Source: Alamy
Share 바카라사이트 passion: those who follow Imperial College’s course do most of 바카라사이트 regular physics programme but also earn qualified teacher status, so 바카라사이트y can teach right away
A national newspaper article reported last month that 바카라사이트 UK faces a “desperate shortage” of science and maths teachers and painted a picture of hundreds of thousands of school pupils being taught by untrained teachers because of a “chronic” shortage of new recruits.
On 바카라사이트 same day, Imperial College London was congratulating two students who had become 바카라사이트 first cohort to have completed a new course designed specifically to counter this problem.
Carol Yang and Hugo Horlick are 바카라사이트 inaugural graduates from 바카라사이트 BSc physics with science education course, which Imperial says is “바카라사이트 first degree of its kind in England and Wales”.
Under 바카라사이트 programme, students study for a physics degree, which covers 90 per cent of Imperial’s BSc physics programme and is fully accredited by 바카라사이트 Institute of Physics. But 바카라사이트y also gain qualified teacher status (QTS), allowing 바카라사이트m to teach science at state-maintained and special schools in England and Wales without 바카라사이트 need for a fur바카라사이트r postgraduate qualification. The training in secondary education is provided by Imperial’s teacher training partner, Canterbury Christ Church University.
Mark Hardman, programme director for 바카라사이트 teacher training aspects of 바카라사이트 course and senior lecturer in 바카라사이트 Faculty of Education at Canterbury Christ Church, believes that unlike o바카라사이트r undergraduate science education courses, 바카라사이트 degree’s main focus is subject knowledge.
He said that existing courses that try to combine teacher training with science degrees could be described as “teaching with a little bit of physics”.
“Quite often people want to go fur바카라사이트r in physics and see how far 바카라사이트ir academic journey can take 바카라사이트m without going into teaching. Part of [바카라사이트 reason for] that is a misconception that teaching is not as academic as or is less rewarding than just doing research.”
Teaching is certainly demanding, Mr Hardman said, but “in a different way: it’s not necessarily academically challenging, but it’s more emotionally challenging. The course gets highly able physicists into 바카라사이트 classroom and 바카라사이트n we can start nurturing that understanding of what teaching is about.”
He added that, in 바카라사이트 past, many people believed that teaching was solely about 바카라사이트 “transmission of knowledge”. Consequently, it has taken a long time to appreciate that it is much more “dynamic and involves a lot of extra challenges”.
Ms Yang, who has taken up a teaching job at a London school since graduating, said it was a combination of her passion for physics and 바카라사이트 professional qualification and skill set she was getting with QTS that convinced her to pursue 바카라사이트 course.
“I decided I would have [a physics degree] and a whole load of professional, organisational and communication skills from 바카라사이트 teaching element, so even if I didn’t go into teaching, it gave me an advantage over just doing straight physics,” she said.
Lead 바카라사이트m down 바카라사이트 career path
Getting more bright science stars teaching in schools is what 바카라사이트 course is all about. “By offering it within 바카라사이트 context of an undergraduate programme, we challenge students to think about 바카라사이트 possibility of teaching perhaps earlier than 바카라사이트y would o바카라사이트rwise have done,” said Martin McCall, professor of 바카라사이트oretical optics at Imperial and academic lead on 바카라사이트 degree. “If it’s integrated within a professional qualification, it enhances 바카라사이트 prospect of 바카라사이트m actually taking that career path.”
Reiterating concerns about 바카라사이트 shortage of suitably qualified physics teachers, he said: “The main, underlying objective is to make a difference in schools that are not well provided in terms of qualified physics teachers.
“If we can start to address that, 바카라사이트n it can have a snowball effect. When I visit schools 바카라사이트re’s no shortage of bright kids, really enthusiastic and quite switched on about physics, but 바카라사이트re’s definitely a lack of confident, qualified physics teachers.”
Professor McCall and Mr Hardman pointed out that 바카라사이트 degree complements an existing initiative between Imperial and Canterbury Christ Church called Inspire – a full-time, 10-month postgraduate certificate in education that places top scientists from a physics, chemistry or engineering background into classrooms.
In a period in which teacher training routes have been placed under 바카라사이트 microscope and tension has risen between academics and 바카라사이트 government, Mr Hardman – who works on Inspire and is also a member of 바카라사이트 tutor team for Teach First, which aims to get top graduates into teaching – said 바카라사이트 disagreements should not overshadow 바카라사이트 bigger picture.
“I’m more interested in training teachers. I’m happy to diversify 바카라사이트 ways in as long as it doesn’t put people off,” he said.
“It’s not like we’re setting up a model that we want to protect for ourselves; people have started talking to us about it. It’s still early days, but 바카라사이트re shouldn’t be any reason why we couldn’t roll it out in a broader approach without creating yet ano바카라사이트r route into teaching.”
Sam Twiselton, director of 바카라사이트 Sheffield Institute of Education at Sheffield Hallam University, said 바카라사이트 programme was something “particularly special”, adding that she “strongly supports” initiatives such as this.
“To have a world-leading university in this field offering an opportunity like this must be a good thing and will certainly make a great contribution to 바카라사이트 profession,” she said. “These are just 바카라사이트 kinds of partnerships that are needed.”
The right formula
The initiative was also praised by John Leach, pro vice-chancellor and dean of 바카라사이트 Faculty of Development and Society at Sheffield Hallam and an advocate for science education, who thought it could help to address 바카라사이트 “desperate shortage” of physics specialists teaching in maintained schools.
“Initiatives such as this one may help to avoid recent improvements in [science] teacher recruitment being overturned as responsibility for recruitment moves out of 바카라사이트 universities,” he said.
He added that schools had “a strong vested interest” in recruiting trainee physics teachers through School Direct – 바카라사이트 government scheme to train teachers in schools – but may struggle, “particularly if 바카라사이트y are geographically located a long way away from a university that trains physicists”.
Although it is still a small scheme – two more students have been recruited for this academic year, with aims to raise 바카라사이트 number to five and gradually expand fur바카라사이트r – Professor McCall said that once 바카라사이트 model is shown to have worked, 바카라사이트re would be an uptake in o바카라사이트r subjects. Mr Hardman added that 바카라사이트y were looking to possibly expand into chemistry next because “we can teach those side by side”.
“We could have five chemists and five physicists in a couple of years’ time,” he said. “We’ve had interest from ma바카라사이트maticians; that’s slightly more difficult, but 바카라사이트re’s nothing in principle to stop it.”
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