The OU PGCE: partnership information

(1)

The OU PGCE:

(2)

All rights reserved. You may not reproduce any part of this publication, store it in a retrieval system, send or use it in any form (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without written permission from the publisher or a licence from the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd. You may get details of these licences (for reprographic reproduction) from the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd of 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. We have done everything we can to make sure the information in this publication is accurate and up to date, although some of it may have changed since we went to press.

We may record our phone calls with you to make sure we have carried out your instructions correctly and to help us improve our services through staff training.

Edited, designed and typeset by The Open University. Credits for images

Cover image: Zhang Bo/iStock.com. Contents page: Chris Schmidt/iStock.com; Chris Schmidt/iStock.com;

Alexander Raths/iStock.com. Page 4: Chris Schmidt/iStock.com. Page 6: Andy Pini. Page 8: Juanmonino/iStock.com. Page 10: Catherine Yeulet/iStock.com. Page 12: Catherine Yeulet/iStock.com.

Printed in the United Kingdom by Cambrian Printers, Aberystwyth.

The Open University is incorporated by Royal Charter (number RC 000391), an exempt charity in England and Wales and a charity registered in Scotland (number SC 038302).

(3)

The OU PGCE:

(4)

Initial Teacher Education at

The Open University

Welcome

The purpose of this document is to give partner schools information about The Open University’s PGCE in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. If you’re taking on an Open University (OU) student for the first time, just thinking about it, or if you are returning to the programme after a break we hope you will find the information useful. Please do read the document closely before you sign the OU School Partnership Agreement.

Together, the OU and school partners provide a unique route into teaching for many students who have no other way to realise their dream of becoming a teacher. Our students bring qualities that are highly regarded by schools and teachers and the course has been judged as ‘outstanding’ in recent inspections.

More than six thousand people have become OU PGCE graduates since the course started and our students have made a significant contribution to the UK’s teaching force – both increasing teacher diversity and addressing subject shortages. With you, we hope to continue this work.

The OU PGCE programme has been developed in partnership with schools. This partnership between university study and school experience is something that both the OU and the school partners value as an integral part of effective student-teacher learning. Not only that, many of the teachers who support students in school tell us that the mentoring role is enjoyable and professionally fulfilling. As an OU partner school mentors have access to OU mentor development materials.

If you need any further information please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the appropriate partnership manager. We also appreciate your feedback on any aspects of the programme and as a partner with the OU; from time to time we’ll ask you to evaluate the course. We are also grateful for any advice or comment that you may wish to offer outside these formal arrangements.

Yours sincerely

The OU PGCE Team

Partnership Manager (England):

Sue Martin ([email protected]) 01908 858470

Partnership Manger (Wales):

Martin Rhys ([email protected]) 029 2047 1019

Partnership Manager (Northern Ireland):

Roisin McPhilemy ([email protected]) 02890 245025

(5)

5

To find out more, visit our website at www.open.ac.uk/pgce-partner-schools

The OU PGCE: partnership information

The Open University and schools in

partnership

Working together, we actively seek to provide opportunities for

potential teachers who, for personal, geographical or other reasons,

are unable to attend traditional face-to-face institutions. We recognise

that these individuals – graduates usually with a wealth of life

experience – have a positive contribution to make to the lives of

young people.

The OU has worked closely with school partners to produce and develop this innovative approach to initial teacher education. Complementary skill-sets are brought together to:

` plan the teacher education curriculum

` develop materials for student teachers, tutors and mentors

` interview and select student teachers

` support, train and guide student teachers through a rigorous initial teacher education programme ` assess student teachers against the appropriate

criteria for the award of PGCE and national standards/ competences for the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) or Eligibility to Teach (EtT)

` evaluate and improve the OU PGCE on an annual basis.

The OU PGCE Programme aims

Working with partner schools, the OU provides a rigorous and rewarding route into the teaching profession. We aim to develop teachers who:

` demonstrate the knowledge, understanding and teaching skills required for entry to the profession ` think critically about the teaching and learning process,

recognising the contribution they and others can make to pupil, department and whole-school success ` seek to develop the learning potential and

achievement of all pupils

` use the full range of opportunities to promote learning, working consciously to overcome any barriers that inhibit success

` seek evidence to inform their judgements and improve their own practice, demonstrating a commitment to ongoing personal and professional development ` share a commitment to professional attributes

Equal opportunities and diversity

The Open University aims to create the conditions whereby student teachers and staff are treated solely on the basis of their merits, abilities and potential, regardless of gender, colour, ethnic or national origin, age, socio-economic background, disability, religious or political beliefs, family circumstance, sexual orientation or other irrelevant distinction.

The Open University expects staff, student teachers and those working in partnership schools to commit to equal opportunities as embodied in the following principle:

Discrimination, direct or indirect, based on a person’s gender, colour, ethnic or national origin, age, socio-economic background, disability, religious or political beliefs, family circumstance, sexual orientation or any other irrelevant distinction, is unjust and immoral. In addition to being unjust, such forms of discrimination represent a waste of human resources and a denial of opportunity for individual self-fulfilment.

For further details of the University’s equal opportunities policy, the appropriate home pages on the Open University website (www.open.ac.uk) provide links to policy documents.

(8)

(9)

7 Course structure

The OU PGCE is organised into a number of discrete distance learning modules that are revisited at three levels. All modules integrate school experience and home-based study and are designed to move students through three levels as outlined in the table below.

Level Course focus Preparation and

study time School experience: teaching in more than one school and across the age range

Assessment following school experience

1 Familiarisation Working in school with individuals and small groups of children. Leading to teaching individual lessons. Up to 120 hours. Study of the modules is undertaken prior to school experience.

Twenty-four days, flexible school experience in a secondary school plus one day in a linked primary school.

(School A)

Students submit an assessment portfolio that draws on their school experience and study.

2 Consolidation Closely supported teaching of whole classes. Leading to teaching sequences of lessons. Up to 120 hours. Study of the modules is undertaken prior to school experience.

Eight weeks secondary school experience. Fifteen days can be taken flexibly, including one week in a linked primary school. (School B)

3 Autonomy Solo, supported teaching of whole classes. Leading to teaching a 50% timetable. Up to 120 hours. Study of the modules is undertaken prior to school experience.

Ten weeks secondary school experience, ten days of which are flexible. One week in a linked primary school if student is on Route 3 and has no experience of the primary phase.

(Return to School A)

At any time during Levels 2 and 3 of the course Additional

educational experience

Five days additional

experience in an educational context (for example a Field Study Centre, as a community musician, and so on).

Students submit a report on this experience with their Level 3 portfolio.

For most student teachers who complete the full course, this model supports transition from a highly supportive context (at Level 1), through collaborative experiences (at Level 2), towards extended sequences of solo teaching experience (at Level 3) and entry into the profession as a newly qualified teacher.

The level at which the student teacher enters the course will be determined during the application process and will depend on their prior skills and experience. Most will do the whole course, while others may begin at Level 2 or Level 3. A student teacher completing the full course will require 24 weeks of school-based experience in two schools.

(10)

(11)

9 The teaching and assessment model

Students are supported, trained and assessed by two key

individuals who take complementary roles – each takes a lead on different aspects of the programme:

` a school-based subject mentor ` a university-based subject tutor. Students are also supported by: ` a school-based school coordinator ` a university-based subject leader ` a university-based partnership manager.

Further details about these roles and their relationships to each other are given later in this document.

Study modules integrate the distance-learning and school-based dimensions of the course and guide the student teachers through the programme. The extensive materials are presented in several media: print, web and CD-ROM.

School Experience and Assessment Guides detail school-based and assessment activities, linked to the study modules that students are required to carry out on the course.

A course website and associated forums provide students with online guidance, training and support. Day Schools provide students with opportunities to meet face to face to deal with subject and whole-school issues. The OU PGCE assessment framework fulfils nation state regulations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. All student teachers must, by the end of the course, demonstrate the appropriate national standards for PGCE and QTS/EtT.

Assessment during and after each

level of the course

Student teachers are assessed during each of the three levels and are given feedback on their progress towards the standards, along with focused targets for development. This is achieved through:

` weekly targets, review and feedback from the subject mentor during school experience

` interim targets, review and feedback given by the school coordinator mid-way through school experience ` interim targets, review and feedback given by the

subject tutor on school visits

` a school experience report prepared by the subject mentor and school coordinator at the end of each level

` portfolio assessment carried out by the subject tutor at the end of each level.

At the end of the first and second levels, the subject leader reviews all the evidence. If sufficient progress has been made, the student teacher proceeds to the next level of the course. If the expected progress has not been made, the student teacher will have a formal review meeting and a judgement will be made as to whether or not the student is able to continue and what, if any, supportive action needs to be taken.

Summative assessment

At the end of the course, a final, summative assessment against all the national standards and competences takes place.

Evidence for this is collected from:

` formal subject mentor observations of the student’s teaching – two each week

` formal school coordinator observations of the student’s teaching (some of these observations may be

delegated to another senior member of staff)

` subject tutor observations during the final school visit ` internal moderation by subject mentor, school

coordinator and subject tutor, undertaken during the final school visit, of:

– teaching

– school-based evidence – formal observation records – the assessment portfolio

` a final school report prepared by the subject mentor and school coordinator

` subject tutor assessment of the final portfolio. The OU subject leader reviews all Level 3 portfolios to ensure that judgements are fair and that the standards for QTS have been met.

At the end of the course, the OU PGCE Award Board confirms the results. Where students have not met the PGCE outcomes, appropriate actions are agreed. This board includes an external examiner for each subject area. Student teachers who have demonstrated all the course outcomes are awarded an OU PGCE/PGDE and QTS/EtT.

(12)

(13)

11 Partnership criteria

The whole school

In order to ensure high-quality collaborative training, schools joining the partnership must meet the following criteria:

` have over 350 pupils at secondary level ` cater for pupils in the age range 11–16

` have an overall effectiveness rating in their last inspection report of Grade 3 or above and have maintained that level in any subsequent monitoring visits

` have a satisfactory level of teaching in the department in which the student is to be placed.

Selective, independent and faith schools are all acceptable locations for training provided they meet the above criteria. However, a student cannot train solely in any of these sectors and will need to go to a comprehensive school in the state-maintained sector for at least one placement.

A student must experience teaching both boys and girls. If a student’s first school is boys or girls only, the second school must be either mixed or of the opposite gender.

The subject department

Subject departments that students are placed in must be able to demonstrate the following qualities in order to meet external requirements. Departments involved in initial teacher education with the OU should:

` have good leadership

` be able to demonstrate a good quality of teaching and learning

` have examination results that are comparable with those attained in similar schools/departments ` offer a variety of teaching and learning resources

including ICT

` have effective schemes of work and assessment policies

` be able to provide opportunities for student teachers to observe and work with good teachers (in addition to the mentor) in his or her specialist subject

` have staff that are committed to initial teacher education and the OU PGCE programme.

The subject mentor

The following criteria have been suggested by students, mentors and others and serve as a useful guide when selecting appropriately qualified staff to take on this role. The mentor should:

` be well qualified in his or her subject

` have appropriate teaching experience (normally a minimum of three years)

` be considered a good teacher by colleagues and inspectors, and provide a good role model, both in terms of subject teaching and as a member of the wider school staff

` be sympathetic to the needs of learning adults, being sensitive to their status while training, and be prepared to work with them in a mentoring capacity

` be committed to mentoring ` be well organised

` be committed to his or her own professional development

` be able to develop an ability to explain their own classroom practice, and to support the student in developing this same ability

` be able to provide the student with sufficient personal contact during school experience

` be able and willing to access the Open University ITE website and use electronic reporting.

The school coordinator

The school coordinator is a senior member of staff, usually with a whole-school responsibility for staff development or the coordination of student teachers.

(14)

(15)

13 Roles and responsibilities: the school

The whole school and subject

department

In order to support the student teacher through to the award of PGCE and Qualified Teacher Status, the school provides:

` a wide range of school-based experiences – activities for the student teacher are set out in the relevant school experience guide

` opportunities to observe and work with a variety of good teachers in the subject specialism and phase. This should include KS3 and KS4 and may include post-16 (or equivalent) if available

` opportunities to teach a wide range of classes and pupil diversity (considering age, attainment, and ethnic and cultural background), culminating in sustained, whole-class teaching during Level 3. The full range must be covered and, where this is not possible within the partner school, arrangements should be made with other appropriate local schools

` opportunities to teach those aspects of the National Curriculum that are appropriate for the nation context, the phase and subject specialism of the student ` opportunities to develop an understanding of the wider

professional role of the teacher, and of the whole-school and pastoral issues

` access to resources that are appropriate for planning, developing and implementing teaching activities, including ICT

` opportunities to develop all standards/competences required for the award of PGCE and QTS/EtT ` an appropriately experienced member of teaching

staff to carry out the role of subject mentor who will undertake to train, support and assess the student teacher while on school placement and who will liaise with the OU subject tutor

` the opportunity for the student and mentor to meet on a regular basis each week during school placement for weekly review of progress against the individual training plan, and for the formal setting of targets ` an appropriately experienced member of staff to carry

out the role of school coordinator, to – liaise with the OU partnership manager – provide agreed data on an annual basis – oversee matters of student progress

– monitor the quality of the school training programme – validate school-based assessment

` opportunities for involvement in the wider life of the school including the local community

` visits to other schools to ensure breadth of teaching experience across phases, and an understanding of primary school/secondary (post-primary) transition issues.

Where the student teacher is already a

member of staff in a partnership school

In cases where the student is already a member of staff at a school where they wish to train, further conditions apply.

` Sufficient non-contact time must be ensured for the student to complete the required range of school-based activities during the placement periods and to attend other face-to-face events. Student teachers are normally expected to teach no more than half of the normal timetable.

` Non-contact time must be ensured for the subject mentor and school coordinator to observe and formatively assess the student’s teaching and to carry out their roles.

` Sufficient leave to carry out teaching in a second school (usually 10 weeks) must be provided. The expectation is that where a student teacher

completes the majority of their training in a school where they are already a member of staff, the final assessment will take place in another school unless the student is able to show documented success of teaching in another complementary school. If the student is following Route 3 and has no experience of teaching in another school, s/he will not be able to carry out the Level 3 school experience in the employing school.

External examiner/inspector visits

As with all PGCE courses, external examiners

(experienced tutors from other universities) visit a sample of students in school each year as part of the quality assurance of the OU PGCE. Ofsted, DENI or ESTYN inspectors also make visits to schools during inspections of the OU PGCE.

External examiners/inspectors should be able to co-observe the student with the mentor, view student and school training files, and discuss the training programme with the mentor and school coordinator.

(16)

14 The subject mentor

The subject mentor has the key school-based role to play in the development of the student teacher on the OU PGCE programme. The subject mentor:

` shares his or her practice by being observed, by discussing and explaining practice and by working collaboratively with the student teacher

` supports and trains the student teacher in developing the skills, knowledge and understanding necessary to become a newly qualified teacher

` carries out and records observations, offers regular feedback and sets targets that help the student teacher to identify strengths and to set priorities for development

` holds weekly mentor sessions to review progress against targets

` formatively and summatively assesses the student teacher against the national standards/competences for Qualified Teacher Status/Eligibility to Teach ` provides a school experience report at each level of

the course using the electronic reporting system ` supports the student in carrying out course

requirements, for example by discussing school policies, arranging sessions with other key members of staff, arranging a breadth of teaching experience ` provides personal support for the student on

professional matters

` liaises with the school coordinator about the school-based dimensions of the course

` liaises with the tutor to ensure consistency in training on assessment and alerts the tutor at the earliest possible point if the student is failing to make satisfactory progress.

The school coordinator

The school coordinator is the primary point of contact for the partnership manager and has the lead role in ensuring the quality of the school-based training and assessment on behalf of the partnership. In addition, the school coordinator supports the student-teacher’s development with respect to the whole-school aspects of the programme, and in the wider professional role. The school coordinator:

` takes an overview of student progress for quality assurance purposes

` liaises with the subject mentor about the student programme at each level of the course; for example facilitating access to other teachers and for

observation and teaching activity

` liaises with other schools, organising placements for primary experience and, if necessary, post-16 experience

` carries out observations of student-teacher teaching, providing feedback to the student teacher and mentor ` jointly assesses the student teacher against the

relevant standards, validates the school’s assessment judgements and contributes to reports

` ensures the quality of the school-based experience ` offers support to the subject mentor and student

teacher throughout the school experience

` liaises with Open University partnership manager about partnership and quality issues.

(17)

15 Roles and responsibilities: the OU

In order to support the student teacher through to the

award of PGCE and Qualified Teacher Status/EtT, The Open University provides:

` independent distance learning programmes of study through multi-media materials for student teachers. These are also available to subject mentors, school coordinators and subject tutors to support their teaching roles

` day schools for student teachers

` subject mentor training and development, through initial briefing, tutor visits during each level and through (multi-media) supporting materials

` organisation of all quality assurance and assessment procedures for the selection of student teachers and the award of PGCE

` a pro rata fee for each student teacher on placement, payable at the end of each level and dependent on the number of weeks completed by the student

` discounts for OU partner school’s staff (employed for a least one year, and excluding supply staff and volunteers) on selected courses in the Faculty of Education and Language Studies.

The Open University also provides subject tutors, subject leaders, and partnership managers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland as follows.

The subject tutor

The subject tutors are qualified teachers in their specialist subject areas, and are responsible for guiding the student through the open-learning dimensions of the course. The subject tutor has responsibility for issues of individual student progress across the programme. They visit the student at each school placement to ensure coherence and continuity in training and assessment. They contribute to subject mentor training and support. The subject tutor:

` provides academic support, and training and

assessment advice to the student teacher throughout the course, via:

– face-to-face tuition on school visits and at day schools

– e-communication and telephone – feedback on written assessment

` liaises with the subject mentor and school coordinator as appropriate

` provides additional academic support and tuition through commenting on written assignments, identifying strengths and priorities for student development

` monitors student progress against the individual training plan

` visits the student teacher in school, to assess progress in consultation with the mentor

` conducts the student teacher’s end-of-level assessment.

The subject leader

The subject leaders are academic members of staff based at The Open University in Milton Keynes. They are qualified teachers in their respective subject specialism and each is responsible for the development and management of their subject within the programme, including student progress and quality assurance issues. For each secondary subject they:

` develop subject-specific materials, including student, subject tutor and subject mentor materials

` provide quality assurance for the subject, and take a lead on all aspects of subject-specific assessment ` monitor and moderate the subject-specific national

e-forums

` provide subject-specific training for subject tutors ` have an overview of student progress issues for

their subject, for assessment and quality assurance purposes.

The partnership managers

The partnership managers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are responsible for issues of student placement and quality assurance.

The partnership managers:

` are the link Open University person for school coordinators

` liaise with partner schools to provide advice and support on all aspects of the OU PGCE (except on issues of student progress, which should be referred to the subject tutor and onwards to the subject leader) ` are responsible for all quality assurance issues linked

(18)

(19)

(20)