Start As You Mean To Go On – Is Learning At the Chalkface The Best Way to Train New Teachers?
Is throwing young educators right into the fray really the best way forward? Does it increase their employability? Headteacher Tom Donohoe certainly thinks so… In 2012, when Michael Gove announced the introduction of School Direct (SD) – his school-based route into teaching – it was considered by some to be controversial, as it seemed to […]
- by Tom Donohoe
Is throwing young educators right into the fray really the best way forward? Does it increase their employability? Headteacher Tom Donohoe certainly thinks so…
In 2012, when Michael Gove announced the introduction of School Direct (SD) – his school-based route into teaching – it was considered by some to be controversial, as it seemed to signal a shift in training away from university and towards schools. Conversely, for those of us who had previously been engaging with the Graduate Teacher Programme, Schools Direct was seen as an exciting development of that. It may seem a little confusing for trainees to choose their preferred route nowadays, and indeed I meet a number of school leaders who are still unclear about the intricacies of SD. Hopefully, I can clear a little of the fog surrounding work-based teacher training by drawing on the experiences we have had here at Anton Junior School in Hampshire.
Term time
On a typical university-led PGCE course, 120 days of the programme will be dedicated to school-based activity. At our local university, this is broken down into four parts – a 15-day pre-programme experience; a seven-week autumn school placement; a 12-week spring/summer school placement; and a three-week enquiry placement. By comparison, our SD trainees spend all 40 weeks immersed in school – four days in the classroom, with Friday a training day. A quarter of the 40 training days are spent at university studying the pedagogy of teaching and learning. The remaining 30 are held in consortium schools and follow a carefully-planned series of topics considered to be the main strengths of each host. It is these days that the trainees praise most highly, because they are receiving training from outstanding and current classroom practitioners. SD trainees comment very positively on these opportunities they have to take part in learning walks at these different consortium schools, which offer the rare chance to observe the practice of a vast range of teachers and other members of staff. In our model, trainees work in their home school for 37 of the 40 weeks, spending the remaining three weeks in a different school to get experience of another key stage.
Growth spurt
In our area of Hampshire we started with a small group of just six schools who were keen to work with us on SD. This number doubled in year two, and now we have just over 20 schools. Next year it’s closer to 30. On top of governmental preference, I believe there are a number of very good reasons why schools are welcoming SD trainees with open arms, and should continue to do so. If a school opts for an SD on the training route (as opposed to the salaried route), it will effectively have an additional member of staff at no extra cost. This is the only option at Anton, but we do acknowledge these individuals are not receiving a salary. As such, last year we took our trainees to the Education Show in Birmingham, organised school visits in inner-city London and invested time in them on a weekly basis with high-quality professional development activities. We have trained graduates at Anton for more than a decade, and always have a trainee working alongside our two Year 6 teachers. This has meant that when the SD feels confident enough, we can effectively split the children into three class groups with the SD teaching around 16 children.
This leaves two classes of roughly 24 – one of which is parallel to the SD’s group, so that the trainee can plan together with the more experienced teacher. This has played a huge part in improving educational outcomes for our children as measured by SATs results, as well as by the satisfaction of pupils and parents.
Shaping up
For many school leaders, the greatest attraction of involvement with Schools Direct is the opportunity to ‘grow your own’ teachers. With recruitment of high-quality staff becoming harder, headteachers are starting to realise that they can use SD as an opportunity to identify good graduates, train, develop and mould them, and then employ them as NQTs. I see SD as the first step on a career continuum, and as an opportunity for us to identify those who show the potential to be future school leaders. I have lost count of the number of times having graduate trainees has helped us cover teacher absence. While we’re careful not to throw SDs in at the deep end, we find that with appropriate support they relish the challenge of covering for a colleague.
Last year, one of our trainees took a class for a full term to cover a secondment, and the outcome was very successful for her and for the children in the class. At Anton, we have not used a single supply teacher for nearly 10 years.
Trending
Extra benefits
A further advantage to schools employing ‘on the job’ trainees, is the knock-on effect it can have for colleagues in the school. Each SD obviously needs a mentor teacher to guide and support him or her, and many are willing to take on the role to the trainees’ benefit . Additionally, because the government’s emphasis on initial teacher training is very much centred around a ‘school-led system’, all schools in our consortium provide training days for the SDs to attend.
These involve teachers in those host schools planning and delivering high-quality professional development to the trainees – experiences that have catalysed those teachers’ ambitions to become lead practitioners, deputy headteachers and even specialist leaders of education. As a headteacher who believes in the moral obligation of schools to help support and develop the next generation of teachers, I am passionate about Schools Direct and firmly believe that with the right trainees and a carefully planned programme, SD can be mutually beneficial to trainees and schools.
Employing a number of high-quality SDs each year to work alongside my teaching team has played a significant part in Anton achieving an ‘outstanding’ judgement from Ofsted last year, and subsequently achieving our position as a Teaching School last term.
A trainee’s perspective
One of Anton’s trainees gives you their insight from their year of Schools Direct training… • After three years of enjoying university, I was ready for a change. I consider myself a kinaesthetic learner, so to train ‘on the job’ was the right choice for me. • The greatest advantage for me is that at Anton I am a fully-fledged member of staff. From day one I was regarded as an important part of teaching team, and never as a student. • I’ve built solid relationships with staff that have helped develop my teaching skills – colleagues are more than happy to observe my practice or be observed by me, and are always ready to offer advice, support and resources. • All of the trainees in our Schools Direct consortium were successful at interview very early on in the year, with the vast majority securing jobs in the schools in which they trained. • I believe Schools Direct has increased my readiness to become an NQT. Having been involved in a school for an entire academic year, I have led school trips and carried out successful parents’ evenings; I look forward to my newly qualified year.
For more information about Anton Junior School’s involvement in School Direct – or any other aspect of Schools Direct route into teaching – you can email Tom Donohoe at 2004tjd@hants.gov.uk
