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Becoming a Secondary School Teacher - Postgraduate diploma in education?

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  • 13-05-2009 5:41pm
    #1
    Chong
    Registered Users Posts: 8,676 ✭✭✭


    Hello all,

    I am interested in pursuing a course that leads to Secondary school teaching, what would be the best way to go about this?

    I am 24, and I have a level 8 degree in Software Engineering and also got 300 points in my leaving but didnt do anything special with regard to Maths or Irish. The question I have is would they be major stumbling blocks for becoming a secondary school teacher?

    Cheers for any help.


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    #2
    Chong
    Registered Users Posts: 8,676 ✭✭✭Chong


    There are a number of courses for Hdip Education courses in UL but all say they are for qualified teachers, I may not be a qualified teacher but my course I have done previously is on the approved list by the Teaching council.


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    #3
    rainbowtrout
    Registered Users Posts: 15,382 ✭✭✭✭rainbowtrout


    Well if you were to do the PGCE (HDip) realistically all you would be qualified to teach would be computers which is not an exam subject and in most schools in my experience is a filler subject on most people's timetables, taught by teachers who have a bit of knowledge about computers or did a bit in their degree - science, maths, business teachers mainly.

    You wouldn't have any other second level subjects so I think you would have difficulty in finding work. If you are set on secondary teaching you would nearly be better off doing another degree.

    Also there's a large surplus of teaching graduates at the moment, along with substantial cuts in education which means there are a lot of teachers looking for jobs - teachers with exam subjects.

    Don't mean to be so pessimistic but that's the reality of it at the moment.

    Most of my teaching hours are IT (combination of second level computer class and post leaving cert classes) and I have a computing post grad which helps but my main subjects are 3 sciences which is how i got the job in the first place.


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    #4
    Chong
    Registered Users Posts: 8,676 ✭✭✭Chong


    rainbowtrout wrote: »
    Well if you were to do the PGCE (HDip) realistically all you would be qualified to teach would be computers which is not an exam subject and in most schools in my experience is a filler subject on most people's timetables, taught by teachers who have a bit of knowledge about computers or did a bit in their degree - science, maths, business teachers mainly.

    You wouldn't have any other second level subjects so I think you would have difficulty in finding work. If you are set on secondary teaching you would nearly be better off doing another degree.

    Also there's a large surplus of teaching graduates at the moment, along with substantial cuts in education which means there are a lot of teachers looking for jobs - teachers with exam subjects.

    Don't mean to be so pessimistic but that's the reality of it at the moment.

    Most of my teaching hours are IT (combination of second level computer class and post leaving cert classes) and I have a computing post grad which helps but my main subjects are 3 sciences which is how i got the job in the first place.
    Excellent post Rainbowtrout , insightful and helpful.

    Is their possiblity that I could do a PGCE(Hdip) in another subject other than IT, or because my Undergrad degree is IT , thats the only route I can go?

    This is all information gathering on my behalf, and thanks for your advice.


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    #5
    rainbowtrout
    Registered Users Posts: 15,382 ✭✭✭✭rainbowtrout


    Chong wrote: »
    Excellent post Rainbowtrout , insightful and helpful.

    Is their possiblity that I could do a PGCE(Hdip) in another subject other than IT, or because my Undergrad degree is IT , thats the only route I can go?

    This is all information gathering on my behalf, and thanks for your advice.

    Yes you do your PGCE in the subjects in your degree, otherwise for example what's to stop you getting a teaching qualification in Irish when you mightn't speak a word of it. The teaching qualification is just that, it's teaching you how to teach, and you apply that to your specialist subject area, so it would have to be an area you are qualified in.

    So unfortunately for you your only subject is Computers.

    I suppose you'll have to have a think about how much you want to be a teacher. There are other ways of teaching - adult education, plenty of courses using and teaching computers (I won't go so far as to say there are plenty of jobs because there aren't).

    Another option would be teaching in the UK, where IT is a GCSE/A-level subject as far as I know, but again it would still leave you lacking subjects on a return to Ireland.


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