Subject Knowledge Enhancement Courses Modern Languages

Pre-Initial Teacher Education subject knowledge enhancement courses are designed for graduates who need to develop a greater depth of subject understanding prior to commencing a PGCE programme.

Why study Subject Knowledge Enhancement Courses Modern Languages?

Teaching and learning will include a range of methods to enhance your knowledge and understanding including tutorials, practical tasks, essays, investigations, collaborative projects and presentations. In addition, there may be opportunities for school visits, fieldwork, trips and visits to help place your subject in a wider context.

Course structure

The subject knowledge enhancement courses will aim to achieve the following objectives:

• Prepare you for the PGCE programme through highlighting issues of relevance to teaching and learning in your chosen subject.
• Inspire passion for the subject including all aspects of local, national and global developments within it.
• Develop a deep understanding of the knowledge, concepts and skills associated with your chosen subject.
• Model imaginative and creative approaches to teaching and learning, and excellent practice in assessment.
• Prepare you to teach your chosen subject up to Key Stage 4 (11 -16 year olds). The intention for the majority of subjects is that you would have the potential to teach up to A-level.

Teaching and learning will include a range of methods to enhance your knowledge and understanding including tutorials, practical tasks, essays, investigations, collaborative projects and presentations. In addition, there may be opportunities for school visits, fieldwork, trips and visits to help place your subject in a wider context.

Modern Languages

• Full-time course commencing in August 2012 for 2 weeks.
• Course modules are intended to enable you to enhance your second teaching language and refresh your first teaching language in order for you to proceed confidently onto your chosen ITE route.

Course assessment

§  Pre course, participants will complete an individual Subject Knowledge Audit, qualifications and experiences to determine specific areas of subject knowledge to be developed.

§  On the second day of the course, participants complete a detailed Subject Knowledge Audit and a Daily Review Booklet.

§  All course participants will be set clear targets to achieve as a result of the course, building on the audit of subject knowledge, understanding and skills undertaken with the help of the course tutor.

§  There is no formal assessment but participants work up to GCSE and AS level in their second language.

§  A record of achievement for each course participant on the Subject Knowledge Enhancement Course will be completed at the end of this course, sent/given to the course participants and copied to the institution where the trainee is or will be studying.

The Course Tutor, Philip Campagna, is an experienced teacher of Modern Languages, German, French, Italian and Spanish. He is Course leader for PGCE Secondary MFL at Bath Spa University and South West Regional Director, Network for Languages. 

He is Course leader for PGCE Secondary MFL at Bath Spa University and South West Regional Director, Network for Languages.

Other teachers from Partners Schools are Associate Tutors and teach on the SKEC to provide and excellent tutor student working ratio. 

This allows students to work in relatively small groups and have one to one tutor time.

The Course is highly interactive and enable participants to develop both confidence and subject knowledge equally.

Teaching methods

§  An introduction to the National Curriculum and GCSE syllabuses.

§  Study of specific topics and skills, in relation to language teaching

§  An introduction to a range of resources (both hardware and software) for workshop-based activities in school

§  Develop skills and techniques in the use of ICT both as a personal study tool and to show it can be used in developing subject-specific skills in Spanish

§  Criteria that will identify the characteristics of ‘quality’ work in Spanish

§  Participants to research and present subject content on a topic with which they had not been previously been familiar.  

§  Guidance on strategies to improve subject knowledge, e.g. through use of textbooks, reference books and web sites (use of new PGCE course guidance on improving subject knowledge).

§  Identification of the basic concepts that relate to work in Spanish

Application method

You should apply direct to the University, and application forms are available from the course administrator. In addition you will require a referral from your ITE provider.

Course enquiries

Entry requirements

• You should demonstrate a passion for your chosen subject and a real desire to teach it at secondary level.
• You must have been offered a conditional place on an ITE programme, and therefore met the standard PGCE entry requirements for your intended route.
• It is desirable to have experience of the subject to at least A-level standard, and this could be through holding an A-level in the subject, having an element of it in your degree course and/or occupational experience of the subject.
• GCSE English and Maths at grade C or above (or recognised equivalents).

An ITE provider may refer an applicant to an enhancement course where either the applicant does not have a degree that contains more than 50% in the subject or where they consider the student’s subject knowledge is weak and offers no specialism.

Career opportunities

Students will be able to enhance their second teaching language and refresh their first teaching language in order to proceed confidently onto the chosen ITE route.

What students say...

I chose this course at Bath Spa as it was recommended to me and it also seemed to be well run. It was great to meet the other students and share the experiences with them before starting the PGCE. The course really helped improve my subject knowledge and I was also able to build targets to improve it further.

Samantha Davis, Modern Languages Enhancement Course 2009