New degrees aimed at aspiring teachers

The new Foundation Degrees are aimed at support staff working in Primary and Secondary schools and enable them to combine full-time work with part-time study.

Both courses, run by the University’s School of Education, will take between two and three years to complete depending on experience and will set the students on the path to gaining Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).

The courses were developed to plug a gap as there was no route for support staff in secondary schools to begin working towards QTS.

The FD (Arts) Supporting Children in Primary Education will focus on modules related to child development, diversity and personal achievement as well as developing students’ teaching skills. In their second year, students can specialise in Childhood and Family Studies or Special Needs and Inclusion Studies.

Meanwhile, support staff working in secondary schools will gain skills to enable them to teach English or mathematics through the Foundation Degree (Arts) Learning Assistants in Secondary Schools. Students will study modules in their area of interest (English or maths) as well as developing teaching skills and their ability to reflect on their experiences.

Catherine Lamond, Senior Lecturer said: “We are very enthusiastic about the new opportunities we will be able to offer support staff to further their careers. Our range of Foundation Degrees mean that experienced Teaching Assistants across all Key Stages can continue to work full-time while studying part-time. These courses provide continuing professional development as well as a route to Qualified Teacher Status.”

After completing the Foundation Degree, students can ‘top up’ to a relevant Bachelor of Arts (BA) such as a BA (Hons) Education and English or Mathematics, or BA (Hons) Childhood and Family Studies or BA (Hons) Special Needs and Inclusion Studies.

There are then a number of routes, such as a PGCE, to enable students to gain Qualified Teacher Status.

The School of Education at the University of Wolverhampton is based at the Walsall Campus.

For more information, visit www.wlv.ac.uk/sed/cpd or call 01902 518412.

There will be more information available about these courses and others at the University’s next open day on Saturday, 11 June 2011 from 10am to 3pm. For details, visit www.wlv.ac.uk/opendays

ENDS

For more information please contact Vickie Warren in the Media Relations Office on 01902 322736