Complete our survey >>
Discovering Higher and Degree Apprenticeships with UWE Bristol, get free advice >>
Uni students - Complete our survey >>

PGCE classroom experience - does overseas teaching count?

I am qualified to teach TEFL in schools around the world, and will be emigrating to do just that next year. After 1 year abroad (hopefully South Korea), I plan to come back and use this classroom experience as basis for a PGCE application.

Does this kind of classroom experience count?
I think so but only the admission tutors can tell you for sure.
There is no harm including it in your application as it shows experience working with children, but as for classroom experience, it needs to be in a UK state school. Try and get at least 10 days in a UK classroom either before you go or after you get back.
Reply 3
Avatar for Angelil
Angelil
19
A bit, but as fluffyowl says, you also need some experience in a UK state school. I gained QTS last year after nearly 6 years of working in international schools, but I still needed 2 weeks in a UK state school to ratify it.
I certainly hope so. I have five years experience teaching ESL here in Barcelona. I've taught from 13 year olds up to 60 year olds, classes of 2 to 30 students. I teach up to Cambridge Proficiency, which is an academic exam (according to Cambridge) roughly equivalent to NQF Level 3 so I'm a bit more used to using assessment criteria etc. I'm also an examiner for FCE and CAE level so am really hoping all of this will count in my favour for my School Direct application. From my two weeks of observations I really feel the way I teach and manage classes is similar to the best of what I have seen and I had tons of ideas as to how I would have improved classes/activities. I've also met a few School Direct trainees who also came from an ESL background. So fingers crossed!!

Good luck!!
(edited 8 years ago)
Reply 5
Avatar for MMe98181
MMe98181
1
Original post by martyncooper
I certainly hope so. I have five years experience teaching ESL here in Barcelona. I've taught from 13 year olds up to 60 year olds, classes of 2 to 30 students. I teach up to Cambridge Proficiency, which is an academic exam (according to Cambridge) roughly equivalent to NQF Level 3 so I'm a bit more used to using assessment criteria etc. I'm also an examiner for FCE and CAE level so am really hoping all of this will count in my favour for my School Direct application. From my two weeks of observations I really feel the way I teach and manage classes is similar to the best of what I have seen and I had tons of ideas as to how I would have improved classes/activities. I've also met a few School Direct trainees who also came from an ESL background. So fingers crossed!!

Good luck!!


Not too sure about the advice you've been given here...I would greatly struggle to get 2 weeks off work to head over to the UK (from Ireland) to get some UK classroom experience. I personally contacted IoE and asked them if they would take experience from Ireland into consideration. Their reply was that experience of the teaching environment and contact with young people are the important factors, rather than the specific country.
Which advice are you not sure about?
Reply 7
Avatar for MMe98181
MMe98181
1
Original post by martyncooper
Which advice are you not sure about?

That experience should be from a school in the UK...
Ah! I think that was someone else who said that :-P although I did kind of receive that advice. In my case it wouldn't have been possible to organise experience in Spanish schools as they don't really do that sort of thing here and anyway, I really enjoyed my two weeks in the UK. I'm sure schools in Ireland aren't sooooo different??!
You need to ask the providers you are interested in applying too. The advice I gave is based on someone asking that question at an information event I went to, so it may be provider specific.
Reply 10
Avatar for Samus2
Samus2
17
It's provider specific - most of the people I know who had TEFL experience also as part of their conditional offer had to obtain more UK experience.

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you