The Chartered College of Teaching - Head's Blog
Posted on: 19/01/2018
In February 2017 I attended the inaugural conference of the ‘The Chartered College of Teaching’. It was an exciting launch for the College which has been set up as a teacher-led organisation to support professional development, promote and share evidence-informed practice, and recognise excellence. The key aims of the College were to develop a chartered teaching programme, to encourage teachers to engage with research-informed pedagog and to provide the best teaching for the best outcomes for pupils.
I have attended several Chartered College events throughout the year and was so proud recently to attend a regional hub event, on a Wednesday evening after school hours, along with ten members of staff from St. Helen’s College. The event organiser was overwhelmed by the numbers of St. Helen’s College staff in attendance!
So often in education teachers feel that the only way to progress their careers is to go into leadership thus we end up losing many excellent teachers from the classroom. This can be very unsettling for school communities if it means there is no continuity and consistency for the school. We are very fortunate at St. Helen’s College that we have a very dedicated and motivated team and a very low turnover of staff. Our staff are so committed to improving pedagogy and practice to be the best practitioners we can be for your children.
This month sees the launch of the pilot programme for teachers to achieve chartered teacher status. I am delighted that Ms Matthews, Head of EYFS, has been selected as one of the 150 participants to embark on this rigorous 14 month programme. She will join teachers from around the UK and two international schools as part of the first cohort. Becoming a chartered teacher will be hard to achieve and the planned programme is demanding, but we know that Ms Matthews will bring her expertise to the programme and as a school we will also gain from the work she will undertake.
I have also been invited to sit on the assessment board for this cohort of the Chartered Teacher programme and, in so doing, I am honoured to represent St. Helen’s College and the independent sector. Feel free to view the video on the link below - Justine Greening’s speech had clearly touched a nerve with me that day!
