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If you want to be a primary school teacher, you’ll want to study a qualification that gets you Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) as you’ll find it much easier to get work as a qualified teacher. You’ve probably heard of the PGCE, but do you know what it is? And did you know there are lots of other paths into teaching? We outline some of the different paths here.
Degree in education
The quickest way to achieve QTS is to complete a bachelor’s degree in education with QTS. These courses are usually three years long and will typically include some work placements where you’ll get experience working with children. On a degree in primary education, you can expect to get some experience with children of different ages.
If you’re taking this route, be sure your chosen course is accredited and will lead to QTS. If it doesn’t lead to QTS you’ll need to do additional studying and qualifications after in order to become a qualified teacher.
Find courses with QTS right here on Whatuni.
PGCE
Perhaps the most popular and traditional way into teaching is to do a bachelor’s degree in a subject of your choosing and then study a PGCE, which will gain you QTS. If you’re going to teach primary students, you’ll probably teach all subjects regardless of what your original degree subject was in – but that doesn’t mean you can’t specialise. Most primary schools will have subject leader positions, or if your school has multiple classes per year group the teachers will usually share out planning between them, giving you the chance to focus more on subjects related to your bachelor’s degree.
Typically, this route will take four years to complete – three years for your bachelor’s degree and another year for your PGCE. This route may take longer if you add extra years to your bachelor’s degree, for example a foundation year, study abroad year or year in industry.
Teach First
Teach First is a training route you can take after completing a bachelor’s degree as an alternative to studying a PGCE. Teach First is a two-year, salaried program where you’ll learn on the job and leave with a Postgraduate Diploma in Education and Leadership (PGDE), which is worth more credits than the PGCE. With Teach First, you’ll likely be placed in schools with a high number of deprived students as Teach First is a charity aiming to support under privileged children as well as support graduates into teaching.
The benefit to Teach First is that you get into a classroom right after completing your bachelor’s, though it’ll take you two years to finish the training. This can be a downside to some people as it can be a big jump to go directly from a bachelor’s degree to teaching without first studying education in a classroom. Financially, this may be a better option for students as you pay no course fees and get a salary while you work. However, to work in a primary school, you’ll have to be prepared to relocate to anywhere in England, which isn’t for everyone.
Assessment Only
Assessment Only is a path to QTS you can take if you already meet the criteria for QTS. To be eligible for this route, you’ll need to already hold a bachelor’s degree and have significant classroom experience. Typically, this will be around two years, and you’ll need to have experience teaching classes. You might be an unqualified teacher, or you might be a teaching assistant who covers classes. You’ll probably need a Level 3 qualification in supporting teaching and learning to take on this role in a school.
As well as having experience in at least two schools, you’ll also need to have worked with children in Key Stage 1 as well as Key Stage 2.
Assessment Only is usually a 12-week programme where you’ll be observed by an assessor to check you meet all the standards for QTS. This is a good path to take if you’re not sure after graduating whether you want to pursue a career in education as you don’t have to commit to any further training right away and lets you progress naturally from teaching assistant to qualified teacher.
Degree on day release
If you want to go into working in education as soon as you finish your Level 3 qualifications, then you could look for a job as a support staff member such as a teaching assistant or learning support assistant. From here your school may allow you to study a degree on day release. Once you’ve got your bachelor’s degree you can opt to take any of the above routes to QTS, but you might prefer to opt for Teach First or Assessment Only as these will let you continue employment.
