PGCE Secondary Drama

Address all aspects of teaching secondary drama, develop the skills and knowledge valued by employers, and benefit from our custom-built, first-class facilities.

This Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) Secondary Drama course leads to the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), qualifying you to teach the 11-18 age group in secondary schools in England and Wales.

This course is consistently evaluated as excellent in both internal and external reviews and encompasses a variety of approaches to drama and theatre teaching in relation to a key stage 3 drama curriculum and GCSE and A level exam specifications whilst also exploring the role of drama for the individual within the complexities of life in the 21st century. The course provides a theoretical framework for teaching drama within schools and is rooted in embodied practice.

You will address all aspects of secondary drama, including specialist expertise in areas such as devising, teaching texts and key practitioners, theatre history, and drama as a method of addressing subjects and issues across the curriculum.

Assignments are designed to help you to plan your teaching effectively and imaginatively, and to evaluate your skills, particularly in terms of the quality of learning achieved by pupils.

We have a strong network of drama mentors, many of whom have taken the course themselves and are managing thriving departments. The course leader remains a practitioner and is supplemented by teaching from experienced experts within the field

We also have links with National Drama, the UK’s leading professional association for drama teachers, SCITED (the Standing Committee of Initial Teacher Educators in Drama), theatre educators, and local and regional professional theatre practitioners.

We have dedicated technical studios both within the Institute of Education and the Department of Film, Theatre and Television within the University.

There are a range of organised theatre trips and opportunity to prepare work for students both within schools and in our own studio spaces.

You will learn through a series of practical seminars and workshops.

Your teaching may include:

• participating in workshop style sessions with your peers
• attending presentations by subject experts
• working on tasks in groups
• having individual tutorials
• visits to schools or other education settings
• visits to theatres, museums, galleries or sites of educational interest
• writing assignments on aspects of subject teaching and Professional Studies.

These learning activities will help you to develop a toolkit of knowledge and skills, ensuring you are well prepared to tackle challenges and opportunities throughout your training and your career. An environment in which to develop as a dynamic and inspirational drama teacher.

Alongside your University tutors, you will be taught and guided by a team of committed and experienced University-trained school mentors.

Climate and sustainability education

• what is happening to our climate, how to help children learn about climate and sustainability in an age-appropriate and accessible way, and how to develop your own positioning as a teacher
• climate justice, the impact of current and future changes to our environment and climate on ourselves and others and implications for teachers
• how to translate knowledge and theory into change and personal action through building climate and sustainability education into your planning, teaching, and children’s learning.

Visit Partnering for the Planet to find out more about the University of Reading’s world-leading work in climate science.

Placements

Placements enable you to develop the skills and knowledge valued and desired by employers - you will build your confidence in the classroom and gain practical teaching experience. Placements also provide you with the opportunity to connect with potential employers and build your professional network.

At Secondary level we have strong relationships with around 90 schools in the local and surrounding area. It is a testament to the strength of these partnerships and the regard with which our graduates are held, that most schools in Berkshire employ at least one graduate of the Institute of Education.

On your Secondary PGCE course, you are required to carry out three placements in two different age groups — ensuring you receive a broad range of experiences. Two placements must be undertaken in a school setting, but the third can be taken in a different setting, allowing you to sample teaching in an alternative environment.

We offer our students an unusually flexible and broad range of contexts and educational environments - you will have the opportunity to gain experience in special needs schools, Pupil Referral Units, independent schools, museums and charities.

You will have plenty of opportunities throughout your course to apply your developing skills in real settings. In schools, you will be involved in:

• observation of other teachers
• planning and teaching small groups and whole classes
• planning and teaching elements of lessons and whole lessons
• reflecting on and evaluating your teaching
• receiving feedback on your teaching
• gaining experience of the range of responsibilities of classroom teachers.

Research

98% of our research is of international standing (REF 2021, combining 4*, 3* and 2* submissions – Education). 

For more information, please visit the Institute of Education website.