I can say with great certainty that the standard of teacher training in this country is lamentable. In my view it is the single biggest factor when it comes to our slipping academic standards. Teachers coming from years of university training are just not ready for the rigors of teaching.
It isn’t surprising that Principals have noticed this. That is why new teachers often find it extremely difficult to get their first job. They are constantly overlooked, regardless of their grades, passion, determination and communication skills. They aren’t overlooked for who they are, but rather where they have come from.
But where the Principals get it all wrong is that they place the blame on the quality of the teachers graduating rather than the quality of the training program. This is a cheap shot and is extremely unfair to the exuberant and idealistic teacher graduates served so poorly by training courses steeped in the theoretical and starved of the practical:
TEACHERS should face one-year internships before they get jobs, to stop underperformers permanently entering classrooms, principals will tell the Federal Government.
Australian Secondary Principals Association executive director Rob Nairn said school heads wanted to see a better selection process for teacher education and year-long internships — longer than current teacher practical places — could be a way of doing it.
“At the moment, we have some teachers who are underperforming,” he said.
“We have got to get better at selecting teachers for teacher training.
“We then have to get better at supporting those teachers and developing those teachers so that every teacher is a good teacher.”
Mr Nairn said the principals association would be suggesting the changes to the Federal Government’s Teacher Education Ministerial Advisory Group.
Click on the link to read my post The Bizarre Call to Train Teachers Specifically for Left-Handed Students
Click on the link to read my post Why Professional Development for Teachers is Often Useless
Click on the link to read my post Finally, a Step Forward in Education
Click on the link to read my post Tips For New Teachers from Experienced Teachers