Are you thinking about getting into teaching? At CREC Early Years Partnership we have been working hard to ensure the current Covid-19 situation does not disadvantage any of our current and prospective trainee teachers.
We are fortunate to all be able to work from home in the current situation and, following DfE guidance, continue to support those currently working towards primary qualified teacher status (QTS), as well as those wishing to make an application.
Our Application Process has Moved Online
We are still able to access and respond to UCAS applications and we will now be offering the panel interview online.
The SCITT Director, Sue Bennett, CREC Assistant Director, Sean Delaney, and SCITT Programme Lead, Helen Lyndon, will be available to ask those key questions about a candidate’s motivation to embark upon teacher training.
The interview schedule remains largely unchanged as we ask candidates about some of the key issues that impact children. The online interview is also a space for candidates to ask us questions about the programme.
Following the interview, we will email through a brief task which asks candidates to show their understanding of data in early years and also asks for a brief reflection on recent practice. We ask candidates to return the task by email within 30 minutes.
Offering You a Place: Our Decision Making Process
Following a review of the application form, the interview and the task, we will make a decision on offering a place.
All offers are conditional on an enhanced DBS check, an occupational health survey and sight of original documentation before course embarkation. Should we offer a place, we will do so via email as well as though UCAS; candidates are required to accept places with UCAS directly.
Once a candidate has accepted a place on our programme, we don’t wait until September to get things started. We offer each candidate a bespoke support package to help them to prepare for the programme.
Given the current climate we are offering that support through online capacities and will be welcoming students into our virtual community of practice.
Supporting Our Students Through COVID-19 and Beyond
Current students are well supported and already very much part of our virtual community of practice. For these students, we are still meeting weekly and maintaining our central ethos of reflective practice.
This connectivity is very important at this time as some of our students are now teaching their own children in the home environment, whilst others face isolation.
We are maintaining a focus on academic assignments which provide the PGCE element of the course; our Programme Lead, Helen Lyndon, provides formative feedback on drafts of assignments to support the development of those academic skills.
Teaching files continue to be updated; evidence previously gathered can now be reflected upon and reconsidered in light of experience in contrasting settings.
We are also supporting our trainees to secure their first jobs to start in September. We have already held application and personal statement writing workshops, talks from head teachers and recruitment agencies, and held mock interviews, but this year, given the unprecedented events we will be going even further.
We know our trainees will need additional support in seeking their first teaching post as schools currently focus on supporting vulnerable children and those of key workers. We have already started using our local connections and partner schools to discuss recruitment needs and recommend suitable trainees that would meet their criteria.
Our position within the school sector and as part of a School Direct programme leaves us perfectly placed to, once again, achieve 100% employability and at the same time leave local head teachers with one less recruitment problem to worry about for September!
If you still have questions and are curious to find out more about the CREC approach to Initial Teacher Training then you can join us for our Virtual Information Event on Monday 11th May, on Facebook.
