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Primary Education

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About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Primary teaching

At Durham University, we are passionate about developing high-quality teachers who aspire to make a difference to the lives of their pupils, both now and in the future. At the core of our vision is a more equitable world in which education plays an important role in enabling individuals, communities and societies to flourish.

The Primary Education degree is ideal if you are committed to a teaching career in a primary school. You will complete a minimum of 140 days school experience, including training about whole-school issues that affect children’s learning environment. The degree programme offers the opportunity to gain Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and this is awarded through an accredited provider.

The degree develops the professional knowledge and understanding to provide a foundation for effective teaching in a primary school. This includes:

An understanding of responsibilities and roles of the primary teacher
An understanding of schools and National Curriculum as the framework for children’s formal learning
In-depth knowledge and understanding of core National Curriculum subjects
Knowledge and understanding of other primary curriculum subjects to support effective teaching
Classroom effectiveness, drawing upon expertise of practising teachers
Personal educational philosophy
A professional approach to your work.
The degree is aligned with the research focus of the department, offering up-to-date, relevant materials to support you as a developing teacher.

Professional development
During the course, you will be assigned to one of our Partnership School Training Centres, where you will have the opportunity to develop your skills in a classroom context, supported by the school, your School Training Centre Co-ordinator and a University Tutor.

These school-based activities involve structured classroom observations, planning and research projects and practical teaching – the latter starting with teaching individual pupils, eventually leading through group work to full classroom teaching. You will have a designated teacher-mentor who will guide your work in schools. Across all three years of the course, there are weekly serial visits and a range of block placements in school.

From September 2024 Durham will be entering into a partnership with Newcastle University to support the delivery of Initial Teacher Training (ITT) in North East England. This partnership will provide high quality teacher training, drawing upon both universities’ world-renowned expertise in education and research as well as the professional expertise of their partnership schools across the North East.
If you begin your programme with us from 2024 onwards your main degree – BA Primary Education - will be awarded by Durham University, but your professional (Qualified Teacher Status) qualification will be awarded by Newcastle University.
This new partnership builds upon a long and rich legacy of teacher training at both Durham and Newcastle universities. Moving forward, Durham will remain in initial teacher education, offering both PGCE primary and secondary programmes and the BA Primary Education degree from September 2024 working with Newcastle University. It will ensure the two universities continue to provide high-quality teachers to local schools and will offer exciting opportunities to build upon and strengthen their contributions to teacher education both regionally and nationally.

Modules

Year 1
Core modules:
The Evidence Informed Primary Teacher: Developing the Practice will help you develop an understanding of the Primary National Curriculum Framework and the key concepts underpinning primary learning. You will review relevant policy and legal requirements, and develop a critical appreciation of Foundation subject delivery in the primary context.

Shifting the Focus: From the ‘Three Rs’ to the ‘Three Cs’ develops your understanding of the key elements underpinning the primary curriculum and strengthen your knowledge of their connections. You will examine ways in which the core curriculum is taught and consider the issues involved in ensuring effective provision of the National Curriculum for all children.

Examples of optional modules:
Historical and Philosophical Ideas of Education
Intercultural and International Education
Foundations of Psychology in Education
Disability and Educational Needs: What’s so ‘Special’ about SEND?
Year 2
Core modules:
The Evidence Informed Primary Teacher: Enhancing Expertise enables you to develop a deeper understanding of the Primary National Curriculum Framework and the key concepts underpinning primary approaches to teaching. You will evaluate Foundation subject delivery and explore alternative curricula design and delivery methods.

The Three Cs: Criticality, Concepts and Curriculum further develops your understanding of the key elements underpinning the primary curriculum and strengthens your knowledge of their connections. You will explore issues involved in ensuring effective provision of the National Curriculum for all children, including contemporary influences and initiatives.

Educational Research Methods will help you understand the purposes and implications of educational research. You will develop a critical appreciation of the different ways in which research can be carried out in education, and learn how to assess the quality of educational research.

Examples of optional modules:
Cultural Identity, Interculturality and Education
Constructions of Childhood
Assessing Education
Learning and Development in Childhood
Disability and Educational Needs: Impairment, Empowerment and Education
Year 3 (Year 4 if undertaking a placement or year abroad)
Double Dissertation: Disciplinary Contexts of Education. For your dissertation you will undertake an extended, independent piece of research with an appropriate educational focus. The dissertation is an opportunity to bring together all the skills, knowledge and understanding gained on the course into one in-depth piece of work.

Beyond the Three Cs: An Adventure in Primary Pedagogy gives you a rich and connected understanding of the primary curriculum, and an understanding of progression beyond primary phase. You will have the chance to develop your critical awareness of effective provision of the National Curriculum for all children.

Future Leaders will deepen and extend your knowledge and understanding of the role of the subject leader within the primary school. You will engage with the challenges of leadership and how to work with colleagues effectively to support them in teaching across the curriculum. You will also be introduced to important current initiatives and curriculum legislation.

The Uni


Course locations:

College allocation pending

Durham City

Department:

School of Education

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What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

60%
Primary teaching

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Teacher training

Teaching and learning

59%
Staff make the subject interesting
70%
Staff are good at explaining things
80%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
70%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

76%
Library resources
73%
IT resources
71%
Course specific equipment and facilities
33%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

98%
UK students
2%
International students
10%
Male students
90%
Female students
92%
2:1 or above
8%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
A
B

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Teacher training

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£22,487
med
Average annual salary
97%
low
Employed or in further education
87%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

80%
Teaching and educational professionals
3%
Childcare and related personal services
2%
Business, research and administrative professionals

The stats above mainly cover teaching degrees for training and qualifying in primary school education. These tend to be three or four-year courses — check with course tutors about how long you will need to study to get your Qualified Teacher Status. Most graduates go into teaching roles — usually primary school teaching, so these courses have good employment rates and starting salaries. We have a shortage of teachers of all kinds, which is deepening, and whilst many of the most severe are at secondary level, the prospects for this degree are not likely to take a downturn any time soon.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Teacher training

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£24k

£24k

£26k

£26k

£32k

£32k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

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