| home | |
| news | |
| about LDBS | |
| contacts | |
| calendar | |
| publications | |
| schools | |
| mailings | |
| services | |
| buildings | |
| FAQ's | |
| opportunities | |
| policies | |
| links | |
| photo gallery | |
THE LDBS SCITT PROGRAMME - Early Years
What's special about a SCITT programme?
The 2007/08 LDBS SCITT Graduates
The 2006/07 LDBS SCITT Graduates
The 2005/06 LDBS SCITT Graduates
The LDBS has its own one-year postgraduate teacher training course leading to the award of Qualified Teacher Status and the Professional Graduate Certificate of Education, validated by the University of Roehampton. It has an annual intake of up to 30 trainees.
It is a School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) programme for graduates who want to teach children in Key Stage 1 or the Foundation Stage of primary schooling.
Key Features
• A practical, school-centred programme providing substantial experience in both the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1
• Excellent specialist tutors provide the centre-based part of the training
• Experienced, trained mentors provide in-school support
• A strong focus on teaching in multicultural inner city primary schools
• A friendly, cohesive course
• Excellent employment opportunities
What's special about a SCITT programme?
A SCITT programme is provided by a group of schools coming together to form a teacher training partnership and having approval for a course leading to the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). In addition to QTS, the LDBS SCITT also enables trainees to obtain a Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). The programme is monitored and validated by the University of Surrey Roehampton - a university with a particularly strong reputation for early years' education.
With the LDBS SCITT, all the partnership schools are Church of England schools, selected for their quality. These schools joined the partnership because they wanted to share in the training of the next generation of teachers - and also because they hope to recruit some of the trainees to their school staff.
The key feature of a SCITT programme is that more time is spent in school than on the standard PGCE course and that schools have the major responsibility for classroom training and the assessment of the standards attained by trainees on their final teaching practice.
An outline of the programme
The SCITT programme runs from mid-September to early July (38 weeks). There are two complementary and interlocking parts to the programme, namely, training based in school and taught group sessions.
After a two-week induction programme of taught sessions, trainees are placed in one school for the first half of the programme and a second school for the remainder of the programme. One placement is in the Foundation Stage and the other in Key Stage 1. Trainees are in school every week for varying amounts of time, ranging from one day to blocks of two, four and six weeks. More than half the course takes place in school.
In school, trainees are supported by a trained mentor who ensures that they have the opportunity to gain full experience, advises on classroom practice and provides weekly feedback. The mentor is supported by a link tutor who visits regularly to monitor progress closely and to provide support. Thus trainees develop competence and expertise in school through guidance and feedback from their mentor, class teacher and link tutor.
The taught sessions are held at the Barnsbury Teachers' Centre, Offord Road , London N1 1QG which is the administrative centre of the SCITT. This centre provides good teaching facilities, supported by an excellent learning resource centre, and ICT suite with on-site technicians, and good canteen and meeting facilities. It is a few minutes walk from Highbury & Islington station (Victoria Line and Silver Link trains) and local bus routes.
The taught sessions cover all National Curriculum subjects and areas of learning. These are provided by a specialist team of consultants. There is a particular focus on training to teach literacy, numeracy and science, and also on how to use ICT to increase the effectiveness of teaching. Trainees also learn to support spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development in pupils.
By the end of the programme, trainees are able to demonstrate that they meet the requirements of the Teacher Training Agency (TTA). These include passing the TTA Skills Tests in Literacy, numeracy and ICT. Help and support for these tests is provided as part of the programme.
Assessment
All the assessment is based on classroom understanding and practice. There is regular feedback during the course from the mentor and link tutor and a final assessment at the end of the programme.
There are also five written assignments to be completed during the course which are based on activities in the classroom; for example, analysing the progress of two children in a particular aspect of reading.
Evidence to support achievement of the required standards is provided by the Record of Professional Development which shows progress made during the course.
Finance
The trainee's will normally pay tuition fees for a PGCE course (£2400). In these cases, trainees are eligible additionally for an annual tax-free bursary of £4000 which is paid in monthly instalments. For more imformation about about busaries and tuition fees please contact Dee Thomas on tel: 020 7932 1168
Trainees may also apply for a student loan. Interested applicants should visit the DCSF and TDA websites for further information on trainee grants and financial incentives.
How to apply
Application for a place on the LDBS SCITT PGCE is made in the usual way through the Graduate Teacher Training Registry (GTTR), PO Box 239, Cheltenham, Gloucester, GL50 3SL Tel: 01242 544788 or online at: www.gttr.ac.uk .
You must have:
• A UK first degree or equivalent qualification giving graduate status
• GCSE English, mathematics and science (A* - C grades) (an equivalence tests are available in some circumstances)
In addition to the academic requirements for any PGCE course, we are looking for candidates whose commitment to education has probably already led them to take an active part in a primary school - perhaps working as a volunteer on a part-time basis, or as a teaching/learning assistant.
We aim to recruit high quality graduates to equip them to be confident, effective and resilient early years' teachers, particularly in urban schools.
How to contact us
Further information before applying is available from:
Kamar Fadiga
Course Administrator
LDBS PGCE SCITT
St Mary Magdalene Academy
Lough Road
London
N7 8LT
Tel: 020 7502 4780 Fax: 020 7527 5652 E-mail: Course Administrator
[return to teachers page] [return to top]
© LDBS 2002. Contact Webmaster. Disclaimer. Feedback Form.