The different phases of a trainee teacher…

Is it really week 5?

As a trainee teacher your development goes through many different phases. The first few weeks of your training year will have been full of information – things to read, sessions to attend, staff to meet, children whose names you need to learn.

Now you will be reaching the first turning point of your development.

​You are still in Phase one - the phase in which a trainees' main focus is on themselves as developing teachers - but you may now be starting to settle into your training, and just beginning to be aware of how much more there is to learn!

​Those of you on a SCITT programme will be starting week 5 in your schools now. Does it feel like you have been there forever?

Are you beginning to find your way around? Are you getting used to routines - and to expectations of you as a teacher?

If you are a PGCE trainee, you may still be at college – learning about all those things I have written in my blog posts to date, and desperate to actually get into school to put them all into practice!

Turning point...

Either way, this is a turning point in your development as a trainee. You now know more than you did at the start of September! Loads more. But it just makes you realise how much you still don’t know…
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For some of you this is an exciting challenge. For others there is a risk that you will allow the doubts to overtake the experience.

Don’t!

By acknowledging that you are still learning – and that although it may feel like you have been there forever - this is ONLY week 5! 

​Those of you who come across to others as confident members of the subject team you have joined, may also be finding that your colleagues start to forget you are still training.

​Don’t let them!

Keep asking questions; tell them if you are unsure about something; don’t automatically say ‘yes’ to something they are asking you to do, unless you are comfortable doing it.

When trainees struggle...

​Some years ago I was working with a trainee who was absolutely fantastic. She came across as a natural teacher, and appeared to pick up all the tips and advice she was given quickly.

We were very comfortable giving her grade 1s for most of the standards. She seemed settled in the school, and was asked to support the PE department in some of their fixtures. Of course she said yes – she was honoured they had asked her, and she was pleased because it met the standard for becoming part of the life of the school. She also offered to support the SENCO and worked alongside several students who were struggling in their learning. 

These are both fantastic examples of how to get involved - but there came a stage in her training where she was struggling to keep up to date with assignments, marking, planning and preparation of resources. She knew she should really stop going to as many of the fixtures, or see if she could cut down on the amount of additional students she was mentoring.

The trouble was she didn’t want to admit to anyone that she was finding it hard. She thought it would come across badly for her, and that it may appear as though she was failing.

​Fortunately, her mentor was very observant! She eventually admitted not only to struggling, but also to feeling that she had to keep it to herself. 

The message is...

...at this stage in your training you need to remember you are still learning and appreciate that all of you are learning at different rates.

​Don't look at other trainees around you and compare your progress with theirs.

​Keep the dialogue open with your mentor and ITT coordinator – they fully understand what you are going through.

​Don’t keep things to yourself. Sharing your concerns, doubts and questions demonstrates your ability to reflect on your practice, and talking to appropriate key people shows your professionalism with regard to your role as an adult learner. 

If you have anything you wish to ask me, please get in touch.

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