The Northern Ireland professional growth challenge: towards an integrated model of teacher education

Abstract

This article describes developments in teacher education in Northern Ireland (NI) which aim to integrate the three preliminary phases of teacher development. The research for the article has been informed by a number of sources of evidence. An evaluation questionnaire was circulated to all Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) (Secondary) student teachers in June 1997 on completion of the new school-based programme. Personal involvement in the induction of newly qualified teachers and in planning for the programme for early professional development has enabled ongoing monitoring and evaluation of development. In NI the new programme of initial teacher education (ITE) was implemented in 1996, and while it shares some of the characteristics of ITE in England and Wales, it is quite different in two major respects. Firstly, no formal system of mentoring exists and secondly, no financial resources are transferred from the higher education institutions to schools. From the outset there was a strong commitment to integrate the three phases of early professional development and this is evidenced in the way the competences have been assigned to the initial, induction and early in-service phases of teacher education. An integral feature of the new arrangements was that all student teachers on 1-year PGCE courses were to receive a career-entry profile (CEP). These have been used during 1997-98 as a basis for setting targets for their professional development during induction. Induction in the future (by January 1999) is to be followed with a structured 2-year programme for early professional development (EPD). This article aims to review these initiatives and to examine them with particular reference to partnership, competences and integration and mentoring practices.