All posts by Doncaster ITT

We are a genuine Partnership run BY and FOR schools who passionately believe that teacher training can and should be delivered with the student at the very heart of why and how we deliver training.
Applications, Events, Information, Support

*** ‘Drop-in’ sessions in Doncaster***

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Need to talk to someone about your application?

It’s always great to meet with and talk to potential applicants wanting to apply to train to teach in Doncaster, so if you have queries about our training programme or if you want to discuss any aspect of your application, then please come along and see us at one of our school  / centre ‘Open Day’ / ‘Drop-in’ sessions or local Events:

2019

Confirmation of dates/times and details of further Drop-in Sessions and Open Days will be posted here once finalised.

Although it does help us to know (by email) if you are coming to a ‘Drop-in’ session, there’s no need to book a slot (only for ‘Open Days’) so please just turn up at the school’s or centre’s Reception and we’ll be on hand to help you with any queries you may have regarding schools-based teacher training or making an application etc.

We look forward to seeing you!

Meadowhall Event (2)  

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Previous Events:

2018/19:

Also look out for other posts with details of the DfE (Department for Education) ‘Train to Teach Roadshows’ taking place in the Region (Doncaster’s was on 13th March 2019!) and our own ‘Teach Yorkshire’ Events, which are held in Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster & Barnsley .

  

Hints & Tips, Information, Support

Skills Tests – How NOT to fail them!

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Last year’s changes to Skills Tests was excellent news, but you still have to pass them, even if you do now get 3 FREE attempts and no ‘lock-out’ for 2-years if you do fail the 3rd test any more.

Since the changes, if you had failed a 3rd test sometime over the past few years and were ‘locked-out’, you no longer have to wait for 2-years and so can reapply and start taking tests again now. If this is YOU, we’d love to hear from you ASAP about reapplying for this year.

So clearly we’d like you all to pass the Skills Tests as soon as possible and preferably not have to pay for a test, so we’d rather you were properly prepared to take and pass them , hopefully first time, so please read this carefully:

Firstly it’s important that you take the right documents when attending the Skills Test centers. Anyone that doesn’t follow the process (below) might be turned away, and may lose their first free attempt at taking the Skills Tests.

Booking the skills tests:

You can book your Skills Tests once you have submitted your application. You can book in advance of this, as long as your application is submitted before you attend the test centre.

You can complete a fully interactive online test before you attend – simply follow the instructions on the page and use this activation key: jhULiqgX

What you need to bring:

    • Two forms of identification – a primary ID such as a passport, and a secondary ID (e.g. a debit card). More information can be found on the STA Website
    • You also need to bring proof of your teacher training application – e.g.:
    • a welcome email from UCAS Teacher Training;
    • correspondence from your school or university provider;
    • a copy of your completed UCAS Teacher Training application form;
  • confirmation of, or an invitation to, an interview from your school or university.

For more information please visit: www.sta.education.gov.uk

We run coaching sessions for applicants who have been offered a place to train with us, but other organisations also offer helpful advice or on-line guidance, such as TES – Get help preparing for the Professional Skills Tests – Register for FREE on-line sessions.

So, once you know what you’re taking with you, please consider that:

In our experience, many applicants take the first one without any real preparation thinking “how hard can it be?” and are then surprised by the test and fail it. Then they do some practice tests, but think we need them to pass the tests ASAP, so re-book without really taking the time they need to be ready to pass and so fail again, perhaps just by an odd mark.

So, be one of those who doesn’t take it lightly, be very well prepared for your first attempts and you’ll more than likely pass them both first time. But if not, make sure that you are totally ready for the 2nd attempt and then you’ll not be putting yourself under the pressure of having to take it for a 3rd time, even if you can now go back for a 4th or 5th etc. as after the 3rd test you will have to pay.

Almost everyone passes by the 3rd attempt, very few fail and most pass 1st or 2nd time.

Take and pass the ‘easier’ of the two first. If Maths is your ‘thing’ do that one and then take the literacy later on. If English is your strength, do that one first then take the numeracy later.

Don’t book to take them both on the same day just to save travel time and costs – it could put you under too much pressure and end up costing you far more in the long run!

For applicants offered places with us, we run coaching & support events in the Spring & Summer Term, so there’s no mad rush having to take them just yet.

And . . . you might want to go to one or more the following – other websites & services can be found from a simple Google search (other search engines are also available!), but these have been recommended by some of our former trainees:

Numeracy Ready & How to pass the Numeracy test (Quote ‘NST20’ for a Discount)

FREE online sessions (TES)

How to pass the Literacy test

Literacy Skills Test (spellings)

Creative Openings (Numeracy & Literacy support)

QTS Skills Tests

Good luck with your Skills Tests!

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Applications, Hints & Tips

Talk to your Referees now!

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Don’t let the Snow fall while you wait for a reference to come through!

The UCAS recruitment system requires applicants to nominate two Referees – one should be your current (or most recent) employer or perhaps your course tutor, if you’re still at Uni.

Whoever you nominate, we advise you to speak to them NOW if you haven’t done so already, as your application will not be able to be sent on to us from UCAS until both references are back in their system.

So speak to them NOW so that they can agree to provide a reference, know to look out for a reference request for you soon and understand how important it is to you that they complete it as soon as possible.

Good luck with your applications!

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Applications, Hints & Tips, Information, Support

GCSEs – ‘Equivalency Tests’ and Level 2 Qualifications

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GCSEs:

You’ll need your GCSEs (Grade C  or above/equivalent* – New GCSE Grade 4 or above) in Maths & English [and a Science if you want to teach Primary], but make sure that you have them BEFORE you apply.

If you don’t have them yet, you can consider doing an ‘Equivalency Test’ before you apply for teacher training. A simple internet search will bring up a number of organisations who deliver Equivalency Tests.

Level 2 Qualifications:
Please note that Level 2 Qualifications (e.g. GNVQs etc.) are NOT equivalent, as they do not have the ‘breadth or depth’ of a GCSE or a recognised equivalent.

If you do apply and only have Level 2 qualifications, your application will not be progressed further, so please look to take a GCSE resit, alternative qualification or an Equivalence Test before applying for a place on one of our ITT programmes.

Equivalency Tests:

Please enter an internet search for ‘Equivalency Testing‘  and select which organisation’s course you wish to apply to.

Once you have passed the test, we would accept this as an equivalence to the GCSE.

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Applications, Information

*** Financial support while you Train ***

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Find out about the ITT Bursaries, Scholarships and School Direct (Salaried) grants for the academic year 2019 to 2020 at the Department for Education (DfE): Get Into Teaching website.

Get up to £28,000 (TAX FREE) to train to teach!

And you may also be entitled to Additional Financial Support while you train.

The DfE provided bursary awards for 2019-20 are as follows:

Graduates with top degrees training to teach in ‘priority‘ Secondary subjects may be eligible for a Bursary Grant or a Scholarship of up to:

  • Mathematics* -£32,000 Scholarship or  £30,000 Bursary
    • This is made up of either a £22k Scholarship or £20k Bursary with two additional payments each of £5k after the 3rd & 5th year in teaching (*see below as ‘Doncaster’ gives you even more!).
  • £28,000 Scholarship or £26,000 Bursary in other high-priority subjects for Trainees with a 1st, 2:1, 2:2, PhD or Master’s for:
    • Physics
    • Chemistry
    • Computing
    • Languages (Scholarships for French, Spanish & German ONLY)
    • Geography

And other subjects have Bursaries of:

  • £26,000 (1st, 2:1, 2:2, PhD or Master’s)
    • Biology
  • £15,000 (1st, 2:1, 2:2, PhD or Master’s)
    • English
  • £12,000 (1st, 2:1, 2:2, PhD or Master’s) for:
    • Design & Technology (D&T)
    • History
  • £9,000 (1st, 2:1, 2:2, PhD or Master’s)  for:
    • Music
    • RE

*Mathematics: The new bursaries for Maths teachers (unveiled by the then Secretary of State, Justine Greening, in early October 2017) gives Maths graduates up to £32,000 on top of their teaching salaries in exchange for joining and remaining in the teaching profession.

All Maths graduates will get an upfront payment of £20,000 (£22K for Scholars) when they become Secondary school teachers, with those who stay on in the profession then receiving two subsequent payments of £5,000 in each of their 3rd & 5th years of their teaching career.

However, an increased incremental amount of £7,500 will be available “to encourage the best maths teachers to teach in more challenging schools”. Teaching in Doncaster will entitle you to this increased amount.

Other subjects which are not otherwise listed above (e.g. Primary or PE etc.) do not have a bursary, so if you’re not sure if you’ll be eligible, please contact us to discuss your application, at:

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Applications, Information

Is all Schools-led ITT the same?

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NO!

We’re all the same in many respects, but very different in others. We all have to meet the same ITT Entry Criteria, but we go about it in very different ways and it’s the same with how you’ll be trained.

Even the 2nd ‘S‘ in ‘schools‘ is a key difference – will you get a chance to train in a range of contrasting schools [plr] or mainly be based in just one school (sgl), with just a short placement in a quite similar school?

See what one of our Trainees thought about his training with us.

So what should you be looking for?

  • Training with an Accredited ITT Provider at the very heart of the programme, not just a distant university linked to a group of schools;
  • Alliances with a broad range of contrasting schools, not just a few similar schools who’ve set-up to do Schools Direct;
  • Having a choice about doing a PGCE or not and making sure it’s a full PGCE with 60 Masters Credits all at Level 7, not just a ‘PG Cert’ or with credits only at Level 6;
  • Training provision with a history of delivering high-quality Trainee Attainment, not just a small group of schools who don’t have any real experience of delivering their own ITT;
  • A Provider with a range of significant partner organisations (e.g. Local Authorities, Teaching School Alliances, Universities etc.);
  • Not having to pay £9,250 if you don’t have to!
  • Schools benefiting from being in a Social Mobility Opportunity Area (SMOA);
  • A collaborative approach to professional development through the ‘Partners in Learning‘ Teaching School Alliance (TSA);
  • A real focus on research in teaching through the recently established ‘Research School‘ as part of the Research Schools Network
  •  Government supported recruitment and retention initiatives

Teach Doncaster!

The Doncaster ITT Partnership is an Accredited School Centred ITT Provider with nearly 15 years experience of delivering ‘Outstanding Trainee  Attainment’ (Ofsted 2012); working with a wide range of Schools, Academies, Special Schools and PRUs, the Local Authority, Teaching School Alliance and the University of Hull (to deliver an optional PGCE) and all for far less than most ITT courses.

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Information

Why do schools-based training?

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Our last cohort of SCITT & School Direct students are now nearing the end of their Newly Qualified Teacher (NQT) ‘Induction year’ and our current cohort are fast approaching their Final Assessments for QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) , so sadly we’re no longer looking to recruit applicants wanting to start teacher training in September 2018 (UCAS opened in October 2017), but we will be recruiting again in the Autumn for places to start in September 2019 .

So why did our trainees chose schools-based training and why should you?

Do you want to:

  • go back to university and sit in a lecture theatre for days on end?
  • complete assignments to prove that you know how to teach?
  • only see children when you are sent to a school miles from home?
  • have no real choice about where you’ll train?
  • increase your student loan debt by as much as it’s possible to borrow (£9,250)?
  • have to do (and pay for) a PGCE, when you know that you don’t really need one to become a qualified teacher?
No? – Neither did our trainees!
Or would you rather:
  • train to teach in a school environment?
  • have a choice about where you train in local schools?
  • be trained by specialist teachers who really know and understand teaching?
  • be supported to learn by experts with the most up to date teaching techniques?
  • really feel part of a school, not just a ‘visitor’ on a placement for a few weeks?
  • save over £1,800 against the cost of some courses?
  • have the choice about whether you want to do a PGCE or not, in addition to your teacher training?

Yes? – That’s why our trainees chose us and why you should too!

Please look through this website to find out more about why you should consider school-based training in a Doncaster ITT Partnership school and see how to apply for one of our programmes.

Good luck with your application!

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Information

Teach in Doncaster and get your student loan repaid!

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GreenTop School March 2012 Andy Gaines-1094

All Languages, Biology, Chemistry, Physics & Computer Science teachers who start a teacher training course (or are in years 1 to 5 of their careers) from September 2018, will be eligible for the Teachers’ Student Loan Reimbursement scheme announced by the Secretary of State in October 2017, provided they are teaching in a state-funded school in a designated Local Authority (LA).

Doncaster is one of those Local Authorities!

This will therefore NOT apply if you teach in a neighboring LA that is not on the list. The only other local LAs are: Barnsley, Bradford, North East Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire.

The full list of participating Local Authorities can be found here.

This is a massive opportunity to both train in and then stay on and teach in Doncaster, so let us help you to take the first step.

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Applications, Information, Support

*** Apply NOW – Search for ITT places for 2019-20***

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To apply for Schools-based ITT in Doncaster for 2019-20:

Please go to the DfE’s “Find Postgraduate Teacher Training” to search for training places, then go to www.UCAS.com to apply for SCITT & School Direct places with the Doncaster ITT Partnership  for 2019-20.

Search for ‘Doncaster‘ then, for:

SCITT – ‘Doncaster ITT Partnership’ (Primary & Secondary)

Or for School Direct:

Primary* – ‘Doncaster Partners in Learning Teaching School Alliance’
Secondary – ‘Doncaster Regional Alliance For Teacher Training Secondary’ (‘DRAFTTS’)
apply-now-button

We’ve been allocated our places for 2019-20, so we are especially interested in receiving applications for certain ‘Priority‘ Secondary subject areas:

  • Physics;
  • Chemistry;
  • Computing;
  • Design Technology (esp. Resistant Materials);
  • Mathematics
  • Modern Languages (French & Spanish – possibly German, if with Spanish / French);
  • Geography.

And we are also be looking to fill a number of Secondary subjects (in addition to the above) inc:

  • Art & Design;
  • Biology;
  • Dance;
  • Drama;
  • English;
  • History;
  • Physical Education – see notes below*;
  • Religious Education (Not yet open for applications);
  • Social Science;

And of course:

  • Primary!

Good luck with your applications!

*NOTES:

Please note that PE is always very heavily over subscribed and places are always quickly filled, so please consider if you have the relevant skills, experience or degree (i.e. Sports ‘Science’) to perhaps consider applying for another subject (e.g. Biology or Primary etc.).

*PE & EBacc subject:

The DfE have again committed to supporting a limited number of additional PE places where the applicant has: a good A-Level pass in a relevant EBacc subject; can demonstrate an ability to develop their subject knowledge (SKE may be available) and train to teach ‘some’ of that subject in addition to PE. All assessments for the award of QTS will still be based on the PE element of training, but will enable the trainee to be considered for a teaching timetable that included the EBacc subject in future. 

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Information, Providers

For ITT and NQT Mentors in all Doncaster schools

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Exciting opportunity for ITT and NQT Mentors in all Doncaster schools

PiL – Enhance your mentoring skills

Partners in Learning – Teaching School Alliance & the Doncaster ITT Partnership are working in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University to offer FREE online Mentor training and accreditation.

Mentors have a key role supporting the professional development of Trainees and Newly Qualified Teachers and this programme has been designed to further support your development and provide accreditation for the significant expertise and skills that Mentors have.

All Doncaster Mentors were invited to the launch of the online programme at Castle Park on Tuesday 20th Nov 2018, where we were delighted that Richard Pountney from Sheffield Hallam University delivered the session.

But don;t worry if you weren’t able to make that event, you can still apply to join the on-line programme.