Schools needed to play active part in ITE recovery

Two associations have come together to call on the  Department for Education to initiate a sector-wide advisory group to formulate a national Initial Teaching Education recovery response.

The calls come from MillionPlus, the association for modern universities, and the National Association of School-Based Teacher Trainers (NASBTT).

The latest policy briefing, The future of Initial Teacher Education: Living in the age of Covid-19 and beyond, recommends the Department for Education convene a cross-sector advisory group to formulate a National ITE Response Plan, outlining an overarching set of principles focused on short-term and long-term issues, such as safety, high-quality placements and recruitment and retention. 

The paper recommends ITE stakeholders work together to develop best practice guidance on maintaining a high-quality educational experience for applicants and trainee teachers during the recovery from the pandemic. 

The two groups want the Department for Education to work with the sector to encourage more schools to play an active part in ITE, and to ensure mechanisms are in place to support trainees and NQTs at this challenging time. Further bespoke support also needs to be put in place to aid the retention of teachers including the review of bursaries, subject knowledge enhancement courses and a bespoke NQT settlement. 

The group also want the Department for Education to harness and resource the expertise and capacity of ITT providers to boost the availability of crucial high-quality mentoring work.