Secondary PGCE

We have put together some pre-programme information documents that contain ideas to help you prepare for the 2024/25 course.
(Please note, these subject tasks are correct as of May 2024, but may be subject to additions or amends, be sure to check back before the start of your course.)

The tasks listed in these documents are not mandatory but are suggested to help you hit the ground running. Please read the document for your subject area.

• Art and Design
• Design and Technology
• English
• Geography
• History
• Mathematics
• Modern Foreign Languages
• Physical Education
• Science

Equipment for your training

We try to keep printing for our university-based sessions to a minimum. This means that it is often useful if you can access materials electronically, either live from our VLE (Blackboard) or by downloading materials in advance and accessing them on a laptop or tablet during the session. These documents are very difficult to access effectively through a phone screen, so it is likely that you will want to be able to bring a laptop or tablet to sessions. Although many schools do try to support student teachers by providing laptops, they are not funded for this and are not always able to do so. 

Information for International Students

If you are an international student joining the course, please also visit the International offer holders webpage, which contains advice and guidance from previous international students on the secondary programme. In addition, we recommend you visit the University’s Essentials website which contains a specifically designed section to support international students offering lots of advice and information on things like accommodation, opening up a bank account, health care, visas and even things like culture shock. 

You can also contact the International Student Advisory team for support on visas and immigration advice. 

Programme Administration

• pgcesecondary@reading.ac.uk 

Admissions

• teachertraining@reading.ac.uk  

In order for your conditional offer to become unconditional, you must address all the requirements of your offer, including: 

• Proof of qualifications 
• Fitness to Teach assessment
• Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks

You must have these ready for your enrolment in September. Please note that we will not be able to enrol you on the programme unless all conditions have been met.  

Please look out for the emails with instructions for obtaining your Fitness to Teach and your Enhanced DBS clearance. If you attended an interview at the university you should have provided the ID documents for your DBS check when you came to the campus for your interview. If you attended your interview at one of our school partners you will receive an email inviting you to come to the campus for one of our Initial Needs Assessment sessions. If you are tuition-fee funded (rather than salaried), you will need to bring the three ID documents required for your DBS check to this session.

The admissions team will contact you if anything further is needed for these checks. Please respond to any emails from the team requesting information as quickly as possible.

You will need to show the originals of your qualification certificates at enrolment in September. 

Meeting these conditions takes time – in our experience, they often take far longer than expected. Please do not leave it until the summer – you risk running out of time and not being able to enrol.

Enrolment

Online enrolment is the first step you need to take towards becoming a fully enrolled Reading Partnership Teacher. Please look out for the email with instructions for online enrolment which you should receive in August 2024 or when you have met all the conditions of your offer. You must complete online enrolment before coming to campus to collect your campus card and finalise your enrolment.

In-person enrolment

In-person enrolment will take place on Whiteknights Campus during the last week of August. The enrolment date is Friday August 30th. 

Please read the Secondary ITE Enrolment Schedule for more information, details on timings and what to expect on the day of enrolment. 

You may wish to familiarise yourself with the statutory guidance about Initial Teacher Education. 

The UK Department for Education Teacher Standards

Please download the Department of Education Teachers' Standards guidance (PDF, 0.2 MB). 

You could read and begin to become familiar with the terminology. 

These standards apply to all teachers regardless of their career stage and define the minimum level of practice expected of teachers from the point of being awarded qualified teacher status (QTS) onwards. 

The Teachers' Standards on one page (PDF, 0.2 MB) is a particularly useful document – please make sure you keep it handy. 

Frameworks

You could access, bookmark and begin to become familiar with the Department for Education frameworks. 

• The National Curriculum for your subject. 
• The Initial Teacher Education (ITE) core content framework (PDF, 0.5 MB). The core content framework defines in detail the minimum entitlement of all trainee teachers. Drawing on the best available evidence, it sets out the content that ITE providers and their partnerships must draw upon when designing and delivering their ITE programmes.
• The ITE core content framework aligns with the early career framework to establish an entitlement to a three or more year structured package of support for all new teachers at the start of their careers
• Special needs and disability (SEND) Code of Practice (PDF, 3.2 MB). 

It is up to you whether you wish to use this pre-programme information. We look forward to seeing you at enrolment!