BA (Hons) Primary Teaching

Welcome to the course

Congratulations on your acceptance to the BA (Hons) in Primary Teaching course at the Department of Education, Kingston University. Welcome to the course – we hope that you will find it stimulating and rewarding.

This course combines taught components in the University with practical experiences in school. You will make connections between theory and practice in order to develop your knowledge, skills and understanding. This will support you in having the greatest impact on all pupils, enabling them to become successful learners and confident individuals who can make a positive contribution to their school and wider community.

The taught sessions will prepare you to teach all national curriculum subjects, with an emphasis on the core areas of English, mathematics and science. Throughout, there is a focus on pedagogy. You will also consider wider contexts and aspects of education, such as creativity, wellbeing and cultural diversity, as these are important factors in contemporary primary education.

Across the course, you will work within different settings for learning, both at university and in school. This will give you important opportunities to collaborate with, and learn from, a range of peers, tutors and expert colleagues. The taught sessions, along with your formal assignments, are designed to enhance your understanding of topics and to enable you to develop your critical thinking, reading and writing skills.

Do study the website carefully. The introductory materials provide you with important information including activities that you should undertake before you start with us in September. The tasks and information will help prepare you for your first year on the course.

I look forward to meeting you in September as you take your first step towards an exciting, demanding and fulfilling career.

Best wishes

Banna Millar
BA Primary Course Leader

Course checklist

	Action	When
1	Complete and submit your Occupational Health questionnaire	Within two days of receiving HML email
2	Complete online DBS application and take original documents to Post Office for verification	As soon as you receive the online DBS activation email from First Advantage Online Disclosures.
3	Sign up to the Update Service and submit completed form	Within 19 days of your DBS certificate issue date
4	Obtain a Certificate of Good Conduct if you have spent time living overseas for more than 3 months in the last 5 years.	Submit as soon as possible.
5	Upload outstanding qualification certificates to OSIS in order to meet offer conditions.	As soon as possible.
6	Preparatory reading and complete pre-course tasks.	May to September 2022
7	Complete the School Experience Placements form	Within 10 days of receiving the pre-course website link.
8	Read and submit completed Placement Policy Form	Submit completed form by 24 June 2022.

Term dates

Term	Term dates	Reading Week
Term 1	Monday 19 September 2022 to Friday 16 December 2022	Monday 24 October 2022 to Friday 28 October 2022
Term 2	Tuesday 3 January 2023 to Thursday 6 April 2023	Monday 13 February 2023 to Friday 17 February 2023
Term 3	Tuesday 2 May 2023 to Friday 26 May 2023

These are provisional dates and may be subject to change.

Induction: your first week

Monday 19 September

Your Induction sessions on this day will be asynchronous, where you will have the opportunity to familiarise yourself with Canvas, the university platform that enables you to access your modules and teaching resources. Students will be sent the links and guidance in advance.

Tuesday 20 September

All students are asked to arrive at the Kingston Hill Campus by 9.15am.

Please go to the Lawley Lecture Theatre (see building number 12 on map) where signs will be posted to tell you which room to go to. Your first session will be with Banna Millar, the course lead, and will begin at 9.30am. You will have a session on e-safety from 12 noon to 1pm and your first lecture will take place in the afternoon from 2 to 4pm on Behaviour for Learning.

Wednesday 21 September

Your Induction sessions on this day will begin promptly at 9am on campus and you will meet a number of other tutors. The Freshers Fair will be held in the afternoon, giving you an opportunity to find out more about what else you can get involved in at University. Look out for additional information on the Kingston Award and the Student Hub.

Thursday 22 September

On Thursday you will have another full day on campus, starting at 9.30am. Your induction sessions in the morning will be led by the library and academic services teams, giving you an introduction to what will be required of you when completing your academic writing. In the afternoon you will have the opportunity to meet your personal tutors and your personal tutor group.

Friday 23 September

Another full day on campus, starting promptly at 9am, will bring your induction week to a close. You will participate in a number of different sessions from various tutors and plenty of opportunity to get to know with each other, developing a strong learning community. Hopefully you will feel confident in your new surroundings by the end of this week and will have started to build up new friendships, giving you additional confidence as you embark on this new journey.

Enrolment and other important information

Enrolment

Enrolment will take place online. Please ensure that you read Enrolment emails carefully.

Car parking for campus sessions

If you are arriving by car, please park in Car Park D where there will be signs directing you to the relevant room.

Parking restrictions are in place on site during term-time. You must obtain a temporary parking pass from Reception during the first week of term. You will be able to apply for a permanent Kingston Hill pass once you have enrolled.

Please note: car park G outside the Education Building is for staff and visitors only between the hours of 8.30am and 4.30pm.

Bus

The 85 and K3 buses stop outside the Kingston Hill campus. The free Kingston University buses stop on the campus itself.

Registered name

When you enrol, you should ensure that your name on our student record system is the same as your passport/photo card driving licence. Your details are sent direct from the University record system to the DfE following enrolment for allocation of your Teacher Registration Number (TRN).

Getting ready

The University has a Getting Ready web page specifically for new students. You may find this helpful as a source of support and means of contacting other applicants.

School Experience Placements

Please complete these forms for your School Experience placements:

Reading lists and tasks

You can download the pre-course reading list and tasks below.

BA (Hons) Primary pre-course reading list and tasks (PDF)

Fees, funding and bursaries

Fees information

The UK (Home) tuition fee for the BA Primary course for academic year 2022-23 is £9,250.
The UK (Home) tuition fee for the PGCE is £9,250.
The EU/International tuition fee for academic year 2022/23 is £15,400.

If you are a UK student, you may be eligible for help with your tuition fees. Information is available on this government student finance website. Contact number of Student Finance England is 0300 100 0607.

You can also download an application form and guidance notes from the site.

Further information about student funding can be found on the Kingston University website or by contacting Student Funding on 020 8417 7312.

DBS and Occupational Health information

Please visit the DBS and Occupational Health page to complete your DBS, Update Service and Occupational Health information.

DBS and Occupational Health

FAQs: General information

When does my course start?

PGCE Primary, Secondary & School Direct PE: Monday 5 September 2022
BA Primary: Monday 19 September 2022

Please see respective course page for details on your first week and enrolment.

When will I receive an unconditional offer in UCAS or DfE (PGCE applications)?

When you have uploaded evidence of the academic requirements stipulated in your offer to OSIS.

Please email education@kingston.ac.uk to notify us when you have uploaded your qualifications so we can verify them as quickly as possible. Once we are satisfied your qualifications meet our requirements, we will change your offer status to unconditional.

Please note your offer will remain conditional until you have received DBS and Occupational Health clearance. You will only be able to begin your school placement once clearances for both checks have been obtained.

When will I receive my course timetable?

You should receive the timetable for the first week shortly before you start the course. Your full first semester timetable will be made available to you following enrolment.

FAQs: DBS and Occupational Health

Do I need a DBS if I already have one?

All students will need to undergo an enhanced DBS check in "Child Workforce" with Kingston University. The only exception is if you already have this in place and have subscribed to the Update Service. If this is the case, please complete the Update Service Form, giving us permission to check the current status of your DBS.

I have received an activation email from First Advantage Online Disclosures. What do I do with this?

You need to activate your account with First Advantage and then complete your DBS application. Once you have submitted your application you will need to take your identification documents (originals) and proof of address to the Post Office for verification.

I do not live in the UK and there is no Post Office ID verification service in my country. What do I do?

Don't worry. If you live abroad just organise a Certificate of Good Conduct for the time being from where you are living. However, do let us know when you arrive in the UK so we can give you guidance on what you need to do when applying for a DBS via First Advantage.

Why do I need to complete the Update Service Form?

You should only complete this if you have a valid subscription with the Update Service as we need your permission to verify your current DBS status. Please note you can only subscribe to this service within 19 days of your DBS certificate issue date.

Where do I find the Update Service Form?

You can find the Update Service Form here or on our DBS and Occupational Health page.

What is a Certificate of Good Conduct and why do I need to submit this?

A Certificate of Good Conduct is required if you have lived outside the UK for more than three months in the last five years. This is in addition to you having DBS clearance. It usually comes in form of a letter or certificate from an overseas authority confirming your character and that you did not hold a criminal record when you spent time in that country.

Click here for guidance on how to apply for a check.

I have received an activation email from Health Management Limited (HML). What is this?

This is the service we use to assess students' health and suitability for the course. You must activate your account and complete the questionnaire accurately so that if required, we can ensure reasonable adjustments are made for you while you are on course.

FAQs: Introductory Observation Days and School placements

Do I organise my school placement or will the University do this for me?

The Placement Team at the University will organise your school placement. It is important that you do not approach schools directly yourself. However, it would be helpful for us to know if you have past or present links with local schools. Please add these details to the School Experience Placement Form.

How far will I be expected to travel to my placement school?

The University does not, and cannot, guarantee maximum journey times and distances to placement schools but does take into consideration trainees' circumstances and requirements.

Students can anticipate being placed in a school, in some cases, that is within a two-hour commute from the University as this is where our partnership schools are located.

When will I find out what school I have been placed in?

The Placement Team usually notifies students of their placement approximately two weeks before their placement start date.

I have a disability or domestic responsibility (i.e. caring responsibility). I will need to be placed in a local school. Is this possible?

Although there are no guarantees, we will do our best to place you in a school as close to your home as possible. We need to be made aware of your circumstances so it is important that you complete the School Experience Placement Form fully and we will do our best to take your needs into consideration when placing you.

Support for students with disabilities or dyslexia

Who to contact for support

If you have a disability or dyslexia and require support while you are at University, you must contact the Disability and Mental Health Support Service.

The contact details are:
Kingston University - Disability and Mental Health Support
020 8417 7314
Email: disability@kingston.ac.uk

Full details of the support services and facilities are also available here.

You are also strongly encouraged to contact us in the Department of Education before you start the programme. We are committed to providing you support during your studies and if we are aware of your specific needs in advance, we can make provisions and have these in place for your course start.

Please email education@kingston.ac.uk with details of your specific requirements.

If you would like to speak with someone in confidence, please contact Nina Sohal, the Admissions Team Leader.

Useful contacts

University department	Contact number	Email address
School of Education	020 8417 5145	education@kingston.ac.uk
Main Switchboard	020 8417 9000
Accommodation services	020 8417 7311	accommodation@kingston.ac.uk
Fees and funding (undergraduate)	020 8417 7312	studentfunding@kingston.ac.uk
Fees and funding (postgraduate)	020 8417 7312	studentfunding@kingston.ac.uk
Student life advisory	020 8417 7312
Disability and mental health support	020 8417 7314	disability@kingston.ac.uk

Contact details for external organisations	Contact number
Kingston Hill
Student Finance England	0300 100 0607
First Advantage Online Disclosures	0115 969 4600

How to find us

Your course will be taught at the Kingston Hill campus, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KT2 7LB.

View campus information, directions and public transport options on the Kingston Hill webpage.