A proposal for trainee teachers to go through an extra year of on-the-job training will not go to Cabinet this month, as reported below. A Ministry of Education spokesman on Sunday told the Herald the proposal was "one suggestion" being considered. Yesterday the ministry said the draft set of proposals was "not yet complete and not been circulated externally". Education Minister Chris Carter said in a statement the ministry's advice was not yet complete and no proposal was going to Cabinet this month.
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Trainee teachers will be forced into an extra year of on-the-job training under a proposal going to the Cabinet this month.
It follows an eight-month examination of the quality of teacher education which has raised serious concerns over the standards of those entering teacher training and the competence of those graduating.
The review drew more than 100 submissions from the education sector, many of them attacking the quality of trainee teachers and training providers.
"I have sat on intake panels and have been horrified as to who has been selected for [teacher training] college," one submission read.
The Ministry of Education is drafting recommendations to go to Government ministers this month.
One of these is that trainee teachers should have an extra year of in-class placements.
Thousands of students begin teacher training courses today as universities start the new term.
Teacher training courses range from a one-year graduate diploma to a three- or four-year degree.
Increasing the work placement by an extra year would respond to a demand for graduates to be more "classroom-ready".
The review attracted submissions from people in early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary education.
Some urged tougher entry criteria for those wanting to become student teachers.
Others said graduates needed to be better educated in subjects they would eventually be teaching.
Another said training colleges had to be tougher on students who weren't right for the job, instead of the trainees "cruising through".
A further response said schools were left to deal with incompetent new teachers after they slipped into the workforce.
The review was ordered last year by the then Education Minister Steve Maharey, after an Education Review Office report in 2004 found widespread problems with graduates in their first two years of provisional registration.
Almost half of beginner secondary teachers and a third of novice primary teachers did not reach the required level of competence.
The review's report - Becoming a Teacher in the 21st Century - suggested a "significant minority" of teachers gaining full registration might have been falling short.
It raised questions about the selection of teacher trainees and the quality of training and graduates.
It also found that the relatively low public regard for teachers compared to their standing in many other OECD countries was a problem.
Despite the perception of short hours and long holidays, few people wanted the job.
While many other countries had a centralised system that controlled entry to the profession, New Zealand relied more on schools to judge if, after two years in the classroom, teachers were ready to be fully registered. This led to a "variable quality" in knowledge and skills of new teachers.
The New Zealand Educational Institute - the country's biggest teacher union - said yesterday the review didn't acknowledge that new teachers shouldn't be expected to be experts from their first day on the job.
The union also contested the review's emphasis on new graduates "not being up to an expected employer standard".
"The majority of people who go through do make the grade," NZEI president Frances Nelson said.
Some submissions to the review pointed out other problems.
"There are a number of schools who are in crisis and staff turnover creates issues for new staff who lose their 'mentor' teacher," said one. "Often staff in these schools are in survival mode and mentoring young teachers is not a priority."
* MUST TRY HARDER
Submissions on teacher training standards:
"I have sat on intake panels and have been horrified as to who has been selected for college."
"We have had several students through our centre that we have considerable concerns about ... We wonder why their providers have allowed them to get this far!"
"Some academic standards (ie, maths and literacy) are pretty low, or in my view unacceptable. Some students should not get in at the start."
Source: Ministry of Education
