More graduates apply to train as teachers
More graduates apply to train as teachers
The number of graduates applying to train as teachers has risen by 23 per cent over the last year. There are 26 per cent more graduates applying for secondary-school training and 22 per cent for primary school. The overall number of people applying for Postgraduate Certificate in Secondary Education (PGCE)courses to train as mathematics teachers has increased by 29 per cent over the last 12 months, and 79 per cent more graduates have applied to become technology teachers.
Since September 2000, £6,000 training bursaries have been offered to eligible students taking PGCE courses at institutions in England. Further£4,000 "golden hellos" are available, after induction, to those who qualify in, and go on to teach, the shortage subjects of mathematics,science, modern languages, technology and English. The Education Secretary,Estelle Morris, said: "The figures suggest that initiatives to recruit more teachers, particularly into key shortage subjects, have been successful. The introduction of teacher-training bursaries and golden hellos for shortage subjects have already made teacher training a much more attractive choice for graduates. And proposals to pay off the student loans of new shortage-subject teachers will make it more attractive still."
Meanwhile, a new Ofsted report reveals that graduates who change career to become teachers lack the spelling, grammar and mathematics skills needed to cope in the classroom. The school inspectors' report concludes that the Government's Graduate Teacher Training Programme (GTP), for those changing career, could be allowing less able staff into the classroom by failing to provide adequate support. Ofsted undertook an evaluation of the GTP in the autumn and spring of 2000-01, by visiting 72 trainees as they approached the end of their training. The evaluation found that more than half of primary-school trainees on the Graduate Teacher Programme had "significant weaknesses" in their English and mathematics skills. Only a handful had studied mathematics beyond GCSE level, and poor grammar and spelling among trainees were also found to be hampering their ability to answer pupils' questions. Although two-thirds of secondary-school trainees had good knowledge of their subject, a "significant minority" showed "significant weaknesses" in their ability to plan a lesson, teach and manage a class. In a few cases, trainees with serious weaknesses had been allowed to qualify as teachers although they were not up to standard.
