PGDE Primary (English Medium) (Taught)

The PGDE consists of 18 weeks study at the university, plus 18 weeks of professional practice in schools. The placements in schools are arranged nationally and you will be placed in schools within travelling distance of your home or term-time address.

This course is offered at eight of our UHI campuses who work in partnership with their local authority. You will be required to have a home or term-time address in the local authority area of your chosen campus. It is also offered in partnership with the Scottish Borders council for applicants based in the Borders, who become registered through UHI Perth.*(Please see below)

You will benefit from studying in small, locally based groups while collaborating remotely with other student teachers and tutors across the university’s network of centres. The programme overlaps significantly with the PGDE Secondary to offer a cross-sector perspective.

◾The taught elements of this course are delivered online and in-person on campus, via scheduled sessions and tutorials
◾You will also study online via the university's virtual learning environment (VLE), with support from your tutors
◾You will undertake school placements for 50% of this course (three 6-week blocks of teaching practice)
◾You will also take part in a mandatory, residential induction for the first week of the course, at the beginning of your first academic year

Important: Please read our FAQ sheet on our website for essential information about applying to this programme.

Please Note: Applicants based in the Scottish Borders: please note, due to decisions taken by the Borders Local Authority, we are not taking applications for the Scottish Borders for the academic year 2026-27

Module outline

PGDE

PGDE Taught Modules

Building Professional Knowledge and Understanding (20 credits)
This module introduces the PGDE weekly themes, through key readings, tutor input and collaborative tasks. You will make connections between what you read or hear and other readings, observations, discussions and school-based practice experience. The themes have been aligned to the GTCS (2021) Standard for Provisional Registration.

Developing Teacher Identity and Practice (20 credits)
This module builds upon and develops the PGDE weekly themes, through individual tasks and a group seminar. The module supports you to dig deeper into the weekly themes and to take ownership of them, in terms of the professional learning you will need to undertake to support becoming ready for classroom practice.

Reflection and Enquiry as Professional Learning (20 credits)
This module is delivered by tutor-led workshops linked to work in dialogic triads with students in each partner campus. This dialogue focuses on the development of reflection as a key skill to underpin classroom practice and enquiry, and on gathering evidence as the means to illustrate practice aligned to the GTCS (2021) Standard for Provisional Registration. The workshops and activities relate directly to academic writing, programme assignments and an e-portfolio of professional learning.
 
Professional Practice (Primary) (60 credits)
The Professional Practice (Primary) module engages you in tutor-led workshops linked to collaborative tasks in each partner campus, as the means to prepare you for 18 weeks of school placement teaching experience in three different schools and age ranges. Sessions are designed to enrich foundational aspects of classroom practice through a range of learning and teaching methods, to mirror the active and social learning processes you will employ in the classroom with your pupils.

This outline reflects the modules as currently delivered and is subject to change.