Trainee teachers are immersed in the school environment from the outset, meaning that they ‘live and breathe’ real-life teaching from day one. Every trainee is carefully matched to a single class in their ‘home school’ where they work and train for most of the year, becoming a real and valued part of the school team. During the first half of the Spring Term, all trainees are given the opportunity to experience an alternate key stage in a different school, after which they return to their home school for the remainder of the programme.
Every trainee is linked with an experienced Teacher Tutor who acts as their school based trainer for the year. The trainee works alongside their Teacher Tutor in the classroom developing their practice and skill and knowledge set. The Teacher Tutor works closely with the trainee in school: carrying out lesson observations, setting training targets and helping to organise in-school training opportunities which will enhance and develop the trainee’s practice. Alongside the trainee’s Training Manager, they work to shape and meet the needs and circumstances of each individual, providing a truly personalised programme.
TP1 First Teaching Practice – Autumn
Trainees work from existing school medium term planning and along with support from their Teacher Tutor begin delivering lessons in accordance with their personalised targets. By the end of the Autumn term the expectation is that their teaching commitment should be approximately 40% of the week.
TP2 Second Teaching Practice – Spring
This practice takes place in a different school and different key stage and lasts for six weeks. The first week is largely observation based and working with groups. The second week will involve solo teaching, building upwards to 50% teaching from Week 3 onwards and 60% in the final week. Trainees will plan full lessons, drawing from medium term planning in the school.
TP 3 Final Teaching Practice – Summer
This is the final assessment period. At this stage, it is expected that trainees demonstrate that they can fully plan an appropriate sequence of work across the full range of curriculum areas. They must demonstrate that they can sustain a satisfactory teaching standard over an 80 - 90% teaching timetable. They should prepare teaching resources, mark work and fulfil the main requirements of a classroom teacher to demonstrate their abilities in readiness for entry as a qualified teacher into the profession.