The General Teaching Council for Wales (GTCW) has put forward a business case to the Welsh Assembly Government for mainstreaming the Chartered Teacher Programme.

Mal Davies, chairman of GTCW, has written to the Welsh Assembly Government Education Minister, calling for the Programme to be fully funded and introduced in September 2010, scaling up to full implementation by 2014 which would see some 500 teachers able to participate each year.

This recommendation is supported by an independent evaluation of the two-year Chartered Teacher Programme pilot, which was carried out by The Centre for Applied Education Research at the University of Wales Institute Cardiff, on behalf of GTCW.

The Chartered Teacher Programme is being developed by GTCW to provide experienced teachers in the middle of their careers with the chance to receive professional recognition for their teaching achievements and to help raise the status and standard of teaching in Wales.

A total of 122 teachers took part in the initial pilot that ran between September 2007 and July 2009.  One hundred and fourteen of these piloted a number of taught modules aimed at classroom teachers and middle leaders.  Eight followed the Portfolio Route which requires experienced teachers to submit a portfolio of work to demonstrate they reach the standards required of a Chartered Teacher.

An extended pilot is currently taking place on certain aspects of the pilot to be completed by March 2010, to ensure the Chartered Teacher Programme is fully refined for the launch later in the year.

The evaluation team carried out the assessment through a mixture of research methods including questionnaire, face-to-face and telephone interviews, observation at teaching sessions, reviewing documentation and attendance at provider meetings.

The report outlines that the Chartered Teacher Programme has considerable potential to further develop the quality of teaching in schools, to provide a leadership role for expert teachers at school, and to support a number of Welsh Assembly education strategies such as the School Effectiveness Framework. 

As a result, it recommends that the Welsh Assembly Government should, as part of its current review of continued professional development and leadership programmes, consider a full implementation of the Chartered Teacher Programme in Wales.

Professor David Egan, from the Centre for Applied Education Research, said:  “The evaluation has been written on behalf of a team made up of one of Wales's leading headteachers and three accomplished classroom practitioners. We believe that if our recommendations are adopted, the Chartered Teacher scheme has great potential for both developing the teaching profession in Wales and raising the quality of teaching in our schools.'

Hayden Llewellyn, deputy chief executive of the GTCW, said: “This independent review of the pilot clearly demonstrates the potential benefits the programme could bring to the teaching profession in Wales, as well as the education system more widely.   

“There are clear national professional development arrangements for teachers at the beginning of their careers and for those going on to train for headship. However, there is nothing in place nationally for the vast majority of teachers in the midst of their careers. We hope that the Minister will make a decision soon to fund the Chartered Teacher Programme to bridge this gap in the near future.

“With the recent decision by the Welsh Assembly Government to cut continuing professional development funding, it is absolutely essential that the Welsh Government supports the adoption of Chartered Teacher as a matter of priority.

“What’s more, the programme will help to drive forward standards in teaching and to raise the status of the profession, to bring it in line with other professions of a similar standing.”

If the Welsh Assembly Government agrees to mainstream the Chartered Teacher Programme, GTCW hopes that the first teachers will start the Portfolio Route in September 2010 with a view to gaining Chartered Teacher Status in February 2012, and teachers on the Taught Route will begin in September 2011 with a view to achieving Chartered Teacher Status from 2013 onwards.Case Study

Extended Pilot - Bangor Module

As part of the extended pilot for the Chartered Teacher Programme, a group of teachers in North Wales are currently undertaking a module entitled ‘Education for All’.  The module is being provided jointly by Bangor University and the North Wales Association of Special School Headteachers.

The module will aim to develop teachers’ awareness of the challenges and barriers to delivering education for all pupils in a socially just and inclusive education system, and give teachers the opportunity to consider a range of creative solutions and innovative thinking in addressing these challenges. 

The assessment will be a school-based project designed to enable participants to reflect on how their school caters for pupil diversity.  The participating teachers have recently decided which particular aspect of pupil diversity they want to explore to try to find a more effective approach.

Acting head of modern foreign languages at Flint High School Sarah Mason, age 36, who has been a teacher for eight years, has decided to explore the issue of young carers for her assessment.  Working alongside Barnardos, Sarah will examine how young carers can be identified at school, and how they can be supported.

Sarah said: “I want to examine what sort of support network we, as a school, can implement, and how we can help young carers to help themselves.  The issue of young carers is something that is often overlooked by teachers, and therefore I feel my project will really help bring around some tangible benefits to students at the school.

“Inclusive education is extremely important and it is therefore necessary that, as teachers, we are able to identify the needs of all students – which is something we have been learning about in more detail as part of the Chartered Teacher module.

“The module has so far been really interesting and has opened my eyes to a range of new issues that I would not have otherwise had the opportunity to explore.  I definitely would want to continue with the course to obtain the Chartered Teacher qualification if the scheme is mainstreamed in Wales.”

Fellow pilot participant, Julia Williams, is also a teacher at Flint High School.  Julia, age 52, has also been a teacher for eight years, and, as Head of Art will be studying the issue of gifted and talented pupils’ learning within art.  Julia is planning to conduct a school -wide audit of targeted activities for gifted and talented pupils, and then focus on the provision of gifted and talented learning activities within art and design.

Julia said: “Participating in the Chartered Teacher scheme has offered us the opportunity to gain a more in-depth understanding of various different aspects of teaching.  I definitely think the scheme would bring many benefits to the teaching profession as it offers teachers the opportunity to reflect on their teaching and consider ways to improve in certain areas.”

The module will be completed in February 2010 and the results and feedback from the module will help refine the chartered teacher taught programme.