Hi all, I just had my History PGCE interview a week ago and I was offered a place and thought I'd share some insight from my experience. Particularly at the moment, it's all being held online and this style of interview is something I've been doing a lot since last summer. While I can't speak for everyone, I found that the general setting in online interviews tend to be quite relaxed and easier to have more of a chat. The task I had to undertake was to give a presentation on an iconic person in History via a powerpoint. This is where I focused a lot of my preparation, as I went to lengths to try and make the PP as informative but also more visual as I could. As difficult as I know it can be, I think this is where I was really able to make an impression since I had that opportunity to talk about a topic I knew confidently and therefore come up with innovative ways to convey it. The other areas I covered is similar to what was covered in the video. Providing a lot of opportunities to talk about experience (of various forms). I was unable to get any school experience prior to this, but I was able to talk about other relevant areas. To sum up: Utilise your strengths and experiences that you do have. But also relax and be willing to chat and converse. I was very nervous about mine, but I honestly felt good about it afterwards. Good luck!
Hello. I literally just had my SCITT interview and your video really helped prepare me and put me at ease. I wanted to immediately come here and post how it went and give some support for others who may need it too. I'd say most of your questions came up in some form or another, or were hinted at somewhere along the way. I feel like it went really well and I thought I would include the questions they asked me to support anyone else who was frantically Googling/YouTubing on the eve of their interviews like I was last night!! Off the top of my head they asked: What makes a good teacher/lesson?. What external factors can affect a child's learning? What I know about safeguarding and what I believe it to be/my responsibilities as a teacher/do's and don'ts. How I would support the learning of different cultures in a classroom (this one threw me a bit but did what I could)? Activity based questions: How did you come up with your learning objective and why have you selected it? How would you introduce yourself and the activity with your small group? How will you engage children who are perhaps not paying attention or engaged in your activity? How will you know if your learning objective has been met at the end of your activity? I had to do a 3 minute presentation on an educational topic, I selected British Values and if it is very inclusive or not. I had to read aloud a passage from a book too which was a litttle strange and I'm not sure how expressive I needed to be here. It was supposed to be "in front of a years 5/6 group" so I don't think I needed to be overly dramatic but who knows! I did what I could haha! I hope this helps someone somewhere! Good luck to you on your teaching journeys everyone! :)
Owen this is phenomenal, thank you SO much for sharing your experience and some of the questions you have, I'm sure they will be useful to people clicking on this video in future too! Did you find out the result in the end? 😊
@@PetitePrimary Hey, I did. Unfortunately I didn't get a place. I came out of it thinking I did really well but nothing came of it. I haven't taken it personally but they haven't got back to me on the reasons why which is dissapointing.I did get a place on a PGCE course at a university near me though so it's all good! Not my first choice but is what it is! Thanks again for all your help!
I'm sorry to hear that, getting ghosted when you just want feedback on how to improve sucks. At least you've got a place though! Countdown to September is on 😁
Just wanted to say a huge thank you to you! I had my primary PGCE interviews over the past couple of days and your videos helped so much! Got accepted onto the SCITT programme with very little school experience. THANK YOU xx
@@PetitePrimary It was my second interview. I had one on Tuesday that was unsuccessful and then one yesterday that was! I was going to put off my application until I had more experience, hence the last minute application, but i'm so glad I went for it now! Xx
I have my primary interview next week (on zoom). I need to pick a story to read to the panel, do a presentation, write a short piece, have a discussion on a topic they’ll tell me on the day, and general interview questions. I am SO nervous, interviews never go well for me and I always blank 😭 I’ve been watching your videos to prepare myself! Thank you for the tips!
That sounds like a lot to do, but the positive about all that is that if you're not one for interview questions, you have other areas where you can shine! Thank you so much for your positive feedback and I wish you the best of luck 🍀 Feel free to let me know how it goes Olivia xx
I have my pgce secondary Maths interview this Thursday and have to teach a 5 minute activity. I have a phobia of presenting, hopefully this teaching malarkey will get rid of it haha
Hi , I am applying to PGCE secondary mathematics. Should I be prepared on all the topics of mathematics given in secondary curriculum before the interview ? Please let me know.
@@keerthyrajesh9322 not really my interviewer didn't expect me to. He'll ask some questions but main thing was confidence and the preplanned lesson just to see if you can be a teacher.
Would love to see you interview other teachers in various levels/classes. Getting ready for my Scitt interview as we speak. They say I can (but don’t have to do a PowerPoint) should I?
Unfortunately everyone has different tests or activities in their interview so it's difficult to generalise and give advice. My writing test was linked to primary English sats and then I had to write a piece whereby I prioritise and justify certain tasks. Is that similar to what you mean?
From my understanding, PGCEs are more popular in England, whereas PGDEs are more popular in Scotland. PGDEs often have more assignments as they have more credits towards a masters x
Hey Lauren! Thanks for commenting 😊I don't actually have a video on this, but if it's something you're debating then I think it's incredible that you have the flexibility to be placed anywhere. Most people prefer a certain key stage early on based on their previous experience or age groups they like. If they ask for a preference, I always think year 3 is a nice in between because you'll undoubtedly be differentiating at a KS1 level at some points, but it's also a nice point to see where they're progressing to in year 4. If you can be flexible though, definitely let them know as it might make it easier for them to place you. I hope that makes sense xx
@@PetitePrimary Ahhh, sweet ☺️ I’m leaning more towards Key Stage 1 as I have more experience working with children of those ages, but I didn’t want to limit myself. Such a good shout about Year 3! Thanks, really appreciate your videos! 😊 x
@@laurenj4844 They should at some point get you to experience a very contrasting year group so you get to experience different year groups! Have you seen my video on reflecting on my KS1 experience? Might give you a little insight on how I found it coming from a background of preferring KS2? Best of luck with it and thank you so much for watching. I hope you consider subscribing if you haven't already xx
@@PetitePrimary I saw that video on my recommended and made a mental note to watch, so will definitely be watching that later 😎 Haha yeeeey, I subscribed earlier this week! ;) honestly, your interview tips genuinely saved me. 😂 thanks again! 😊 x
I'm not sure about scholarships I'm afraid, may depend if you're primary or secondary. Happy to support you in your interview though, message me @thepetiteprimary on Instagram x
@@PetitePrimary I'm replying from Pakistan. I've done MSc physics and MS (incomplete). I've had applied from DfE to different universities. Tomorrow is my interview for the training of PGCE physics secondary course in University of Worcester( online). I already have done subject audit knowledge and test as well