Education charity Teach First has announced that it will partner with Bath Spa University’s Institute for Education to deliver its enhanced Leadership Development Programme (LDP) from 2017.
The Leadership Development Programme is a two-year salaried route into teaching which places participants in schools facing the greatest challenges.
The LDP focuses on building participants’ leadership skills and developing them as research informed teachers so they can tackle educational inequality in low income schools and across society.
From July 2017, participants starting the LDP will complete a significantly revised programme. Participants will study towards a Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE), which for the first time fully integrates teacher training with leadership development.
The PGDE will be worth twice the Masters’ credit of the Postgraduate Certificate of Education offered by the previous LDP, reflecting the value of university accreditation and the role of higher education providers in delivering training.
Professor Kate Reynolds, Dean of Bath Spa University’s Institute for Education based at the Newton Park campus, said: “The Institute for Education builds upon a long history of teacher training and excellent education research, and we are delighted to partner with Teach First to deliver innovative training where it is much needed in low income communities.
“As Ofsted said when they gave us our ‘outstanding’ award in 2016 – ‘headteachers know that if they recruit a Bath Spa teacher, they will employ a highly professional and motivated colleague who will have a very positive impact on pupils’ learning.’
“The commitment of our staff to making a difference to children and young people is exceptional and that is then reflected in the commitment from Bath Spa teachers in the classrooms where they teach.
“It is fitting to announce this partnership as we celebrate our 70 year anniversary this year and celebrate seven decades of training outstanding teachers across the region.”
This will be the first PGDE in the UK to run over two years, with university involvement across both years. This rigour will help participants develop as research informed professionals.
Reuben Moore, Director of Leadership for Teach First, said: “I’m delighted to confirm our partnerships with some of the country’s top and most innovative universities for developing teachers. We have been closely working with them to jointly develop a cutting edge Leadership Development Programme focused on supporting schools serving low income communities.
“Without the expertise of all the universities we have worked with over the years, we simply would not be able to deliver our vision of ending educational inequality.
“Last year Ofsted rated our existing training as ‘outstanding’, which in large part was down to the hard work of our partner universities. The new programme builds on that, taking in evidence from the best education systems around the world – as well as feedback from participants and schools – to deliver increased support, training and expertise.
“Together with our university partners, we believe teaching should have the same expert status as other top professions, and this new model will help encourage that.”
The new LDP will also enhance and simplify the vital support provided to participants in schools. Each participant will now receive support from an in-school mentor, a university tutor and a Teach First Participant Development Lead for the full two years, meaning participants can draw on their expertise and better support their pupils’ progress.
To celebrate 70 years of Bath Spa University’s Institute for Education a commemorative book has been published celebrating Newton Park’s 70 year history in training outstanding teachers.
‘Back to School’ is an inspiring journey through the history of teacher training at Bath Spa, featuring new interviews with teacher training alumni from the last seven decades and their stories. Copies are exclusively available from the bookshop Topping and Company in Bath.