To study geography is to study the world, and the humans which live upon it. It can help make sense of the world in which we live and give you a deeper knowledge of contemporary local, national and international affairs, such as those relating to climate change, sustainability or migration.
This course will develop your subject knowledge for teaching geography whilst also developing the skills and knowledge required to teach other humanities based subjects. It will explore the common pedagogies of humanities based subjects whilst providing opportunities for you to develop a strong subject specialism in geography so that you can become an outstanding teacher of geography.
Geography is a subject which can fascinate and inspire children. It feeds their natural curiosity and supports them in developing a sense of space and place. As such, humanities teachers are in great demand and this course appeals to graduates who are passionate about geography but want to develop the skills and understanding to teach outside their specialism.
Through this PGCE, you will gain the understanding and skills necessary to operate as a critically reflective geography with humanities teacher in a secondary school setting. You will also develop the awareness and ability to transfer these skills and teach in subject areas across the humanities spectrum (such as history, government and politics, citizenship or religious education).
Our ambitious Geography PGCE curriculum has fully embedded the Core Content Framework for Initial Teacher Training and emphasises the importance of developing strong subject knowledge and an understanding of associated theory and pedagogy for teaching. The course gives you a strong understanding of how and why to teach geography in secondary schools whilst also enabling you to appreciate the unique aspects of other subject specialisms in order to develop your confidence in teaching across the suite of humanities subjects. Middlesex University also has dedicated subject tutors who have established strong relations with external specialists and partnership schools who will deliver contemporary and subject specific training sessions. The course integrates this centre-based training at Middlesex University alongside school-based training within partnership schools. You will be supported by mentors, university tutors and expert colleagues throughout your training to acquire the knowledge and skills required to demonstrate that you are meeting the Teachers’ Standards by the end of the training programme.
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The Geography PGCE curriculum has been structured to support trainees in negotiating the complex teacher training journey from novice to expert. Prior to the start of the course you will be shown how to audit your geography with humanities subject and pedagogical knowledge and you will develop an action plan to address gaps in subject knowledge. The course begins with developing your understanding of the purpose and rationale for teaching geography in schools, and engages you with research and literature about the pedagogy of geography teaching and how to teach your subject effectively.
This programme also has an overarching humanities focus, which will allow you to develop a common pedagogical approach to teaching across all subject areas, whilst also appreciating the unique and particular aspects of each subject discipline. This will enable you to teach a range of humanities subjects at KS3 whilst also being able to teach geography confidently up to and beyond KS4.
The curriculum will give you a thorough grounding in teaching key geographical skills and concepts, such as those relating to space and place or environmental interaction, whilst also supporting you in identifying areas of commonality between humanities subject specialisms, such as those relating to the use of enquiry or outdoor learning, and the skills to teach sensitive and controversial topics.
You will have many opportunities both individually and in groups to apply general principles to specific humanities learning within your specialist subject, and for part of the course you will work in parallel with history students. There will also be breakout sessions where you will be working in your specialist subject, and subject specialists will deliver sessions such as those covering teaching geography at KS4.
We’ve made sure that the skills and knowledge that you’ll gain on your course will not change during the coronavirus outbreak. Your module information is below.
This module aims to introduce the professional secondary school environment. You will demonstrate your progress in developing your understanding and skills necessary to operate as an effective teacher in a secondary school. As such, it supports you to progress towards the achievement of current requirements for the award of Qualified Teacher Status.
This module aims to consolidate your professional practice in a second secondary school environment. It aims to ensure you can demonstrate the understanding and skills necessary to operate as an effective teacher in a secondary school. As such, it supports you in the achievement of statutory requirements for the award of Qualified Teacher Status.
This module aims to develop your understanding and skills necessary to operate as a critically reflective teacher in a secondary school. You will be assessed by undertaking a small scale research assignment that compares theoretical perspectives in education with the reality found in school.
More information about this course
See the course specification for more information:
We are regularly reviewing and updating our programmes to ensure you have the best learning experience. We are taking what we have learnt during the pandemic and enhancing our teaching methods with new and innovative ways of learning.
We aim to model a wide range of teaching strategies and approaches on the course which you can adapt to your own setting.
The programme is designed to provide 120 days in schools with two school experiences (Secondary Professional Development 1 and Secondary Professional Development 2). Each placement provides a sustained teaching experience over the complete teaching week.
The remaining 60 days of the programme is university based, where online and face to face lectures, seminars and practical workshops are combined to create a blended learning environment. The course will comprise a range of presentations, discussions and practical workshops where exemplar material can be selected from a specialised subject context.
The two school practice modules assess your ability to demonstrate you are able to apply the knowledge, understanding and skills of the ITE curriculum to your teaching practice, and fully meet the Teachers' Standards by the end of your training programme: You will also be assessed through the following two academic modules:
We have developed new approaches to teaching and learning for the forthcoming academic year, and have resumed the majority of our teaching on campus.
Your timetable will be built around center-based training using our professional facilities on campus, with online sessions for some activities where we know being virtual will add value. We’ll use technology to enhance all of your learning and give you access to online resources to use in your own time. Additionally, you will be undertaking school-based training on a placement setting and you will work with a school-based mentor to support the development of your teaching practice.
You’ll receive final arrangements for your teaching and a full course timetable before you start.
Outside of these hours, you’ll be expected to do independent study where you read, listen and reflect on other learning activities. This can include preparation for future classes and tasks related to your school-based training.
Definitions of terms
Support
You have a strong support network available to you to make sure you develop all the necessary academic and practice-based skills you need to do well on your course.
Our support services will be delivered online and on campus and you have access to a range of different resources so you can get the help you need, whether you’re studying at home or have the opportunity to come to campus.
You have access to one to one and group sessions for personal learning and academic support from our library and IT teams, and our network of learning experts. Our teams will also be here to offer financial advice, and personal wellbeing, mental health and disability support.
Our course gives you Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). Teaching is a profession with excellent progression and benefits and our graduates have an excellent reputation within the profession.
Our employment rates are extremely high. Typically over 95% of our PGCE graduates in employment or further study six months after graduation. As a newly qualified teacher, your salary will be between £25,714 and £32,157, depending on where you teach.
Teachers can find career progression in both the classroom and the school's management structure. You might aspire to become the head of a department, age group or curriculum. And through developing your leadership skills and experience, you could progress to a senior management position, such as deputy head or head teacher.
For more information on salary and career progression, visit the Department for Education's website.
Tremaine has engaged in a range of teacher training roles including both History PGCE and School Direct. He is the author of Targeted Teaching: Strategies for secondary teaching (Baker, Brock and Evers, 2017) which is aimed at trainee teachers.
We’ll carefully manage any future changes to courses, or the support and other services available to you, if these are necessary because of things like changes to government health and safety advice, or any changes to the law.
Any decisions will be taken in line with both external advice and the University’s Regulations which include information on this.
Our priority will always be to maintain academic standards and quality so that your learning outcomes are not affected by any adjustments that we may have to make.
At all times we’ll aim to keep you well informed of how we may need to respond to changing circumstances, and about support that we’ll provide to you.
Start: September 2022
Duration: 1 year full-time
Code: 38ZG
Start: September 2023
Duration: 1 year full-time
Code: Q3X1
