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Since taking over as Head of Learning in January, I have been charged by the Trustees of the Robert Owen Foundation to fully integrate our three Teacher Training Consortia ready for 1st September 2010. This development follows several discussions with the Training & Development Agency for Schools (TDA), who themselves were charged with rationalising ITE provision across the country, in organisations where there were multiple contracts for ITE delivery.

Following on from extensive consultation with staff and other parties, the model that has been developed, integrates our School Based Initial Teacher Education (SCITE) and our Employment Based Initial Teacher Education (EBITE) programmes. The two types of provision have many similarities. In particular, they are both essentially school based and rely heavily on the roles of the school based mentors to work with trainees within a framework of co-operative values.

There are however, a number of important differences that were looked at; in the main, these issues have been solved by the recognition by our teacher training staff that they will now be working with a wider range of trainees across both SCITE and EBITE routes and hence, the delivery of ‘education and training’ will be shared by all tutors in the delivery of the programmes 2010/11. The important aspect of these changes is that they are very much evolutionary rather than revolutionary.

In consequence, our partnership schools and trainee teachers will, in the main, not notice the difference in day to day activities since the SCITE provision will continue to have the weekly one day central training sessions and the EBITE will depend on the use of school based working materials delivered through the mentors in schools via Moodle/VLE provision. The course content will be similiar across routes. Trainees will still be on either Secondary, Primary or Early Years pathways delivered via SCITE or EBITE delivery methods. The successful residential programme undertaken during half terms by the EBITE Trainees has now been extended to include Trainees following the SCITE programmes. As a result of this, there is now able to be full 5 day weeks timetabled into each term (towards the end of placements) for SCITE trainees to “experience” and enhance their understanding of school life.

Managerially we are also making changes to the structure, making it flatter and more school orientated.

Apart from the Head of Learning and Head of Initial Teacher Education all Robert Owen ITE staff will be defined as “tutors”. Each of the Secondary and Primary/Early Years programmes will have three senior tutors who will be responsible to the Head of ITE for particular aspects of programme delivery. Cluster tutors will visit both SCITE and EBITE trainees within their defined clusters, thus providing one point of contact for partnership schools for all “Robert Owen” trainees.

Clearly, during this first year of change, we are concerned to facilitate the development of appropriate systems and involve partners, staff and trainees in updating them as appropriate. We are confident that Trainees will benefit as we move forward, and that what we learn this next year will itself support further developments moving forward.

Finally I would like to thank all colleagues who have worked with me in developing these changes. In particular I would like to thank the three SCITE Programme Managers; Christine Brown, Doug Lowe and Mike Carter who will be leaving their current posts at the end of Term. They have all worked selflessly to ensure the programmes provided by the Marches Consortium and West Mercia Consortium are of such good quality. They have supported and worked with me to develop the integration of the SCITE and EBITE programmes. We all wish them well for the future.

George Mardle, Head of Learning

G. Mardle 01.07.10