Your Future Their Future
We are training the next generation of modern languages teachers in England! Our one-year course is unique in that it is solely focused on modern languages and offers placements in a network of both state and independent schools across England.
It came about as a result of our success recruiting and training Modern Languages teachers through School Direct. We have worked with the Department for Education to establish a subject-specific School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) provider for Modern Languages. Our SCITT represents a new partnership between the state and independent sector offering a wealth of experience and tremendous opportunities to train to teach in a wide range of contexts.
Our SCITT is part of Chorus Education Trust which has, at its heart, Silverdale School – an Ofsted-rated ‘Outstanding’ secondary comprehensive with a long history of specialising in teaching modern languages, which regularly achieves some of the best exam results at both GCSE and A-level in the region. Key to Chorus Education Trust is its Teaching School, the Sheffield Teaching School Alliance, which is a long established Teaching School, and one of the largest, working with 50+ schools in South Yorkshire and Derbyshire.
Our learning community believes in the power of language to transform lives and to create life opportunities for all our children and all our school staff. Our passion for languages and language learning has led to the creation of a programme which will prepare all our trainees to teach languages in the state and independent sector. It is the aim of the SCITT to establish geographical hubs which will centre around a cluster of state and independent schools in a local area making it easier for trainees to find a location that suits their needs.
We are continually developing our network of geographical hubs, which centre around a cluster of state and independent schools in a local area making it easier for trainees to find a location that suits their needs. We currently have hubs in London, Bolton, Oundle, Abingdon/Oxfordshire, Sheffield & the Peak District.
The National Modern Language Teacher Training SCITT Programme
Our course is the only national teacher training course specialising in modern languages. We aim to equip you with everything you need to become an outstanding teacher. You will receive specialist training from leading experts in how to teach modern languages, combining academic study with hands-on experience in the classroom. You will be part of an exclusive cohort of trainees, all specialising in language teaching.
The programme is designed to meet your own, individual needs as you train to teach. There are also common elements which apply to all trainees. With the help of your school you devise an Individual Training Plan (ITP) at the start of the year which is regularly reviewed. After ascertaining your initial training needs in September, your Mentor then plans, with you, this individual programme of support across the year. A new ITP is put together at the start of each of the three phases of the course.
This process is supported by tasks set for you to complete after each Day School. An additional Activity Bank provides clear examples for you and your school of the type of activity the school could offer to supplement the activities you complete between Day Schools over the course of the year. This is design as a support for schools and may not be needed if you are getting ample experience through other training offered by the school.
Why teach?
There are many reasons why people want to teach.
Often, it’s because they enjoy working with children and young people and they want to make a difference to their lives.
Sometimes, it’s driven by a real passion for their subject area or they are inspired by their own experience of education.
Advantages of Our Course
You will spend most of the year in your placement school, however, you will also spend six weeks in a second school; these arrangements are statutory. This second school will complement your first placement to ensure you have a varied experience of schools.
Our choice of placement school is based upon your experience to date, areas for development and any relevant personal circumstances. We want you to be happy in your placement school and will endeavour to take any personal requests into consideration.
In addition, you will have the opportunity to visit a special school. This will help you to develop your skills so that you are prepared to teach the full ability range of students and see differentiation in action!
From the moment you join us you will be supported by an experienced and friendly team, from the SCITT Director and lead teachers to the admin personnel and school based mentors. In the early induction period you will be encouraged to get to know your peers and develop your own close knit family of fellow trainees across the partnership, who will act as invaluable support as the year progresses and later on as you begin your career.
You will have subject specific training with your Lead teacher and seminars with university lecturers. Our experienced and caring leaders and staff will be able to help you with all aspects of the course and support you personally if the going gets tough!
We have a genuine commitment to your continued professional development and our close relationship with the Sheffield Teaching School Alliance enables us to provide the expertise to support you every step of the way.
After you have accepted your place on our course your professional development will start. Several documents/tasks will be sent out in stages to get you ready for the official start of your teacher training.
We will gather information from you which will help us to get to know you better and highlight any additional training needs you may have.
We have an excellent track record of supporting our trainees into employment, and aim to support you throughout your teaching career.
Your peers on the programme come from a wide variety of backgrounds with at least one thing in common – you all speak at least one language in addition to your mother tongue. You have a wealth of linguistic and cultural expertise. It is our job to show you how to build on this as you become teachers of languages.
Our programme has been set up to ensure that you receive individual, targeted support and guidance as you develop as language teachers. Lead Teachers, Mentors and Link Lead Teachers work in close partnership to make this happen.
Our programme is designed specifically to meet the needs of languages trainees working in English schools. Many of you, not all, will be native speakers of languages other than English (e.g. French, German or Spanish).
We offer you a first class, school-based training programme leading to QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) with PGCE (Post Graduate Certificate in Education) and Masters’ credits.
We work closely with Sheffield Hallam University to ensure that all of our students achieve not only QTS but also PGCE with 60 Masters’ credits. Our students also have full access to all of the facilities at Sheffield Hallam University.
We offer a unique familiarization programme, which allows you to meet your peers and have an in-depth introduction to the English education system as well as teaching and learning prior to going into your first placement school. This means that when you start in your first placement school you will feel fully prepared.
