The Department for Education's long-awaited teacher recruitment and retention strategy will include a scheme to give interested people a taste of teaching.
The news comes as a new survey from the government's Get Into Teaching campaign shows that 44 per cent of people think they have the qualities needed to be a teacher.
Tackling the teacher recruitment and retention crisis has been a top priority for education secretary Damian Hinds since he was appointed last January, and the government's overarching strategy is expected to be launched shortly.
Mr Hinds said: “The fact that that two in five people think they have what it takes to be a teacher is fantastic, and I want to give these people to opportunity to see what it is like standing in front of a class.
"As part of our recruitment and retention strategy, we are working on a programme to help interested people discover what a joy teaching can be.”
Discovering 'the joy of teaching'
The DfE said the programme, due to be rolled out over the next few months, will build on the 13,000 people who experienced life in the classroom in the past year via the School Experience Programme, Teaching Internship Programme and school taster days.
Last April, a Tes analysis found that England will need 47,000 more secondary teachers by 2024 to cope with an explosion in the number of secondary school pupils.
And research by the Education Policy Institute found that just one in five physics teachers had a relevant degree, and only half of maths teachers were still working in a state-funded school in England five years after starting training.
The Get Into Teaching campaign will this month launch a new TV advert featuring a cast of real teachers, tracing the life of a pupil from her very first day at school (see below).
Mr Hinds added: “Being at the front of the classroom is a life-changing experience and offers something that few other professions can – the chance to help shape a young person and their future.
"We have 450,000 teachers inspiring children every day in our schools and, if you are thinking of changing your job this new year, why don’t you join them and become a teacher?”
For more information about teaching as a career and to register for the live and online events, click here or call the Get Into Teaching line on 0800 389 2500.
