Another fine mess! The allocation of initial teacher training places for 2016

In their excoriating analysis of The Blunders of our Governments, the political scientists Anthony King and Ivor Crewe offer twelve case studies, or 'horror stories', as they call them, from the...

Teacher educators’ identity

Systematic research on the development of a professional identity of teacher educators is still scarce, but there are indications that teacher educators who become involved in professional...

Universities, schools and a system in flux – looking back on Carter and looking forward to the future of Initial Teacher Education in England

In 2014 I was part of the Carter Review of ITT – an experience that was rewarding, intense and often stressful. I met a student teachers, mentors, heads, university and school based tutors, NQTs...

‘Do It Yourself’ Professional Development (DIY PD)

Before moving in to my current role in teacher education I worked as a primary school class teacher. I loved my job but nearly every Tuesday I would trudge in to the staffroom for a CPD session....

Teacher agency: What is it and why does it matter?

Highlights from the first 1,000 BERA Blog posts

The concept of ‘teacher agency’ has elicited a fair amount of attention recently, including a special edition of Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice. And yet, it remains an elusive...

Applying Intelligence to Teacher Education

I was motivated to write this blog after Michael Wilshaw, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, gave a speech about teacher recruitment and training at the Festival of Education, at Wellington College on...

Structure of professional doctorate programmes

Is it any wonder that there is discussion about the structure of such programmes and what works best for those concerned? What is a doctoral programme? An advanced study of a defined topic? A...

Sustainable schools led teacher education that keeps the baby in the bath

With the election of the first Conservative majority government since 1997, and the re-appointment of Nicky Morgan as Secretary of State, we can confidently expect a continuation of the school led...

Labelling children ‘dyslexic’ could hinder teachers

To what extent do teachers’ beliefs affect their ability to develop successful classroom practice over time? This question is relevant to many aspects of teachers’ roles. Our interest was in...