What qualifications needed

[MrsVargas]

To become a primary school teacher?

Currently a SAHM to two boys.
I've always wanted to work with children- I have no idea where to begin looking.

Can anybody shed some light please
Where to start!?

[ohreallyohreallyoh]

If you have a degree, you need to get QTS. You can do this on it's own through one of the many courses now run in primary schools - likely there is a local training consortium of schools near you that offer this. Some are able to offer a PGCE in conjunction with a local university.
Alternatively, do a PGCE which is part in schools and part in university.

If you don't have a degree, you will need to look at getting one. Either a degree in a subject you are interested in then a PGCE or a degree which gives you QTS as well.

[MrsVargas]

Thank you ohreallyohreallyoh

That's actually really helpful. I don't have a degree. But I will look more into it.

[Redlocks28]

Degree
PGCE/SCITT etc year
Experience volunteering or working in schools is very important too.

Do read the many posts on the staff room forum here about what the job is really like to make sure you are going in with your eyes wide open.

Yes, there are some long holidays, but...I’m in 7.30-6 and work well into the evenings.
There’s little flexibility to leave to see your own children in their plays/assembly/sports day etc and if they are ill, it can be tricky (unpair).
Parents evenings/Inset days/snow days etc can be difficult to manage.

However if you have flexible good childcare (a partner who can work from home for example)-those things are much easier to juggle.

I love working with the children, it’s just all the other things that are making me leave!

[MrsVargas]

Thanks RedLock
I think I had glorified it in my mind without thinking of all aspects.

[ElizabethMainwaring]

You will need to have GCSEs in English, maths and a science grade a, b or c. You will also need to have extensive experience in school s, this ensures that people don't go into it wearing rose tinted glasses. It's hard and not for the feint hearted.

[ElizabethMainwaring]

If you don't have a degree your best bet would be a B ed. ( Bachelor in education.) This is 3 years full time . You will usually need A levels, or perhaps be able to do an Access course if you haven't. But as I said earlier you will need good GCSEs to start with and experience too.

[LadyLance]

If you don't have a degree, there are undergraduate education degrees, usually for primary teachers, but sometimes offered for secondary subjects like PE as well.

Do you have some idea of the age/stage/subject you would want to teach?

Training can be tricky if you have childcare issues, but some SCITTs etc offer part time routes, or if you do a B. Ed, the placements are often shorter.

[SexNotJenga]

There are many different jobs that work with children, lots of which are (probably) not quite as grim as teaching atm:

Teaching assistant/HLTA
Nursery worker
Speech and language therapist
Child mental health nurse
Staff at museums/art galleries/zoos etc
Various levels of hcp
Learning mentor/pastoral staff

Or if you're attracted to the grim

Chidren's social worker

[ElizabethMainwaring]

Lady Lance , op wants to be a primary teacher. Therefore she will teach all subjects. She can choose EYFS, ks1 and/or KS2. She will need to do a B Ed or PGCE, or other route to QTS.

[ElizabethMainwaring]

In order to work in a museum or as a speech therapist you need an MA. I can't believe how easy some posters think it is to work in such competitive areas. School s are currently get rid of Teaching Assistants, and even prior to their culling, schools wanted TAs with degrees. I'm pretty certain that Child mental health nurse would need some pretty serious qualifications too...

[ElizabethMainwaring]

Speech and language therapist will need MSc too. Learning mentors are always very experienced tas, pastoral support will have social work background. There is no easy way into working with children. Good job too.

[MrsVargas]

I didn't expect it to be easy, I'm prepared to work hard and get all the qualifications or degrees that I need.

As silly as it sounds, I just want to do something my boys will be proud of

Thanks for all of your replies, they have been extremely helpful. Posting here was much easier than trying to get an idea of where to start on the internet

[SexNotJenga]

Given that OP was asking about becoming a teacher and doesn't have a degree yet, I figured she was thinking fairly long term. I did not suggest that any of these roles would be easy to get into to, more that they may be more sustainable than teaching.

It is not true to say that pastoral staff always have a social work background. Certainly not all TAs have degrees. Whether you require a Masters to work in a museum depends upon a) the museum and b) the role you are aiming for. There are no specific required qualifications to be a speech and language therapy assistant.

It sounds to me like OP is very much in the contemplation stage - I suggested a few things she could contemplate.

[SexNotJenga]

prospects.ac.uk might be helpful op. Lots of information to help weigh up different career options.

[Fucket]

OP are you scientifically minded? If so you could look into a science technician role at a secondary school. You’d need some science qualifications but not necessarily degree level.

[Whynotnowbaby]

As others have said, I would do some serious school experience in a range of schools before committing to gaining the requisite qualifications. I have loved being a teacher at every stage and every school but it isn’t easy and I have been very reliant on excellent childminders who will provide care well after nursery and after school clubs are finished on the one off (but fairly frequent) occasions when I have parents’ evenings and other school evening events.

[HopeClearwater]

^didn't expect it to be easy, I'm prepared to work hard and get all the qualifications or degrees that I need.

As silly as it sounds, I just want to do something my boys will be proud of^

That’s almost exactly what I said. In the event, my boys hate my job because it takes up so much of my time. They aren’t particularly proud of it - they wish I had been there for them more. I also (unwillingly) became a single mother not that long after qualifying and that made everything 1000 times harder. It’s one thing to say you’ll work hard, it’s another thing entirely to actually do it when there are only 24 hours in the day.

[ElizabethMainwaring]

Re working in museums. I have a first in art history and am MA in history. In order to work in museums you are expected to have an MA in museum studies. If I applied for a museum job I would not be considered.

[ElizabethMainwaring]

Roles in museums are so limited. Most are covered by highly qualified volunteers. I was one. Others are retired teachers, historians etc