BEING introduced to a class as their “teacher” was a bit of a shock for 22-year-old Kelly Weights, who was only there to try out the job.
But the unqualified modern languages student kept her cool and took the class of 25 teenagers. Ms Weights was one of the first to go on the new, paid teaching taster courses during her degree, and says that they convinced her to enter the profession.
Now training full-time at Edge Hill college in Lancashire, Miss Weights was one of more than 300 students who took part in the undergraduate scheme this year.
The initiative, managed by the Teacher Training Agency, has been expanded to 3,000 places run by universities, education authorities and action zones from Cornwall to Sunderland.
“On the first day of my placement, there was some confusion as I went to my first class. The teacher I was meant to be supporting was actually a supply teacher that day, and he thought he was meant to be supporting me,” she recalled.
“He introduced me to 25 pupils as the teacher, and himself as the support teacher. I was a bit shocked but I did not think it was appropriate to alert him to his mistake in front of the class, so I kept my cool and took the class.”
The regular teacher had left worksheets on numbers in French, which she worked through with the whole group - and rounded off with a number game in the language. “It went brilliantly, and I came away knowing for certain that this was the job for me. It was a make-or-break situation that day, and I made it.”
Students on the scheme receive payments of up to pound;1,000 and can earn credits which theoretically can be used to reduce the amount of time they spend training.
However, a recent evaluation report by consultants KPMG, showed providers were still working out how initial training would be reduced in practice.
Also, the TTA has yet to gather data on the success of the scheme. It still does not know how many undergraduates went into teacher training. There are also doubts over whether it boosted recruitment. Although it was designed to attract new entrants into the profession, KPMG says most students who took part were already interested in teaching anyway.
School standards minister David Miliband said of the pound;4.5 million scheme: “This exciting initiative has the potential to make a real impact on recruitment. I hope this will lead to new and untapped pools of undergraduate talent discovering that teaching can offer them a fulfilling and rewarding career.”
For details about the undergraduate credits scheme see www.canteach.gov.uk
