An advanced teacher status (ATS) is to be launched for people teaching in the FE sector who can demonstrate “mastery” of the profession.

ATS has been created by the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) with the aim of “improving and championing the quality of the sector’s teaching and training profession”, which it describes as critical to “achieving the vision for a world-class technical and vocational education system”.

Holders will also be conferred Chartered Teacher Status by the Chartered College of Teaching, once the programme has been launched in the schools sector. The ETF says this will “cement parity of professional status between those teaching and training across all educational contexts”.

The plans for advanced status were first revealed by Tes in May 2016. The new status recognises experienced professionals who can demonstrate:

• “Mastery in teaching and/or training”;
• An “exemplary degree of subject knowledge” in their area of professional expertise;
• Effectiveness in “working collaboratively to improve teaching standards amongst their peers or within their organisation”.

The status has been created following consultation with members of the Society for Education and Training (Set), the ETF’s membership body. An ETF statement said: “Members expressed how, following the achievement of their Qualified Teaching Learning and Skills (QTLS), they wanted to be able to aspire and develop towards a nationally recognised badge of enhanced professional expertise.”

‘The Master Teacher’

In order to be eligible, a candidate must be a Set member and have been a qualified teacher for at least four years. The status is designed for professionals teaching post-14 learners in all possible settings, including FE colleges, adult and community learning, work-based learning, employers, schools and offender-learning settings.

To achieve ATS, teachers and trainers will build supporting evidence over a minimum of nine months or one academic year. An initial cohort of up to 50 teachers will be recruited during the summer to start in October. Further cohorts will start during 2018. The fee for the first cohort will be £250, later rising to £750.

ETF chief executive David Russell said: “This is a landmark moment for the further education and training profession. Excellence is found all around the world in very diverse education systems. But one thing that they have in common is a respect and recognition for the Master Teacher, who has developed deep expertise in both the theory and practice of teaching.  In our context of FE, that expertise must encompass dual professionalism - mastery both of subject or occupational field and of teaching.

“Gaining ATS will be a deserved and highly sought-after badge of recognition for experienced teachers and trainers who continually demonstrate a high level of expertise and effectiveness, and are willing to spread their positive influence within or beyond their organisation through collaboration and practice-based research.

“Parity of status for those teaching and training across the whole education sector is also important. We are very pleased that FE will be the first sector in education to develop a route to Chartered Teacher Status.”  

Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, said ATS “recognises FE college lecturers’ unique skills and knowledge and further embeds a professional ethos in the sector”. “If ATS is to be successfully developed and implemented, the ETF must ensure it consults widely with those working in colleges, through the education unions,” she added.

David Hughes, chief executive of the Association of Colleges, said: “ This is a positive step for further education and will build on the achievements of teaching staff. We must support teaching staff to reach the highest levels. Not only will ATS ensure there are clear career paths, it will also help attract and retain people.”

Want to keep up with the latest education news and opinion? Follow Tes FE News on Twitter, like us on Facebook and follow us on LinkedIn.