How much subject knowledge do you need?
Hi, I want to apply for teacher training. I don’t know what subject to go for?
I’m a geologist with experience in biology and chemistry and I’ve worked as an engineer. I’d probably have to do a refresher course in all of the subjects. Anyone have any thoughts as to how much subject knowledge would be required for say Maths, Physics, Biology or Chemistry??
I’m a geologist with experience in biology and chemistry and I’ve worked as an engineer. I’d probably have to do a refresher course in all of the subjects. Anyone have any thoughts as to how much subject knowledge would be required for say Maths, Physics, Biology or Chemistry??
Original post by Nat55
Thanks for that! Having been out of education for a while I wasn’t sure. Do you do much A level teaching on a PGCE?
It depends on your school! During my PGCE, I observed and TA'd A level in both placements, but didn't teach. Others on the same course taught some A level lessons, others didn't experience A level at all.
Original post by Nat55
Thank you. One more think... if I did say Chemisty at PGCE would I be able to do Biology for NQT. Or would I have to stick to Chemistry?
I love science and don’t really want to specialise yet.
I love science and don’t really want to specialise yet.
In my NQT, I teach all three to GCSE. Again, it depends on your school. I visited a school where I would have only taught my specialism but lots do expect you teach all of them
Original post by Nat55
Hi, I want to apply for teacher training. I don’t know what subject to go for?
I’m a geologist with experience in biology and chemistry and I’ve worked as an engineer. I’d probably have to do a refresher course in all of the subjects. Anyone have any thoughts as to how much subject knowledge would be required for say Maths, Physics, Biology or Chemistry??
I’m a geologist with experience in biology and chemistry and I’ve worked as an engineer. I’d probably have to do a refresher course in all of the subjects. Anyone have any thoughts as to how much subject knowledge would be required for say Maths, Physics, Biology or Chemistry??
No one can really give you a specific answer. Your training provider will tell you whether you need to take a SKE (Subject Knowledge Enhancement) course. It will depend on your degree, how long ago you got it and your A-levels.
I'm not a science specialist. But what is your preference? You will have to specialise in one science, but you will get training to teach all 3 sciences as most schools will expect the modern day science teacher to be able to teach all 3 sciences, up to KS4. This will depend on the school though. If you're strong in maths and enjoy engineer-stuff, I'd go for physics. It's in high demand and it usually pays more because there is a critical shortage of maths and physics teachers.
You need to decide which science you want to specialise first. Maths isn't part of it. But if you go for physics, you might study some A-level stuff that could involve A-level mechanics. But again, you need to check.
Thanks for your reply. It’s been a long time since I was in school. So I would need to do an SKE. I’d be giving up a well paid job plus I have two children. So I’m looking for reassurances before jumping into a new career. Sometimes I suppose you just have to jump! I have a science background but I don’t have maths or Physics at A level. I did however take additional Maths and Physics at Uni. I work in environmental chemistry and have a masters in a biological subject. I think what I’m worried about is being told to teach something I can’t remember. Do you get help preparing lesson plans - do you have time to research the topic you need to teach etc?
Original post by Nat55
Thanks for your reply. It’s been a long time since I was in school. So I would need to do an SKE. I’d be giving up a well paid job plus I have two children. So I’m looking for reassurances before jumping into a new career. Sometimes I suppose you just have to jump! I have a science background but I don’t have maths or Physics at A level. I did however take additional Maths and Physics at Uni. I work in environmental chemistry and have a masters in a biological subject. I think what I’m worried about is being told to teach something I can’t remember. Do you get help preparing lesson plans - do you have time to research the topic you need to teach etc?
Your questions are too generic. Are you asking about SKE course or a teacher training course?
Master's is good. But tell me, what is your undergraduate degree? If you have an MSc in a biological subject, then my guess is that you'd be accepted to a science course with biology specialism. If you did maths and physics at uni, my guess is that you'd only need to take a SKE course in chemistry.
SKE has two options. Either the short or long course. The short course will refresh your knowledge on the GCSE content of science, with focus on all sciences but I think you can choose which subject specialism you want to pick. The longer course you will learn GCSE and A-level content. SKE is meant to be a part time thing and a lot of people said it was quite doable to fit it into other life/job commitments. I think the longer course, you are expected to put in around 25 hours per week, whereas the short course is 16 hours per week.
Don't worry about what you can't remember. That's why they have the SKE courses. And to my knowledge, you have access to their resources for a year which will help you when you do your teacher training. My advice is that you don't need to reinvent the wheel. You don't need to create lesson plans from scratch. There's literally thousands upon thousands of teaching resources online (loads for free) that you can easily adapt. When I first did my lesson plans, one lesson would literally take a whole day (my subject is English). But I'm sure science would take less. For example, if I'm teaching Y7 Greek myths, I'd need to add in context such as social, culture and history. But if you're teaching Y7 about atoms, you don't need kids to know about the history of atoms. So that's why it'd take you less time for example.
For me, you kind of just research the topic as you plan it. But luckily, I'm in a school where they play to our strengths. I love classical and ancient Greek society and I also studied classical literature at uni so it was easy for me to create my scheme of work on myths and legends. But in my defence, I only graduated from my BA in 2018 so I understand your trepidation when it comes to your subject knowledge being rusty and outdated. You don't really get help with lesson planning - but you do get time to plan your lessons. You will get feedback on your lesson planning; if there's enough student discussion, framing and scaffolding, delivery and pace, etc.
You might want to consider different training programmes. I'm assuming you don't want to do PGCE? Whilst you can apply for bursary, this will be unpaid job. So you won't get paid for the whole academic year. Check out School Direct, SCITT and Teach First (the latter is very controversial). Make sure you do loads of research to find which course is better for you.
Thanks for the reply. I was thinking of PGCE because I would get a bursary whereas the other routes would be paid at unqualified teachers grade and I’d pay tax. For the other couple of months I would be hoping to do some freelance work for a former employer or some supply. Which leads to another question when do most teaching contracts start? Is it September or August?
Original post by Nat55
Thanks for the reply. I was thinking of PGCE because I would get a bursary whereas the other routes would be paid at unqualified teachers grade and I’d pay tax. For the other couple of months I would be hoping to do some freelance work for a former employer or some supply. Which leads to another question when do most teaching contracts start? Is it September or August?
PGCE with two kids? Ouch. Make sure you know what you're doing. Being unqualified and having money is better than being on a whim for a couple of months right? How do you not know 8 months from now, your former employer would offer you any work? It's risky but I'm sure you've thought about it.
For your specific question, contracts always starts in September but with the current situation that may change (for example in Scotland and N. Ireland, they plan to get kids returning to school in August). We might follow suit.
But taking Covid out of the equation, contracts would start in Sept. If you were to leave your school before the summer term and not have a job lined up in Sept, it means you won't get paid for the summer holidays. But loads of schools will start recruiting in May. Teaching have certain contracts and recruitment processes that are different to private sector.
Original post by The Empire Odyssey
PGCE with two kids? Ouch. Make sure you know what you're doing. Being unqualified and having money is better than being on a whim for a couple of months right? How do you not know 8 months from now, your former employer would offer you any work? It's risky but I'm sure you've thought about it.
For your specific question, contracts always starts in September but with the current situation that may change (for example in Scotland and N. Ireland, they plan to get kids returning to school in August). We might follow suit.
But taking Covid out of the equation, contracts would start in Sept. If you were to leave your school before the summer term and not have a job lined up in Sept, it means you won't get paid for the summer holidays. But loads of schools will start recruiting in May. Teaching have certain contracts and recruitment processes that are different to private sector.
For your specific question, contracts always starts in September but with the current situation that may change (for example in Scotland and N. Ireland, they plan to get kids returning to school in August). We might follow suit.
But taking Covid out of the equation, contracts would start in Sept. If you were to leave your school before the summer term and not have a job lined up in Sept, it means you won't get paid for the summer holidays. But loads of schools will start recruiting in May. Teaching have certain contracts and recruitment processes that are different to private sector.
Hi, my kids are sadly used to being in childcare from 8am until 6pm or with relatives when I need to leave the house at 4.30am or work away. I appreciate that the teaching workload is intense but I’m used to long hours and sacrifices. I’m sure single mums have managed a PGCE with kids before. I am concerned with the significant drop in salary but hopefully after a few years it will be reasonable.
Original post by Nat55
Hi, my kids are sadly used to being in childcare from 8am until 6pm or with relatives when I need to leave the house at 4.30am or work away. I appreciate that the teaching workload is intense but I’m used to long hours and sacrifices. I’m sure single mums have managed a PGCE with kids before. I am concerned with the significant drop in salary but hopefully after a few years it will be reasonable.
Have you considered how much you will bring back after school though? Being a teacher doesn't stop when you walk out the school gates. My subject is English which is a lot more time consuming. But planning, marking, assessment, data, paperwork, etc etc is more intense than you may realise. Teaching is a very hard and extremely arduous profession. It gets better depending on your school and as you get into your teaching career but it really depends on your school. For example, every single year in my school, they have assessments every two weeks. For me that would be marking 150-180 essays every two weeks. Then I have to plan the assessments and etc. Ofc this doesn't happen every single time because I cba so i peer assess. But in between marking assessments, I mark homework too. And my school's marking policy is ridiculous - I have to mark lesson work too.
So when you do consider a school in the future always look at their marking and assessment policy. Some schools make it near unbearable to be a teacher nowadays with Ofsted breathing down SLT backs. I'm not trying to put you off. Teaching is very fulfilling and it's worth it when you see your pupil's make progress. But I have time because I don't have any commitments. I know plenty of experienced teachers find it so much easier (obviously). But what i'm trying to say is that as trainee for 2-3 years, expect it to be gruelling. Over half of trainee teachers within 5 years quit the profession.
After you become qualified, starting salary is typically £23-24k.
Original post by Nat55
Does definitely sound like you don’t want me to be a teacher!
Oh no, bless you.
If you want to be a teacher, go for it. Honestly we need more teachers; people who are passionate about teaching young kids to learn! We really do. I'm just saying, defo get some experience in schools when you can. It will give you a clearer idea of what it entails. Some people want to be a teacher because the idea of it is great. But the reality is often very different and challenging. I just want to make sure you are entering this profession with your eyes wide open. Don't want you to change your circumstances and end up regretting it.
Check out tes.com (the teachers' equivalent to The Student Room). You can definitely get a better idea of what teachers go through.
Original post by The Empire Odyssey
Your questions are too generic. Are you asking about SKE course or a teacher training course?
Master's is good. But tell me, what is your undergraduate degree? If you have an MSc in a biological subject, then my guess is that you'd be accepted to a science course with biology specialism. If you did maths and physics at uni, my guess is that you'd only need to take a SKE course in chemistry.
SKE has two options. Either the short or long course. The short course will refresh your knowledge on the GCSE content of science, with focus on all sciences but I think you can choose which subject specialism you want to pick. The longer course you will learn GCSE and A-level content. SKE is meant to be a part time thing and a lot of people said it was quite doable to fit it into other life/job commitments. I think the longer course, you are expected to put in around 25 hours per week, whereas the short course is 16 hours per week.
Don't worry about what you can't remember. That's why they have the SKE courses. And to my knowledge, you have access to their resources for a year which will help you when you do your teacher training. My advice is that you don't need to reinvent the wheel. You don't need to create lesson plans from scratch. There's literally thousands upon thousands of teaching resources online (loads for free) that you can easily adapt. When I first did my lesson plans, one lesson would literally take a whole day (my subject is English). But I'm sure science would take less. For example, if I'm teaching Y7 Greek myths, I'd need to add in context such as social, culture and history. But if you're teaching Y7 about atoms, you don't need kids to know about the history of atoms. So that's why it'd take you less time for example.
For me, you kind of just research the topic as you plan it. But luckily, I'm in a school where they play to our strengths. I love classical and ancient Greek society and I also studied classical literature at uni so it was easy for me to create my scheme of work on myths and legends. But in my defence, I only graduated from my BA in 2018 so I understand your trepidation when it comes to your subject knowledge being rusty and outdated. You don't really get help with lesson planning - but you do get time to plan your lessons. You will get feedback on your lesson planning; if there's enough student discussion, framing and scaffolding, delivery and pace, etc.
You might want to consider different training programmes. I'm assuming you don't want to do PGCE? Whilst you can apply for bursary, this will be unpaid job. So you won't get paid for the whole academic year. Check out School Direct, SCITT and Teach First (the latter is very controversial). Make sure you do loads of research to find which course is better for you.
Master's is good. But tell me, what is your undergraduate degree? If you have an MSc in a biological subject, then my guess is that you'd be accepted to a science course with biology specialism. If you did maths and physics at uni, my guess is that you'd only need to take a SKE course in chemistry.
SKE has two options. Either the short or long course. The short course will refresh your knowledge on the GCSE content of science, with focus on all sciences but I think you can choose which subject specialism you want to pick. The longer course you will learn GCSE and A-level content. SKE is meant to be a part time thing and a lot of people said it was quite doable to fit it into other life/job commitments. I think the longer course, you are expected to put in around 25 hours per week, whereas the short course is 16 hours per week.
Don't worry about what you can't remember. That's why they have the SKE courses. And to my knowledge, you have access to their resources for a year which will help you when you do your teacher training. My advice is that you don't need to reinvent the wheel. You don't need to create lesson plans from scratch. There's literally thousands upon thousands of teaching resources online (loads for free) that you can easily adapt. When I first did my lesson plans, one lesson would literally take a whole day (my subject is English). But I'm sure science would take less. For example, if I'm teaching Y7 Greek myths, I'd need to add in context such as social, culture and history. But if you're teaching Y7 about atoms, you don't need kids to know about the history of atoms. So that's why it'd take you less time for example.
For me, you kind of just research the topic as you plan it. But luckily, I'm in a school where they play to our strengths. I love classical and ancient Greek society and I also studied classical literature at uni so it was easy for me to create my scheme of work on myths and legends. But in my defence, I only graduated from my BA in 2018 so I understand your trepidation when it comes to your subject knowledge being rusty and outdated. You don't really get help with lesson planning - but you do get time to plan your lessons. You will get feedback on your lesson planning; if there's enough student discussion, framing and scaffolding, delivery and pace, etc.
You might want to consider different training programmes. I'm assuming you don't want to do PGCE? Whilst you can apply for bursary, this will be unpaid job. So you won't get paid for the whole academic year. Check out School Direct, SCITT and Teach First (the latter is very controversial). Make sure you do loads of research to find which course is better for you.
Sorry to piggy back do you have any advice for anyone doing a PGCE English degree in September - currently I'm gathering plot summaries on the different GCSE texts because I wont have time to read all of them. Luckily, I've already studied Jane Eyre , Shakespeare and Inspector Calls.
I'm not too good with English Language as Literature is more my thing so any resources or websites that can with that would be great because I find it hard explaining the different sentence types and clauses.
Original post by scrawlx101
Sorry to piggy back do you have any advice for anyone doing a PGCE English degree in September - currently I'm gathering plot summaries on the different GCSE texts because I wont have time to read all of them. Luckily, I've already studied Jane Eyre , Shakespeare and Inspector Calls.
I'm not too good with English Language as Literature is more my thing so any resources or websites that can with that would be great because I find it hard explaining the different sentence types and clauses.
I'm not too good with English Language as Literature is more my thing so any resources or websites that can with that would be great because I find it hard explaining the different sentence types and clauses.
Have no experience with a PGCE course, sorry.
I have three books that are my linguistic bibles:
1. Words and Sentences: An Introduction
2. An A-Z of English Grammar & Usage
3. Oxford A-Z of Grammar and Punctuation.
Sorry to jump on this post, I'm also wanting to do a science PGCE! And, a few things I've picked up from sites (such as the funding from get into teaching), with physics/chem/bio you still get £26,000 at least bursary split over 10 months starting from October, that's not taxed. So, £2,600 a month. Plus, for doing an SKE, you get a bursary of £200 a week
Also, the government released something recently to say that NQT would be at least on £30,000 a year in their first year! But if you have passion, that what STEM is all about? I'd also think there is lesson planning but all jobs that are worth it require hard work (I'd also put in some history of the subject to interest students if I were you!)
People do seem to be discouraging from teaching to begin with, but I suppose that's why there's such a demand for STEM teachers - but just think about the lives and minds you'll be shaping
Here are some websites anyway if that's any help! -
https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/funding-my-teacher-training/bursaries-and-scholarships-for-teacher-training
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/30000-starting-salaries-proposed-for-teachers
https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/explore-my-options/teacher-training-routes/subject-knowledge-enhancement-ske-courses
Also, the government released something recently to say that NQT would be at least on £30,000 a year in their first year! But if you have passion, that what STEM is all about? I'd also think there is lesson planning but all jobs that are worth it require hard work (I'd also put in some history of the subject to interest students if I were you!)
People do seem to be discouraging from teaching to begin with, but I suppose that's why there's such a demand for STEM teachers - but just think about the lives and minds you'll be shaping
Here are some websites anyway if that's any help! -
https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/funding-my-teacher-training/bursaries-and-scholarships-for-teacher-training
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/30000-starting-salaries-proposed-for-teachers
https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/explore-my-options/teacher-training-routes/subject-knowledge-enhancement-ske-courses
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