Qualifying as a teacher without a degree

[WhyWhyWhyMum]

Hi all,

I'm currently working in a school as a TA after a few years as a SAHM. I'm absolutely loving it and would like to train as a teacher, but I don't have a degree.

My previous job was as a trainer/NVQ assessor and verifier for school leavers so I have lots of qualifications relating to that as well as A levels/GCSEs.

Is there any route I could take? Google tells me no 😢 but I'm hoping you lovely little might have some advice.

Thanks!!

A degree these days, is rather common place, compared to when I left school in the early 80s, and doesn’t always confer any great badge of academic kudos.

That’s even more reason not to remove it as a requirement for teaching.

@Homez

I do sympathise with the OP, and feel the question is genuinely not intended to denigrate the profession in any way..either directly or indirectly! A degree these days, is rather common place, compared to when I left school in the early 80s, and doesn’t always confer any great badge of academic kudos. I went straight from school into a professional training contract, and I can assure you my many years of exams were far more onerous than my eventual degree. Years later when I took a career break with children, I decided to do a degree...found it manageable and relatively easy by comparison. Got a high first class..and although the degree I studied was not relevant career wise, it enabled my eventual career change later on. I’d recommend looking into it OP, it might be more doable than you think. Good luck

That more people have degrees doesn't mean they're easier to get/less academically challenging. It means more people are fortunate enough to make it through education and access university education. Circumstances were far different in your time. I'm uncertain why your generation seems to think academic study is less rigorous simply because more people are allowed to access it.

@homez hmmmm... I'm afraid it was this that made me lose any sympathy for the OP:

"I'm working in a school now with students straight out of degrees in art for example doing their PCGEs. I sit and have to listen whilst they make basic mistakes teaching."

Yes, they are making mistakes... they are learning! I've been teaching for more than a decade, have multiple masters degrees, almost a doctorate, am middle management, and I also make mistakes - I'm still learning too!

I guess the answer is... get a degree! As someone who has spent the past 5 years working almost every evening when the kids have gone to bed, and sacrificed holidays etc to pay uni fees, it can be tough but can also be completely do-able.

I get the impression that the OP thinks they have so much relevant experience that they don’t need the degree that everyone else needs and the teaching profession would be lucky to have them just as they are.

Do a BA/Ed, that's what I did (I assume they still do them). It takes 4 years.

@Howshouldibehave

Sounds just like an under qualified teacher I know. Her grammar and spelling is awful, I have no idea how she is managing to teach a class of year 4s with full responsibility. However the academy she works for though is dodgy as hell.

I started out as a TA - although I had a degree and a masters - and I think it is a brilliant way to get into teaching. If I were you, I’d do a BEd - there are some great courses and it’s a bit more family friendly than the pgce you would need if you chose to do a degree then a year to qualify.
Good luck!

One of the best SEN teachers I know has a degree in art. And got a distinction in pgce I think.

I don't think anyone was insulting art degrees, simply a person with no academic education after 18, so no degree at all, wanting to teach without an adult education.

@EllieNBeeb - the OP implied an insult in their second post:

I'm working in a school now with students straight out of degrees in art for example doing their PCGEs. I sit and have to listen whilst they make basic mistakes teaching the class.

Quite.

I also have experience of working alongside a teacher who had a PhD; she eventually was put on capability procedures she was so poor.

Demonstrating academic ability, particularly in terms of thinking critically about theory v evidence of effect, as well as reflective practical practise is very important in teaching.

I've personally had to do academic research as part of teaching in an sen primary school, as there's bugger all knowledge or guidance from the government. We many only ever work within numbers to 100 but knowledge of complex neurological conditions and associated teaching and psychological strategies is extremely important.

Pgce students do make basic mistakes.

They're pgce students.

Also, you have to have an attitude that there's always more to learn as a teacher. As there always is.

OP - I know this post is long but please read it carefully- I was in exactly the same position as you 4 years ago.
I had been working as a TA for 6 years and I desperately wanted to be a teacher but I didn’t have a degree.
Reading your post really resonated with me because I used to feel the same as you - I knew I was a fantastic TA and I knew I would make a great teacher. I really couldn’t see why I needed a degree!
I looked for shortcuts and alternative ways into teaching, but the simple truth is that there isn’t one.
I did my research and found a uni close to me that offered a Work based route into teaching.
I did a two year foundation degree called Education in Context, followed by a two year BA in Primary Education with QTS. I attended university 1 day a week and continued working in my school as a TA the other four days.
I won’t lie, it was tough. I was effectively doing a full time degree, plus working, plus running a home and looking after my family. Apart from the one day a week at uni, I had to put in between 10-15 hours of study per week, mainly at weekends and in the evenings after DC had gone to bed.
There were times when the workload felt unmanageable, but I did it, and I am so proud of myself - I graduate this summer!
I got a student loan to cover the fees and a small maintenance loan to top up my reduced salary.
Now, after four years, I look back and laugh at how naive I was. The knowledge and confidence I have gained doing a teaching degree has been invaluable. It’s not just about being able to stand up in front of 30 kids and teach, it’s about understanding how children learn, strategies to help children who are struggling, how to effectively plan and mark and assess children’s progress.
I know the prospect of a four year degree is daunting, but look at it this way.. in four years time you can either be in the same position as you are now, or you can be in a position where you can start your dream career as a teacher.
You don’t say how old you are, but I was 40 when I started my degree, and there were many others my age and older on my course.
You can do it if you really want it. Good luck whatever you decide to do.

@poptartpoptart great reply. Good on you - what perseverance!

@WhyWhyWhyMum

Thank you all, I've just realised I didn't say I'm working in a primary school, not secondary. I would never think anyone could teach a subject at higher level without a degree in it obviously!

Primary teachers don’t play all day! I To get on a PGCE with QTS you need a bachelor's degree with at least a 2:1 classification and at least a grade C in English, maths and science. You really think that primary teachers shouldn’t require a degree to teach children?? If a child can’t read, write and do arithmetic then they won’t do well at secondary school!

@WarriorN

One of the best SEN teachers I know has a degree in art. And got a distinction in pgce I think.

You can only pass or fail your PGCE.

This was over 20 years ago. It may have been different. We definitely had some people gain an extra accolade in a distinction; the chancellor also wrote individual letters of congratulations.

I train primary ITT PGCE trainees.

They all have degrees, but some also have prior experience as highly regarded TAs.
Usually, the ex-TAs begin really well, as a class full of children doesn't scare them and they are familiar with the routines and general expectations of the school day.

However, a few weeks in, at least half struggle just as much as trainees with no prior school experience. They struggle for a variety of reasons, including:

• assuming all schools work the same way their school did, or even all classrooms the same way their class did. They don't. You need an open mind and to be proactive and alert to pick up how this class runs.

• they believe the behaviour management strategies they have developed will work in every class and setting, not realising they are context dependent and you need to choose from a bank of strategies to suit the child and the situation, within that school's system.

• they are often adept at delivering lessons and getting children to complete tasks, but not as familiar or skilled at designing learning, identifying and probing misconceptions, and selecting and adapting activities to secure learning rather than task completion.

• they know the curriculum for their year group or even key stage well, but not others So the technical understanding of phonics eludes them, or they are only one lesson ahead of the kids in White Rose Y6 ratio and proportion. They haven't had time or the need in their previous role to go deep into subject knowledge or pedagogy which they will need to do to be a successful teacher.

• they are used to coping, and being good at their job, and they can often do well the bits raw recruits find difficult - gaining the attention of the class, having that teacher presence etc. They also recognise how hard teachers work. So, often they don't like to ask for help, or admit they are struggling with something, and it isn't as obvious that there is a problem as it might be with other trainees.

I could go on, but all I am saying is that it isn't always a given that successful TAs make successful teachers, and that is when they already have a degree, so have been used to some level of academic rigour and independent study.

Get a degree, OP, and work part time as a TA to help fund you through. Then you will have the best possible basis to start a PGCE.

Or apply for a BEd and do supply TAing between your placements. That will add to your CV and increase your employability compared with other NQTs / ECTs when you seek your first teaching job.