Key Professional Skills runs through the whole year, providing you a ‘home’ to develop as reflective practitioner. Developing a solid understanding of the required key professional skills of a teacher. We’ll cover all aspects of the ‘how’ of teaching – the learning theories, methods and pedagogical approaches that underpins all aspects of your experience in the classroom. To develop the essential knowledge and skills for reflective professional behaviours and evidence informed practice, the Intensive Training Placement (ITP) is included within the curriculum. Enabling you to develop an understanding of research-based evidence in practice through observation, analysis, feedback and reflection. We’ll support you to develop an understanding of what it is that makes such practice effective and to think about how and why it could be embedded in your own teaching. You’ll be both in the classroom at university and in the classroom out on placement.
Get an introduction to core subject knowledge for teaching, focusing on early literacy, mathematical theory and science, practice and pedagogy. Acquire a clear developmental perspective on these core curriculum subjects which’ll be useful for teaching across the three Key Stages of primary education. You’ll gain an understanding of the diversity of ability in the primary classroom and learn how to make necessary adjustments to plan personalised learning experiences and meet a wide range of needs. We’ll provide you with a solid foundation of key knowledge relating to the earliest stages of development for later English, mathematics and science subject knowledge for teaching. Such a perspective will allow you to understand the diversity of ability in the primary classroom. Underpinning knowledge of how to make necessary adjustments for planning personalised learning experiences, to meet a wide range of needs. You’ll be encouraged and expected to develop your personal subject knowledge as a precursor for teaching in the primary classroom.
We’ll give you a solid foundation in planning, focusing on the key skills needed to successfully plan, deliver and assess foundation subjects. Together, we’ll cover the themes identified by the Ofsted inspection framework – intent, implementation and impact – considering the importance of planning at each stage. You’ll look at the progression of knowledge and skills in specific foundation areas: humanities, PSHE, modern foreign languages and PE. You’ll start to consider the role of pedagogy in different subjects, identifying how different pedagogical approaches can be used to successfully teach foundation subjects. Explore concepts relating to equality and diversity in curriculum planning by considering both curriculum content and the range of experiences that primary learners bring to the classroom. Building on the Core Curriculum 1, you’ll examine the role that teacher subject knowledge plays in helping pupils acquire depth in foundation subjects. Begin to consider the complexities of planning for the foundation curriculum in primary schools, thinking carefully about the role that individual teachers play in ensuring that pupils are given opportunities to build on prior knowledge to deepen their understanding through the primary phase.
Placement is a crucial component where you’ll demonstrate your knowledge, skills and understanding of the Teacher’s Standards. You’ll spend a minimum of 8 weeks embedded in a school, observing, building your expertise and confidence. In School Placement 1, you’ll have opportunities to observe and learn from expert colleagues in schools. Apply your knowledge from university to your own teaching. We’ll support you with a school-based mentor, alongside your university lead mentor to carefully plan for and implement teaching practise. Beginning with parts of lessons, leading to full lessons to further enhance your understanding of the role of a teacher in a broader school context. Your university lead mentor will visit you in placement to observe practice, meet with you and your school-based mentor to discuss your progress and provide support if needed. School Placement 1 is highly individual to each student and tailored to support you to act on feedback and university study on your own personal journey towards achieving Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
Entering higher education is exciting; but it can also be a daunting experience. At ARU, we want all our students to make the most of the opportunities higher education provides, reach your potential, become lifelong learners and find fulfilling careers. However, we appreciate that the shift from secondary education, or a return to formal education is, in itself, quite a journey. This module is designed to ease that transition. You'll be enrolled on it as soon as you receive an offer from ARU so you can begin to learn about university life before your course starts. Through Into ARU, you'll explore a virtual land modelled around ARU values: Courage, Innovation, Community, Integrity, Responsibility, and Ambition. This innovative module is designed as a game, where you collect knowledge and complete mini tasks. You'll proceed at your own pace, though we you to have completed your Into ARU exploration by week 6. If for any reason you're unable to complete by that date, we'll signpost to existing services so that we can be confident that you are supported.
We’ll support you to appraise with a critical lens, the range of roles that make up a multidisciplinary team of professionals, within a Primary School and the wider community, to support children’s needs. We’ll provide you with opportunities to explore different types of families and children who need support from a team of professionals and analyse the interrelationship between different barrier to learning and support, such as additional support services, individual background, SEND and behaviour. You’ll consider how these professionals come together to plan for specific interventions for the child and family. You’ll reflect on the interplay between different issues facing children and families and how they relate to your own role as a teacher within a multidisciplinary team. You’ll be supported to become a reflective professional and see the value of the role of multidisciplinary teams to ensure the best outcomes for children and families.
Running throughout your second year, Key Professional Skills 2 will further embed your skills to develop into a reflective practitioner. You’ll broaden your understanding of the the learning theories, methods and pedagogical approaches that underpins all aspects of your experience in the classroom. With a focus on understanding and supporting the learning for students with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND), addressing misconceptions and your contribution to the wider life of the school. You’ll cover, goal setting that challenge and stretch pupils, application of learning theories and safeguarding. In developing these essential skills with evidence informed practice, you’ll take part in the Intensive Training Placement (ITP) allowing you to develop an understanding of research-based evidence in practice through observation, analysis, feedback and reflection. We’ll support you to develop an understanding of what it is that makes such practice effective and to think about how and why it could be embedded in your own teaching. You'll spend time both in university and on placement.
Building on your knowledge from Core Curriculum 1, you’ll continue to advance your personal subject knowledge for teaching in English, mathematics and science. We’ll support you to observe and reflect on effective practice in the classroom, alongside evaluating policy and theory. English Continue to develop your understanding of systematic synthetic phonics, the assessment of phonics and its application to reading and writing. Build a personal subject knowledge of children’s literature across the primary range and develop an understanding of the importance of children reading for pleasure. Develop your understanding of the teaching of comprehension and how this progresses during the primary phase. Build on your knowledge of the teaching of grammar and punctuation. There’ll also be a focus on the teaching of non-fiction writing. Maths Explore effective strategies used in the learning and teaching of mathematics, with a particular focus on the Knowledge Quartet (a distinct pedagogical approach to the teaching of mathematics). Develop your understanding of how assessment is used in mathematic teaching. Advance your own subject knowledge in mathematics, with a focus on measurement, statistics and geometry, through the creation of a subject audit. Investigate misconceptions in children’s mathematical understanding and how to address these. Science Continue to develop your scientific subject knowledge, with a focus on chemistry. Explore children’s misconceptions in science and how these can be addressed. Develop your understanding of assessment in primary science.
Building on the concepts covered in the Wider Curriculum 1, this time we’ll explore art, music and design technology. The focus here is on how to use creative pedagogies to support teaching of the National Curriculum, through cross-curricular approaches. To inform this study, you’ll undertake observation activities through secondary sources (such as video clips) in primary practice and/or related settings of primary education. We’ll introduce you to computing as a vehicle to teach other foundation subjects, focussing on the benefits of STEAM-based learning, which encourages more creative thinking. Explore theory, pedagogy and research that underpins the teaching of arts-based and practical subject, as well as beginning to examine the benefits of cross-curricular approaches to both learning and wider society. You’ll also have the opportunity to further reflect on the philosophical aims of education by thinking about the role of education in society, considering creative approaches to curricula as a way of preparing pupils for future employment.
School Placement 2 is separated into two placement ‘blocks’ of a minimum of 8 weeks. You’ll continue to observe expert colleagues and engage in professional discussions to support your understanding of effective pedagogy. Develop your knowledge and skills from your course and apply these to your own teaching during the school placement. On placement, you’ll begin to take full responsibility for classroom management, routines and creating a positive learning environment. Professionalism will be key, building relationships with teacher assistants, parents and carers, developing your communication and professional behaviours to successfully manage a classroom. Again, we’ll support you both at university and on placement with mentors, to carefully plan for and implement deliberate practice and opportunities to further enhance your knowledge, skills and understanding of the role of a teacher in a broader school context. Your school mentor will observe your practice, provide feedback and next steps, and will meet with you weekly to support you to reflect on your progress. Your university lead mentor will visit you in placement to observe practice, meet with you and your school mentor to discuss the progress you make and provide support if needed. As this is a highly individual placement experience, it’ll be tailored to support you to act on feedback and university-based study on your journey towards achieving Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
Running throughout your final year, you’ll continue to develop as reflective practitioner. Developing a firm understanding of the required key professional skills of a teacher, building on your previous learning. To develop the essential knowledge and skills for reflective professional behaviours and evidence informed practice, supported by the Intensive Training Placement (ITP) within the curriculum and enables you to comprehend research-based evidence in practice through observation, analysis, feedback and reflection. Developing your an understanding of what it is that makes such practice effective and to think about how and why it could be embedded in your own teaching. You’ll develop your own area of focus through a piece of professional enquiry. The Specialist Focus Project allows you to demonstrate your ability to raise and address significant question(s) about your chosen specialism, which may involve auditing or evaluating existing practice or commenting on significant theoretical or conceptual developments at the local or national level within the area of primary education. Lectures will be focussed on current issues within education, linking to current research, professional practice and developing professional research interests post ITT. You’ll research autonomously on your specialist focus which’ll prepare you for your academic and professional progression beyond level 6.
Building on your knowledge from Core Curriculum 1 and 2, you’ll continue to develop your personal subject knowledge for teaching in English, mathematics and science. We’ll support you to observe and reflect on effective practice in the classroom, alongside evaluating policy, pedagogy and theory. English Continue to develop your understanding of systematic synthetic phonics. Additionally, developing your understanding of how to support struggling readers. Explore how reading interventions (including reading recovery) can impact and enhance children’s reading development, particularly for those who find reading difficult and challenging. Reading Develop your understanding of how to assess pupils’ comprehension skills and how to help them to develop these skills throughout the primary phase. Writing Develop your understanding of how to assess pupils’ writing across Key Stage 1 and 2. Explore how cross curricula links can be used when planning and teaching writing across the primary phases. Become familiar with effective strategies which are used to support disadvantaged pupils and for those for whom English is an additional language. Maths Explore effective strategies used in the learning and teaching of mathematics, with a particular focus on variation, ratio, proportion and algebra. Advance your own subject knowledge in mathematics to teach these areas of the maths curriculum effectively. Develop an understanding of how mathematical thinking is developed throughout the primary phases and how best to challenge and support learners in all year groups. Examine effective strategies in supporting disadvantaged pupils in maths. Science Continue to develop your scientific subject knowledge, with a focus on science capital. Learn how to teach children about physical processes (materials, light, forces and magnets, earth and space, sound and electricity). Develop your understanding of how to assess children's understanding of science and learn how enquiry-based approaches to science can enhance progression.
Consider the wider primary curriculum through an Arts-Based Approach to Environmental and Sustainability Education. Explore Environmental and Sustainability Education (ESE) with an emphasis on the pedagogies of the arts. A theoretical analysis of the nature of ESE will be followed by a critical examination of the nature-human binary. Contemporary issues looking at children’s connectedness with nature will be considered before moving to explore a range of pedagogical approaches to ESE, with a focus on the arts as a vehicle for teaching concepts in geography and science. When considering ESE, you’ll investigate outdoor learning and co-curricular opportunities, thinking about the ways in which these can be used to enhance the primary curriculum.
School Placement 3 is your final 8-week placement, where you’ll take responsibility for 80% of the teaching of your placement class, supported by your school-based mentor. At this stage, you'll be demonstrating independence as a teacher, taking responsibility for policies, lesson planning, delivery and assessment. You’ll continue to learn from opportunities to observe expert colleagues and engage in professional discussions to support your ongoing development of effective pedagogic knowledge and practice. Drawing on knowledge and skills from across the BEd course to demonstrate competency and understanding of the Teacher’s Standards. You’ll advance and secure your subject knowledge across the curriculum and enhance your understanding of best effective pedagogy and practise these approaches in your own teaching. We’ll continue to support you throughout, with a detailed weekly training schedule, which you’ll follow with your school mentor. Across the placement, formative feedback will be ongoing. Your school-based mentor will observe your practice, provide feedback and next steps, and will meet with you each week to support you to reflect on your progress. Your university lead mentor will visit you in placement to observe practice, and ensure you are progressing towards your goals. On completion of this placement, you’ll be nearing completion of your journey to Qualified Teacher Status.