Teacher training going from strength to strength

Teacher training continues to go from strength to strength with most new teachers satisfied that their training was good, the Teacher Training Agency (TTA) said today.

The TTA's latest survey of Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) showed improvements in preparing them to deal with diversity and inclusion issues, and standards of behaviour, as well as developing their understanding of national education strategies.

The survey revealed that:

• 84% of NQTs rated the overall quality of their training as good or very good;
• 75% rated as good or very good the support and guidance they received to achieve the standards for QTS; and
• 65% felt their training prepared them well to work with colleagues other than teachers.

Commenting on the survey, Ralph Tabberer, Chief Executive of the TTA, said: "These results show that the quality of teacher training in England is continuing to improve.

"The universities, colleges and schools which provide initial teacher training have made great strides in tackling issues such as classroom behaviour and inclusion whilst adapting to new demands from the expanded role of teaching assistants and the introduction of the national strategies.

"We still have a lot to do to keep up with the needs of schools, but by working closely with training providers on issues like behaviour management and by investing more in areas such as ICT, we can raise our game further. It is very important that schools have new teachers who can hit the ground running."

Today's survey saw replies received from almost 13,000 teachers six months after they gained Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) – with around 1,000 having qualified through employment based routes.

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