First!
Right then… This is my first post, so I suppose a brief overview of what this blog is about would be sensible:
I’m an English teacher in the UK. At the moment, I’m working towards a PGDE in Skills for Life – English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). This is a full-time course similar to the more widely known PGCE, which is the standard qualification for teaching in English secondary schools. The main difference between the two qualifications is that the PGCE is for those intending to teach in 11+ education in the UK, whereas the PGDE is aimed firmly at the post-compulsory (usually 16+) sector. Indeed, I will not be qualified to teach in a secondary school when I graduate, only FE colleges or schools operating in the non-compulsory state sector. Basically, I want to teach ESOL, and I want to teach it to adults. I hold a CELTA from International House London, but have chosen the PGDE over the DELTA for personal, financial and professional reasons.
An important component of the course is what’s known as a reflective journal. In a way, it occupies the space between a simple log of what I taught and a diary where I record my feelings about my day. Part of the reflective process is for me to think about all parts of my teaching, and to record and reflect on my reactions to them. Through that, I can find my ways to improve my teaching, be it what happens in the classroom, the methodologies and planning that happen before I set foot in the classroom, or even the way I work with others. The idea is that this is not simply for my own benefit, but for the benefit of my students. One of the goals of this blog is to allow others to be part of that process, where people that, perhaps, I’ve never even met can offer insight into my teaching, and help me improve.
Professional stuff aside, I’m also a bit of a geek – I love computers, which I use for gaming, writing music (released under a Creative Commons license) and generally wasting my time on the internet. I’m also interested in Linux and Open Source Software – I use Ubuntu (Feisty) on my laptop PC, and am currently “between” distros on my desktop PC (yes, that means I have Windows). Nevertheless, there are probably millions of other people who are more knowledgeable (and better writers) about these things than I am,. So, while I may post about these things among others, they won’t be the main focus here. The main focus is ESOL and the process of becoming a better ESOL teacher. Naturally this might change over time, but since this course is going to be a huge part of my life for the coming nine months, I expect that the focus will remain largely on teaching.
Anyway, it’s getting late, and I have school tomorrow, so I’ll leave it here. More to come.
Tags: reflective practice, PGDE, ESOL, Skills for Life, Teacher Development
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October 4, 2007 at 10:30 am
Nice to make your acquaintance! As a teacher that followed a route similar to yours, I’ll be reading this blog keenly.
Whether you’ll want to do the same with mine is another matter, though!
Sandy McManus
October 21, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Hello!
I find all of this very interesting – I am doing the same qualification at the mo!
In fact, I would be interested in comparing my course with yours (assuming that you are not actually one of my coursemates!), because I am doing some research into the actual government guidelines behind it, and am getting very confused at the way that in some colleges it is taught as a two year course, in others as a one year course!
So drop me a line…
A
October 21, 2007 at 8:14 pm
Hi, Worried.
I believe the difference between the one and two year course is that the two year course is a generic PGDE followed by a subject specialism course that lasts another year. Some colleges fold the subject specialism in to the same academic year as the generic PGDE, leading to a PGDE in one year.
Either that, or the two year course is part-time. This is likely if you’re already working full-time in an FE college.
October 23, 2007 at 11:18 am
Good luck with the blog, the professional development, as well as a quick thanks for the contributions to my stuff!