PGCE Personal Statements. If you cant explain it simply, you dont understand it well enough. Here are techniques, theory and ideas for designing and using your own team building games, exercises and activities, and tips for using the many free team and group. Introduction. Online learning is pervading higher education, compelling educators to confront existing assumptions of teaching and learning in higher education. Nationally Accredited Continuing Education Courses for Psychologists, Social Workers, Counselors, and Marriage and Family Therapists. What is Cognitivism Cognitivism is the psychology of learning which emphasizes human cognition or intelligence as a special endowment enabling man to form. Thanks for a great post, Carrie In reading this a few times now, I keep coming back to the question of library school education. We have to learn to be authentic. Motivational Activities In Teaching Computers' title='Motivational Activities In Teaching Computers' />Albert Einstein There follow four real personal statements from PGCE teacher training applications. These are real examples, but of course personal details have been altered. They will give you ideas of how to write your own, and might be useful examples for any job or postgraduate study application where a personal statement is required. You will also find a practice interview for teacher training at www. Also see How to write an outstanding personal statement. Motivational Activities In Teaching Computers' title='Motivational Activities In Teaching Computers' />The personal statement of your teaching application is by far the most important part of it. You have 4. 7 lines to answer the following question Describe briefly your reasons for wanting to teach, giving the relevance of your previous education and experience, including teaching, visits to schools and other work with young people. Read and follow the guidelines carefully and provide the required information. Make every word count You can enter up to 4. A4. The line counter mechanism references many hidden formatting characters etc, so that a line space or bullet point does actually take up a line in the counter mechanism in the on line form. Learn general guidelines for conducting interviews in this topic from the Free Management Library. Chapter 13 EFFECTIVE LEARNING AND TEACHING. Although Science for All Americans emphasizes what students should learn, it also recognizes that how science is. There follow four real personal statements from PGCE teacher training applications. These are real examples, but of course personal details have been altered. They. Make sure you use all the space you are allowed. Use Verdana 1. 1 Point Font. Lost Microsoft Office Installation Key. When the statement is copied over from Word into the GTTR form it is converted into the Verdana font in 1. The individual letters in Verdana are very wide see the examples to the right and so they take up more space than most common fonts. So if you word process your statement in Verdana 1. How to remove the invisible formatting from MS Word. MS Word has a lot of invisible formatting code which sometimes gets copied into the form and ends up taking up space. Its hard to see this formatting, so to get rid of it copy paste your text into Notepad first. Notepad is a simple text editor which can be found in the Accessories Menu of all versions of MS Windows. Then copy past the text straight out of Notepad and into the GTTR personal statement box. This strips away all invisible formatting characters. After you have word processed your draft, spell and grammar check it before pasting it into the form. Use good English. If your statement is fresh, lively, and different, youll be putting yourself ahead of the crowd. Be clear and concise. Dont waffle Show the ability to put the salient points across in a few words. Avoid jargon Be positive and enthusiastic selectors will read many statements and you want yours to stand out. Give your statement a structure with an introduction, a main body and a conclusion. The opening paragraph is important as it is here that you grab the readers attention or lose it. This paragraph becomes the framework for the rest of the statement. The middle section might detail your interest and experience in teaching, as well as your knowledge of the field. Read your statement very carefully. Get your final draft checked by friends, academics or the duty careers adviser. Content. Sell the skills you gained from vacation jobs. Many students feel that their casual shop or restaurant job is of no interest to selectors but this is far from the truth. Explain the skills you gained serving customers, working in a busy team, being tactful when handling complaints etc. Here is an example of how one graduate did this All of my work experiences have involved working within a team based culture. This involved planning, organisation, coordination and commitment e. Your reasons for wanting to teach. Convey your enthusiasm and motivation for the job. Dont try to write what you think they want to hear, write your real reasons. Was there a particular teacher who inspired you What interests you about teaching Have you talked to practising teachersWhat skills do you have that will make you an effective teacher Why this PGCE subjectage group What appeals to you about the course Research the universitycollege and the PGCE. Be up to date on educational issues, especially the National Curriculum. Find out the key stage 3 and 4 syllabus for your subject via the National Curriculum Online. Be clear about why you have chosen your PGCE subject. There was lots of stress on the specific qualitiesskills of teachers it helps to be up to date on educational issues, especially the National Curriculum. However most of the questions were fairly easy and a matter of common sense. Applicant for secondary PGCEs What is the relevance of your degree Are there particular modules or projects you have done that relate to the curriculumHow did you develop your subject knowledge How will the skills and knowledge gained from your degree help you in the classroom When did you first become interested in this field and what have you learned about it How have you learned best through classes, seminars, work or conversations with academic staff Give evidence of interest in the age range for which you have applied. What key stage are you most interested in and why For Primary you need to show knowledge of maths, science and English. What is the relevance of your degree subject to primary teaching Sell your teaching experience. Many courses dont interview candidates who dont have recent experience of working with childrenof the relevant age in a state school although you might get away without this in a shortage subject. For primary, youll need at least a months experience. It shows evidence of commitment to teaching. If youve arranged teaching experience, but havent yet done it, mention this in your statement, saying what you will be doing. Christ Church University said that students should be aware that only having teaching experience abroad is not sufficient they need to have had experience in a British school. Make sure you have some work experience they seem to place immense importance on this. Flaunt any talentsskills you have in your GTTR Personal Statement as this is read and used as a basis for the character analysis. Applicants for primary PGCEs. Reflect on observing the teachers. Keep a log book of your experience. What did you do What did you learn from it What insights did you gain What was the classroom layout What would be your ideal classroom setup If a lesson did not work, think about how you would do it differently. What teaching styles were used Was there effective use of technology white boards, TV, computers How did the teachers personality affect their teaching style How was bad behaviour managed How did they help less able children How did the teacher assess work and give feedbackTeaching Assistants What was their role in the classroom What reading schemes were usedPrimary What makes a good lesson How would you make your subject interestingWhat are the important issues facing schools at the moment What improvements could be made to schools What differences are there between university and school education What interests have you got that could be applied to extra curricular He referred to things I had written in my Personal Statement, so the more diverse and varied you can make it, the better if you have a talent i. GuidingScouting in a leadership role. Greenwich PGCE interviewComputing is rapidly becoming a key subject. Students on the course are expected to reach a level of knowledge in IT to pass the course. If you can offer it as your specialist subject doIf not brush up your skills.