A few years back I surveyed 253 people on experiences of ITE. Here's what I found: 1) Quality of training was seen to generally be good or better and improved after a dip in the 2000s 2) Secondary teachers (213) were even more positive about their training (not in all routes)
These findings seem to challegne much of the discourse in the recent ITT Market Review Report, and a good deal of the discussion I have seen flying about today. But there is more...
3) Subejct input is identified as key in the ITT Report. Quality of subject specific input seems to decline over time 4) Yet to unpack, subejct specifc was still strong in HEIs followed by SD-uni partnerships 5) Still true when controlling for recent trainees
6) Recent HEI/SD-Uni trainees were more likely to rate input on the science of learning/DI as good or better. 7) The general picture of exposure to science of learning seems to have shown a recovery over time from a dip in the early 2000s.
8) Encoruagement to engage critically with methods and research was noted as important in the ITT Report. Once again this sample showed stronger engagement in HEIs and SD-uni partnerships than other routes. This critical engagement keeps evidnece based teaching alive.
9) HEI and SD-Uni partnership were also more likely to recognise multiple valid approaches to teaching. This is crucial for a flexible worksforce who are not just trained to meet the demands of their placement school. We have seen how single school practices can be problematic.
What am I trying to show here? Mainly that the ITT Report's identification of HEIs as the root of all evil is utterly misjudged. There is good and bad practice in all ITE but much of what we value can be found in HEIs and HEI-SD partnerships.
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First a little context. I’ve always found “When I needed a neighbour” to be perfectly fine as a hymn but just a little lacking. It’s not especially uplifting and its message is very simple - a moral lesson for small people. But the school and live versions are quite different /2
You may remember the school song going along the lines:
When I needed a neighbour, were you there… and the creed and the colour, etc.
I was hungry and thirsty…
I was cold I was naked (always a giggle point in Y2)…
When I needed a shelter…
So after a full year of messing about @educationgovuk have decided to release more guidance on what an ITAP actually is. Always good to have more guidance when we are already interviewing for these courses! So what jumps out? /1
First, we are reminded why ITAP exists and the links to the Carter Review. What jumps out immediately is that ITAP as isolated blocks of “intensive practice” are at odds with their own evidence base – creating an artificial “other” category for learning. /2
Second, it is clear that ITAP retains the notion that teaching is a hierarchical set of knowledge – a series of techniques to be learned and practiced, rather than a mixture of hierarchical and cumulative aspects which are intricately linked to specific subjects and contexts. /3
In part 4 I want to talk about developing knowledge in history classrooms - something which has been a hot topic for a while. #PGCE#ECF
The ECF and CCF have quite a lot to say about how pupils learn. However much of this stops at the point of considering knowledge transfer and the role of memory. If you are not aware of these basics however it’s worth reading @mfordhamhistory in @histassoc TH166
Fordham is a good starting point for moving us from some generic principles about learning to something more specific about history.
Do a little task now: what have you seen great history teachers do when they develop new knowledge in class?
NEW: Welcome to part 3 of “Things I wish every new #historyteacher knew”. Today I want to explore what all new history teachers would benefit from knowing about the way history works and how we can open this up for young people. As ever I am drawing on @1972SHP Principles 🧵🪡
Before we begin, a little exercise. If you drew a diagram to show how historical interrogations are created, what would it look like? This is a task I get trainee teachers to do every year. If we want to explain our discipline we need to have a sense of how it works.
This is not just a “nice to know”. The National Curriculum actually demands that we introduce young people to the content of history as well as the concepts which underpin it and how it operates. Fulfilling our basic duties as history teachers requires engagement here.
Last time we looked at how new teachers learn. Today I want to think about why we are teaching history at all. /1
Marc Bloch’s “The Historian’s Craft” opens with a child’s question: “Tell me, Daddy. What is the use of history?” It is a question deceptively simple because it requires an exploration of deep truths about what history is and is for. /2
At the age of 4, my own daughter asked me a similar question when I told her I trained history teachers: “Why do they want to teach history, Daddy?” Interestingly, this is the exact way I tend to open my course…by asking that question. Because purposes matter! /3
A new year means 100s of history PGCE / ECT teachers starting prof. journeys.
Our current (& future) ITE system, means many get very limited subject specific input.
This year I’m using a @1972SHP lens to explore the core things I wish every new history teacher knew. 🧵/1
Before we get there I want to begin by thinking about how we learn as professionals, and new professionals especially. It really helps to ensure we are open to growth and less likely to run into potential barriers /2
The first thing to recognise is that professional teaching is a constant process of growth. The teacher we start out as will be substantially different to the one we develop into. Just like Ibn Battuta’s odyssey , it’s a long term journey where we need a curious & open mind /3