First teaching placement for primary ed undergrad

[a8mint]

Dd is in first yearod BA primary wd with qts. The e age range covered is 5-11There has been no serial placement days this academic year at all.she has just got info about her 5week end of term placement and it is in a reception class - eyfs!! She hasto teach a minimum of25lessons and she has covered nothing about eyfs. They have toldher that due to the lockdowns and the deprived area the kids are way behind being ready to start y1 and they are very short of staff. This years placement is just pass yo progress but given how much she has to pay for her degree, i do think the placement should relate to the course and be ks1&2

EYFS is included in primary.

Placements are very difficult to get in a normal year. The pandemic has made it even harder.

I'd take the placement, learn from the experience and hope for different placements next year.

Most of the children in year R are 5 by this point in the school year anyway. Any experience is good, and she will have opportunities to teach other year groups in second and third year. My school has a lot of trainees and the staff room chatter is often about how much they like the year group they hadn't expected to be placed in.

Also, the staffing shortage you mentioned probably means that the best mentors are in year R at that school. That will make a world of difference.

I would have loved to have had more EYFS experience as a trainee teacher. You really do have to understand how children have learned before you teach them!

I did the primary Ed QTS degree.

My placements went across the board. Reception, year two, year three and year 6 (not in that order).

A minimum of 25 lessons in a 5 week placement. Do the maths, that’s one a day. Probably more like less in week one and more in week 5. Seems pretty standard to me.

She may not have spent much time looking at the EYFS in particular, but you also don’t spend the lectures and seminars learning every single aspect of how to teach the National Curriculum for KS1 and 2. The principal is the same - she has been learning how to teach, how children develop, how to approach different subjects, learning styles, behaviour management, the theories and studies behind it all. This applies to every age bracket.

Yes they will be behind to a certain degree. Most year groups are. The timing is unfortunate. When I think back to me and my friends studying, one of my friends had her final placement in Year 6 leading right up to the SATs. The pressure she felt was immense. Likewise I had Year 2 in the SATs build up (this was over a decade ago I should add).

This is the time for your daughter to brush up on the EYFS. She needs to look at the seven categories, the EY goals and the characteristics of effective learning. I had little understanding of the EYFS when I arrived in a reception class and I caught on quick by doing some research and closely observing during those first few days. It actually became my favourite placement and I teach Reception now and have no desire to change year groups.

She’s not doomed. If she’s that unhappy she should talk to her university tutor but at this stage to be frank, it’s 5 weeks. The first one is considerably less pressured then the ones she will do over the next couple of years. And believe me she doesn’t just want to “pass”. Who wants to scrape passing placement? If she goes in there with an open mind and puts in her all she will do well.

There’s actually significant pluses to EYFS. And some downsides. It’s not irrelevant at all. And if it is her least favourite year group, the to be honest best get it done first year and she won’t have to go in again. They aim to cover all key stages over training. She would have to do it sometime.

Thank you for your replies. To clarify she is happy enough with the placement, it is me who had doubts!