This PGCE Secondary Mathematics course will train you to teach 11-16 year olds and, by arrangement, can provide additional experience in the post-16 age range.
London Met has official partnerships with many schools in London, ensuring you have a continuity of support throughout both your theoretical learning and hands-on practical experience.
Trainees on our PGCE Secondary courses attain high results, with 95% achieving an Ofsted good or outstanding grade by the end of the course. Department of Education (DfE) bursaries are available for this course and the University also offers a well-established Subject Knowledge Enhancement in Mathematics where needed.
This PGCE Secondary Mathematics course provides teacher training in the 11 to 16-year-old age range (Key Stages 3 and 4), leading to Qualified Teacher Status. On request, experience teaching 16 to 18-year-olds can also be arranged.
Drawing on current debates in mathematics, we'll introduce you to a range of interactive teaching styles including computer presentations and group work. This will help you raise pupil standards and participation in mathematics. If you need help improving your own mathematics knowledge, you can attend our short Subject Knowledge Enhancement course.
The London location of your placement schools will introduce you to teaching in diverse and multicultural urban environments. You’ll discover how these children learn and the techniques you can use to develop their mathematics skills.
Our high-quality training has enabled attendees of the course to secure work as teachers across London, as noted by Ofsted in our most recent inspection:
"Headteachers are particularly complimentary about the fact that the trainees and Newly Qualified Teachers are well prepared to meet the specific challenges of teaching pupils in the context of London schools."
Ofsted, 2015
To help you in your application, Department of Education (DfE) bursaries are available for this course and vary according to the standard of your first degree.
Your assessment will consist of four elements:
There are no examinations.
You'll share feedback with your colleagues on the course, completing a weekly reflection and contribution to online discussions that will further develop your understanding of the secondary teacher role.
This course is accredited by the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA).
You will be required to have:
If you hold a third class degree, you may still be considered, particularly if this qualification is supported by a completed Master's degree or relevant work experience.
We do make conditional offers (with strict deadlines) so it is important that you include all pending qualifications in your UCAS application.
The University will assess any overseas qualifications for equivalence using a number of resources including our own internal guidelines, the UK National Recognition Information Centre (NARIC) and the Overseas Degree Table.
We highly recommend the one-to-one tailored advice on eligibility and equivalency offered by the Department for Education Get Into Teaching service.
*If you need to take an equivalency test for any of the required GCSEs, please sign up for A Star Equivalency or Equivalency Testing. They offer all three GCSE equivalencies. Please be aware that you may need to undertake study towards the exam, either with the equivalency organisation or independently.
Alternatively, you might want to sign up for a college course in the relevant subject, though this is likely to take longer and you may not have the chance for a re-sit, if required, prior to the start of the PGCE course.
Before you can be permitted to enrol to this course:
Prior to the interview for this course, London Met recommends:
Some offers may recommend further school experience if required.
Due to statutory requirements, we are not able to offer sponsorship under the Tier 4 visa route for this course. We will be happy to consider those falling into this category for an alternative suitable course on request. EU nationals may be considered for admission, as well as overseas nationals who already hold an alternative visa in a suitable category or have been granted permission to remain in the UK indefinitely, but please note that an additional international enhanced police check will be required.
To study a degree at London Met, you must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language. For more information about English qualifications please see our English language requirements.
If you need (or wish) to improve your English before starting your degree, the University offers a Pre-sessional Academic English course to help you build your confidence and reach the level of English you require.
The modules listed below are for the academic year 2020/21 and represent the course modules at this time. Modules and module details (including, but not limited to, location and time) are subject to change over time.
Year 1 modules include:
To support the trainee to:
• Develop a deep understanding of the curriculum they will be required to teach on school experience, and an ability to interpret this to plan engaging lessons which promote pupil progression.
• Develop their own subject knowledge to ensure they are confident to teach on school experience, through a combination of personal evaluation, target setting, personal study and engagement with university teaching and learning sessions.
• Develop a critical appreciation of the relevant traditions in pedagogy, assessment and children’s rights related to the areas they will be required to teach, and to use this knowledge to make decisions about planning, teaching and assessment which promote pupil progression.
To support the trainee to:
• Critically engage with the debate about teacher professionalism in the context of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• Understand how teachers can use / undertake research to critically engage with complex educational issues.
To support the trainee to:
• Make progress towards meeting the minimum requirements of the Teachers’ Standards for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) or Early Years Teachers Standards for Early Years Teacher Status (EYTS)
• To become a critically reflective practitioner inside and outside the classroom.
• To acquire the necessary skills, experience and understanding required to plan, deliver and evaluate the appropriate areas of the curriculum (for their route) by the end of the module.
To support the trainee to:
Achieve the professional Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) or Early Years Teachers Standards for Early Years Teacher Status (EYTS)
• To become a critically reflective practitioner inside and outside the classroom.
• To acquire the necessary skills, experience and understanding required to plan, deliver and evaluate the appropriate areas of the national curriculum (for their route) by the end of the module.
“Choosing to complete my teacher training at London Met was the best career decision I ever made. Studying in the heart of London while being surrounded by a diverse body of staff and students was exactly the preparation I needed for teaching at inner-London secondary schools. London Met’s commitment to tackling the challenging issues surrounding modern urban education was, I believe, a key factor in my rapid progression to the position of head of department after just four years of teaching.
Having gained a unique insight into the value of teacher education throughout my undergraduate studies, I then embarked on a master’s in Education, again with London Met. After successfully completing this, I am now in my eighth year in the profession and currently considering application for a Doctorate in Education.”
Rosie Walsh, former PGCE Secondary Mathematics student
This compact PGCE leads to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), which enables you to teach mathematics to 11 to 16-year-olds. Our trainees have gone on to secure mathematics teacher roles at schools including Langdon Academy, Islamia Girls School and Stoke Newington School & Sixth Form.
Funding is available for many postgraduate courses leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). Depending on your teaching subject and degree classification, you may be eligible for a bursary or scholarship of up to £30,000 through the teacher training bursary.
The Department for Education (DfE) has confirmed that EU students who have settled or pre-settled status will still be eligible for Student Finance and Initial Teacher Training bursaries in 2021/22.
If you're an EU applicant living in the UK or entering the UK before 31 December 2020, it is therefore advised that you apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) as soon as possible. Read more guidance for EU students studying in the UK.
Please note, in addition to the tuition fee there may be additional costs for things like equipment, materials, printing, textbooks, trips or professional body fees.
Additionally, there may be other activities that are not formally part of your course and not required to complete your course, but which you may find helpful (for example, optional field trips). The costs of these are additional to your tuition fee and the fees set out above and will be notified when the activity is being arranged.
All teacher training courses, apart from the assessment only route, are searchable on the Department for Education’s “Find postgraduate teacher training” site.
Applications must be made through UCAS Teacher Training (UTT).
To apply, please enter:
Please apply as early as possible to maximise your chances of securing a place. The application window opens in early October for courses starting the following September.
Do not wait until you’ve met all the criteria before applying.
If you’re not sure whether you meet the criteria, please do one of the following:
Places are limited by the Teaching Regulation Agency and are offered on a first come, first served basis. We also operate waiting lists for these courses.
To find out when teaching for this degree will begin, as well as welcome week and any induction activities, view our academic term dates.