Specific Learning Difficulties (Dyslexia) PGCert

Intro

The Specific Learning Difficulties (Dyslexia) course is designed for mainstream teachers or those working in an educational setting (including practitioners with a particular responsibility for supporting children, young people and adults with dyslexia) who wish to deepen their understanding of dyslexia and link this learning to the School Improvement Plan.

A flexible framework combines academic study with work-based action learning and action research, where your day-to-day professional activity informs your development through reflection and peer discussion.

The PGCert is a stand-alone qualification and counts as one-third of a masters degree.

The course is accredited by the British Dyslexia Association (BDA) and qualifies students to apply for Approved Teacher Status (ATS) or Approved Professional Status (APS) as long as they have completed two years (or equivalent) as a teacher or educational professional by the end of the course.

The programme is arranged to fit in with your working patterns and includes 10 Saturday sessions between September and June.

Key facts

Location Brighton: Falmer

Part-time 1 year
Part-time Flexible and distributed learning

Accredited by the British Dyslexia Association

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Please review the entry requirements carefully and if you have any questions do get in touch with us.

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Course content

Areas of study

This course will focus on the following areas of study:

developing knowledge of the theoretical basis of contemporary approaches to dyslexia
the identification, assessment and practical support for learners with dyslexia
creating and delivering specialist intervention programmes and developing dyslexia friendly environments.
the application of learning to practice and evaluation of impact on yourself, your learners or others affected by your study.

This will enable you, as a practitioner, to:

extend and enhance your current practice
gain knowledge of current thinking in the understanding of dyslexia
develop frameworks for understanding the range of issues surrounding working with learners with dyslexia
increase your confidence and effectiveness in supporting learners with dyslexia
learn how to implement change in a range of policy contexts.

Modules

Engaging with Professional Discourses This module focuses on developing criticality in thinking and approaches to learning in the context of dyslexia and inclusive practice.

Knowledge and Understanding of Dyslexia for Specialist Teachers This module will provide you with an understanding of how dyslexia is identified and of effective pedagogy for learners with dyslexia in the context of inclusive practice. You'll consider the practical application of this learning to your own context and are expected to deliver 10 hours specialist teaching 1:1 with a learner with dyslexia.

Case Study with a Dyslexic Learner – Embedding and Deepening This module embeds and develops specialist knowledge, skills and practice while considering the wider issues and debates around inclusion of learners with dyslexia. You will develop a further teaching programme and teach a series of 10 lessons to an individual learner or two learners who are part of a small group.

Course structure

This postgraduate certificate is a one-year part-time programme comprising of three 20-credit modules .

You will attend 10 sessions at our Falmer campus between September and June comprised of nine whole days and one half day. The sessions are run by the course leader and two specialist core tutors. In addition, professional practice tutors attend specific sessions to offer tailored support in relation to your teaching practice and will support you between sessions if needed.

There are two one hour observations of teaching by students’ allocated professional practice tutor; one is videoed and the second is in person (travelling to setting permitting). You'll be expected to engage with wider reading, podcasts, video and other material to support sessions and completion of assignments.

As part of the course you will be expected to deliver 20 hours of evaluated specialist teaching.

Pedagogical approach

How we teach

Sessions are a mix of discussion, delivery of specialist knowledge, hands-on activities, structured conversations, blogging, videos, speakers, tutorials with specialist tutors, peer feedback, and exploration of resources.

We value highly-reflective and creative approaches to learning and are constantly developing our own pedagogy in line with our values and beliefs concerning all of our learners. We aim to challenge students’ thinking, leading them to new knowledge and understanding which they can implement in their own work with learners.

Students bring their own new ideas to the sessions and a real strength of the programme has been the range of diverse professional contexts that our students come from, bringing a real breadth of experience to explore in the group.

Values

The programme has been developed to meet the British Dyslexia Association criteria to become a specialist teacher.

The programme also adheres to the context of the Quality Assurance Agency Framework for Higher Education Qualifications and relates to the SEEC level descriptors for level 7 study. In designing the programme, the team have explored and articulated their core values and the programme is very much embedded in these.

Becoming a specialist teacher who is able to share good practice for learners with dyslexia with colleagues is highly valued. Importantly, this specialism is set within the framework of inclusive practice, a framework which acknowledges that the needs of all pupils are important in creating a classroom community and that good practice for learners with dyslexia is good practice for all.

We view dyslexia not as a deficit but rather as a difference and aim to develop learners who have voice and agency in their own learning.

Staff profiles

Rosie Moore, course leader

Rosie began teaching primary school children in London in 1990, developing a particular interest in children who had a different way of learning. In 2000 she completed a PGDip in Literacy and Dyslexia and began working as a SENCO in a school in the centre of Brighton, working with a range of diverse learners and training school staff in working with learners with dyslexia.

In 2002 she began working for the Speech and Language Support Service as a Specialist Teacher/Consultant. Rosie joined the University of Brighton in 2010, working as a senior lecturer with a particular responsibility for inclusion across Initial Teacher Education programmes, and Postgraduate programmes with an SEN focus. She works closely with trainee teachers to support them in knowing how to respond to the needs of all learners, exploring how they and other professionals embody and respond to notions of difference and identity.

Rosie has an MA in International Education.

Catherine Parfitt, Core Tutor and Professional Practice Tutor

Catherine is specialist teacher, adviser and assessor for learners with a variety of Specific Learning Differences (SpLDs). She currently works at the University of Sussex as the Manager of Sussex Regional Access Centre where she assesses university students with SpLDs, ADHD and Mental Health Needs.

She has worked as a lecturer in Special Educational Needs and inclusion since 2015 and been a specialist lead lecturer in Inclusive and Assistive Technology and Dyslexia and Specific Learning Differences at Canterbury Christ Church University. She has worked in a variety of contexts, including Prison Education, Mental Health Services and Higher Education.

Catherine is working towards a doctorate in education, through researching the impacts of visual stress on learning. She also has specific research interests in technology for inclusion, labelling and diagnosis and the impact of working memory vulnerabilities.

Other key members of the teaching team:

Sarah Peck, Core Tutor and Professional Practice Tutor
Sarah began her teaching career as a Key Stage 2 classroom teacher in a Brighton school. She developed a strong interest in the teaching of reading and writing, especially in terms of accommodating the wide range of additional needs of the children in her classes.

She was lead teacher for a Reading is Fundamental programme and worked with a colleague to deliver National Literacy Strategy training to teaching staff. Sarah became a specialist literacy teacher in 1999, joining Brighton and Hove City Council’s Learning Support Service (now Brighton and Hove Inclusion Support Service). She completed a Diploma in Assessing and Teaching Students with Specific Learning Difficulties in 2000 and has been awarded AMBDA status.

Sarah's current role involves teaching primary aged learners in a number of Brighton schools, as well as carrying out literacy and dyslexia assessments, training teachers and teaching assistants and working with parents. She also has experience of supporting learners with dyslexia within the secondary school sector. Sarah has completed a Masters degree in Education (Applied Linguistics).

Carol Thomas, Professional Practice Tutor
As a practicing professional on this course, Carol provides specialist input to course lectures and tutorials. In addition, she observes and evaluates tutees during specialist teaching practice. Carol is a Specialist Literacy Teacher and Assessor (SpLD) with Brighton and Hove Inclusive Support Service.

She holds a specialist teaching and assessing qualification at Level 7 in SpLD/Dyslexia, and has AMBDA and APC. Her role is to: Identify, assess and review students with SpLD, producing LSS reports, full diagnostic assessments, reports for EHCP and access arrangements Plan, deliver and monitor specialist interventions to primary, secondary and sixth-form students with literacy difficulties and dyslexia Promote awareness of SpLD, curriculum differentiation and specialist materials Provide advice, training and support to staff and parents to meet particular needs of students with literacy difficulties and dyslexia.

Carol is an experienced History teacher at KS 3, GCSE and A level. In various pastoral roles within 6th Form Colleges and HE, she developed materials and delivered programmes which enabled students to manage their own learning. Having master's level qualifications in Student Counselling, she provided advice, guidance and therapeutic expertise to support achievement by helping students explore the impact of personal and academic difficulties upon their studies.

Careers

Our PGCerts are designed to support your career progression, increase your subject knowledge and help you to make a direct difference to your school and students.

The course will develop your understanding and critical awareness of current education discourses in dyslexia,
develop a theoretical and reflective understanding on which to develop professional skills and attributes
to facilitate positive change to professional practice and to be able to develop and deliver specialist intervention programmes for learners with dyslexia.

The teaching, assessment and structure of the course has been designed to meet the core and specialist elements set down in the British Dyslexia Association’s criteria for the conferral of Approved Teacher Status (ATS) or Approved Professional Status (APS). As a holder of either ATS or APS or ATS FE/HE, you will be a recognised specialist teacher of learners with Specific Learning Difficulties (Dyslexia).

You will be able to conduct informal, curriculum-based assessments and deliver specialist teaching programmes to learners up to and including 18 years of age for ATS or APS and to learners of 16 years and above, including adults for ATS FE/HE.

Two women having a discussion over a piece of paper

Entry criteria

Entry requirements

Degree and experience

You will need a good honours degree and experience within an education setting.

To qualify for Approved Teacher Status (ATS) or Approved Professional status (APS), students must have completed two years (or equivalent) as a teacher or educational professional by the end of the course.

All applicants are interviewed – this may be in person or by telephone.

Fees

Course fees

UK/EU (part-time) 2,208 GBP

Scholarships, bursaries and loans

We offer a range of scholarships for postgraduate students. Bursaries and loans may also be available to you.

Find out more about postgraduate fees and funding.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included in your fees, while studying a course in the School of Education are listed here.

You will have access to computers and necessary software, however many students choose to buy their own hardware, software and accessories. The amount spent will depend on your individual choices but this expenditure is not essential to pass any of our courses.
In most cases coursework submissions are electronic but you may wish to print notes and should budget approximately £30 for printing.
For courses which require a placement, you’ll be expected to pay for your travel expenses but you may be able to claim some travel costs back from the university, depending on where your placement is in relation to where you live.
Course books are available from the university but you may wish to budget up to £150 to buy your own copies
You may wish to consider budgeting up to £25 for stationery/teaching materials

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2019–20.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

Location

Local area

About Brighton

The University of Brighton is at the heart of our city's reputation as a welcoming, forward-thinking place which leads the way when it comes to the arts, music, sustainability and creative technology. Brighton is home to a thriving creative community and a digital sector worth £1bn a year to the local economy, as much as tourism.

Many of the work-based learning opportunities offered on our courses such as placements and guest lectures are provided by businesses and organisations based in the city.

You can also get involved with city festivals and events such as the Brighton Festival, the Fringe, Brighton Digital Festival, Brighton Science Festival, the London to Brighton bike ride, and the Great Escape festival of new music to name but a few. Other annual highlights include Pride, the Brighton Marathon, and Burning the Clocks which marks the winter solstice.

You'll find living in Brighton enriches your learning experience and by the end of your course you will still be finding new things to explore and inspire you.

It's only 50 minutes by train from Brighton to central London and less than 40 minutes to Eastbourne. There are also daily direct trains to Bristol, Bedford, Cambridge, Gatwick Airport, Portsmouth and Southampton.

Map showing distance to London from Brighton

Campus where this course is taught

Falmer campus

Set in the South Downs, our Falmer campus is around four miles from Brighton city centre. 7,000 students are based here taking subjects including criminology, English, education, nursing and medicine, paramedic science, psychology and sociology. Brighton and Hove Albion's Amex stadium and beautiful Stanmer Park are right next door.

Specialist learning facilities at Falmer include the curriculum centre used by teaching and education students, which houses over 30,000 teaching resources and clinical skills and simulation suites used by health students. Psychology students learn in our applied cognition and flexible creative method labs.

Falmer campus has two halls of residence on site, as well as a library, restaurant, cafes, and a students' union shop and bar.

The campus sports centre has a fitness suite, activity studios and a sports hall. There is also a floodlit astroturf football pitch, netball and tennis courts.

Cycle lanes link Falmer with our other campuses and the city centre and there is a BTN BikeShare hub on site. There are regular bus services to the city centre and other campuses. Falmer train station is right next to campus and a nine minute journey to central Brighton.

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Newly refurbished atrium in the Checkland Building

Accommodation

Brighton: Falmer

All eligible students applying for 2020 are guaranteed an offer of university halls of residence.

Halls of residence
We have halls of residence across Brighton in the city centre, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

You'll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
Falmer campus is linked to the halls on Falmer campus and at Varley Park.
- Paddock Field and Great Wilkins halls are on Falmer campus and offer a range of room types and catering options
- Varley Park offers a mix of room and catering options. Varley Park is around two miles from Moulsecoomb campus and four miles from the city centre. Public transport in the city is excellent, and there's a shuttle bus between our Brighton campuses during term time.

Unihomes and unilets
Unihomes and unilets are student houses that we let to our students on behalf of private landlords. This option can work particularly well when you're balancing learning with placements and other commitments. We have unihomes and unilet properties across the city.

Private renting
There's plenty of support if you opt for private renting. This is an option which offers choice and flexibility – enabling you to choose where you live and who with. We manage our own studenthomes database of properties. This lists accommodation offered by landlords who have signed up to our code of standards. Every summer we provide online events and resources, as well as other advice services, for students looking for a place to live and people to share with.

Outside views at Falmer accommodation

Extensive facilities at Falmer sports centre

Students dining at Westlain

Maps

Falmer campus

Student views

Maxine Lambert

"I chose this course to enable me to meet the needs of my pupils better. I had identified that many of my pupils had dyslexic-type tendencies and I wanted to be able to advocate for them (with schools) and also to be able to use teaching methods more appropriate to their needs.

"I studied my PGCE at Brighton and had found it to be an exciting and supportive place to learn. I felt mentored and had developed my knowledge well so felt it was a perfect choice to return to.

"There was a good balance of theoretical understanding as well as practical approaches to teaching. My 1:1 tutor was very supportive and gave me quality feedback to develop my programme for my case study student. The teaching staff are knowledgeable, approachable and encouraging and I felt able to be honest about where I needed support to get the guidance I required - I hadn’t had any formal education for fourteen years when I undertook this course! The team are a good balance of those working in the field and academics.

"Although at times challenging, the course was a steep learning curve and has taken my teaching to a new level. It has changed not just my approach to teaching pupils with specific literacy difficulties – but to all pupils. I feel confident that any future employers would value this expertise and I have become a specialist 1:1 tutor alongside my part-time post since graduating.

"The School of Education is a wonderful and modern place to study nestled in the South Downs hills. It makes for a good setting!"

Tessa Richardson

"I am the head of a pre-prep school with children from 2 to 7 years old in my care. I teach and advise across the age range and take small intervention groups for literacy and maths as required.

"I have been interested in supporting dyslexia type students for many years and find myself gravitating towards these students in school. I also have empathy as I have found difficulties in many related areas myself.

"I chose to study at the University of Brighton as it offered a course within reach which included plenty of face to face support and interaction with tutors and other students. It’s healthy to encounter different thinking and leads to continual informed improvement and change.

"The tutors were very professional, approachable and supportive and led us out of our comfort zone at times and posed questions. They encouraged reflection on our practice and settings, as well as self-evaluation. I enjoyed applying what I learned at university to classroom practices as well as the interaction with other students and tutors.

"The course is really worthwhile though quite demanding on top of full-time employment. You need to be committed and self-disciplined; if you can get into a good reading routine this helps. The course is intensive but is set up to be manageable with the assignments coming within school holidays - and you need to remind yourself that it is only for a year!"