Fewer training to be teachers, but more becoming teachers

The latest Good Teacher Training Guide published today (11 April 2017) reports that while fewer are training to be teachers, more of the trainees are becoming teachers. This comes about through training places being moved from universities to schools.

Ninety per cent of the school-trained take up teaching posts against 79% of university postgraduate trainees and 74% undergraduate trainees. There were no universities among the 17 providers where all final-year trainees took-up teaching posts.

Professor Alan Smithers, one of the authors, commented: “It could be that those opting to train in schools are more committed and schools select them more carefully looking at them as possible future colleagues.”

Forty per cent of the school-based providers were assessed as ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted compared with 30% of the university departments.

School-based training attracts more from ethnic minorities, more aged 25 and over, and more men to primary teaching.

Cambridge University is the pre-eminent individual provider of postgraduate teacher training, topping both the primary and secondary tables. The Billericay Educational Consortium ran it close in primary and the King Edward’s Consortium, Birmingham, in secondary. Eight of the top ten providers were school-based:

Top Ten Teacher Training Providers

1. University of Cambridge
2. The King Edward’s Consortium, Birmingham
3. The Pimlico-London SCITT
4. Cramlington Teaching School Alliance SCITT
5. Devon Primary SCITT
6. Loughborough University
7. Leicester and Leicestershire SCITT
8. North East Partnership SCITT (PhysEd)
9. Billericay Educational Consortium SCITT
10. Alban Federation

Professor Smithers said, “Shortfalls to teacher training are a continuing concern, but the expansion of school-based training with its trainees more likely to become teachers is a reason for optimism.”

Notes

1. The Good Teacher Training Guide 2017 by Alan Smithers and Mandy-D Bungey is available on the Centre for Education and Employment Research’s websites from Tuesday 11 April 2017: www.buckingham.ac.uk/research/ceer/publications/annual-reports/; www.alansmithers.com

2. CEER has published the Good Teacher Training Guide since 1998 when the then Teacher Training Agency first collected and published data on the teacher training providers.

Contact

Professor Alan Smithers, Centre for Education and Employment Research, University of Buckingham, +44 (0)1280 820270 (direct line), +44 (0)7974 765864 (mobile)