The Maths Hubs Programme is available to support all state-funded schools in England, aiming to help improve the quality of mathematics education. Maths Hubs consist of a partnership of schools, colleges and other organisations that work together to provide support for the teaching of mathematics within their region. As of August 2024, there are…

The institutional move associated with embarking upon post-16 study is part of the learner journey taken by many young people in England, including those from widening participation (WP) backgrounds. However, it can present a challenge, although one that has received comparatively little attention from researchers, practitioners and policy makers.…

Against an international policy backdrop that favours school-led initial teacher education, this paper presents the results of a study seeking to explore the role of the teacher mentor in the English context. Using an online survey (n = 64) and semi-structured interviews (n = 7), the study examined how mentors conceptualised their roles and…

Training preservice teachers as teachers of reading is a complex task, as is reading itself. Preservice teachers need to understand the theory that underpins practice; the cognitive skills and knowledge required to read and the contextual factors that impact beginner readers. This longitudinal, mixed-methods study evaluates the benefits for…

In the context of a decade of change and reform in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) policy making, we assess the impact of the substantial changes caused by COVID-19 affecting ITE from the perspectives of eight university providers in England. Whilst previous research has documented the impact of the first period of lockdown in the UK, initiated in…

The English pre-service teacher education system has changed substantially over the past 20 years. There has been a significant shift towards pre-service teachers having their training fully or partially managed and delivered by schools themselves, without the need for university input. However, despite this, the majority of such teacher training…

The period 2010 to 2014 is widely acknowledged as a time of highly significant education reform in England, including of Initial Teacher Education (ITE). The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government introduced a programme of 'school-led' education policies, of which 'School Direct' was intended to shift the balance of power, resources…

When wondering, learners express the desire to know what they do not know, as well as what they already know. In the modern languages curriculum, a language learner who uses 'wonder' is driven by curiosity for the language(s); has questions about the place and the people; has a wish to know more about various cultures; and eventually become a…

Concerns over teacher retention and resilience led to a coaching project designed to support and nurture a group of Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) in a University school partnership. Research interviews were conducted with the group to ascertain the issues that they had faced during the year and impact of the coaching experience. The NQTs…

Started in north-east England in 2015, MammalWeb aims to improve our knowledge of British mammals through the use of motion-sensing camera traps. Fundamental to the project is the involvement of local communities and individuals who act as citizen scientists. They contribute to the collection and analysis of the camera trap photographic data.…

This paper considers how empowering teachers to reach for success in partnership with a Higher Education Institution (HEI) in the North West of England can affect learning in the classroom. Evidence based research is the focus of this study which focuses on working with teachers engaging in their own research beyond initial teacher education. The…

This paper explores geography mentors' written lesson observation feedback by analysing data from across a one-year Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programme delivered through a university-school partnership in England, asking two main questions: in what ways is geography/geographical knowledge discussed in written lesson observation feedback…

Following a decade of shift towards more school-led or school-centred initial teacher training it is time to assess the impact of this change on the roles of mentors and tutors in university based initial teacher education (ITE) partnerships. This paper therefore elicited the perceptions of school-based mentors' contributions to the education of…

This paper reports the findings from a cross-sector research project designed to question how the development of university-school partnerships can influence university academics' pedagogic practice in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Findings from this research are offered at time when, in parallel with countries around…

As school-led teacher education becomes more prevalent in England and elsewhere, new challenges arise for university and school-based teacher educators (SBTEs). Against this policy backdrop we discuss the challenges faced by universities and schools. We draw on findings from our small-scale case study which looked at the practice of a group of…