A new teaching apprenticeship scheme has been announced by the government which will allow graduates to be employed as unqualified teachers while they are training

1,000 people are expected to take up the teaching apprenticeship scheme which will launch in September 2018. Applications will open through UCAS on 26^th October.  The scheme will run in parallel with School Direct Salaried (SDS) training that already allows graduates to train while on the job. Apprentices will be paid as unqualified teachers while gaining valuable hands-on experience and have a chance to learn from excellent, experienced teachers during training, as well as the incentive of potential employment as a qualified teacher at the end of the apprenticeship course.    

A similar scheme was piloted last year to tempt successful business professionals into second careers as classroom teachers by Now Teach which has yet to flourish.  

Education Secretary Justine Greening said: “Getting the best people to train as teachers and into our classrooms is a crucial part of giving every child the high-quality education they deserve. This new route will provide another pathway for talented graduates into a profession that will give them the chance to change lives for the better on a daily basis.”  

Schools which are not eligible for the apprenticeship levy will receive government funding to cover 90 per cent of the training costs. Applications will open through UCAS on October 26^th. There is a Teacher Apprenticeship Standard that will set out the entry requirements, including passing the skills test which is the same as other graduate initial teacher training programmes. The duration of the course is 12 months and achieving a QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) will be mandatory to successfully complete the course. There is then an additional assessment within their first three month as a newly qualified teacher (NQT). The first part involves a lesson observation from an independent assessor and a professional discussion between the apprentice, the independent assessor, a representative from the training provider and a representative from the apprentice’s school. To support the discussion candidates will have to bring along a portfolio of work which was completed during their training, however this will not be assessed. At the end of apprentice teachers will receive an apprenticeship certificate. To ensure apprentices are ready to enter the classroom full-time at the end of their apprenticeship, schools have helped set assessment criteria to give them greater oversight of the training of prospective members of staff.  

The development of this apprenticeship is part of the government’s commitment to ensure there are 3 million high quality apprenticeship starts by 2020. As part of the plan to get excellent teachers into the schools that need them most, as well as ease the recruitment crisis, the government is also piloting a new programme to reimburse student loan repayments for teachers in the early years of their careers. Around 800 modern foreign language and 1,700 science teachers a year will be eligible for this pilot scheme.