Our Programme

Our research-informed programme develops your knowledge, skills and professional behaviours through a strong focus on what great teachers know, do and believe.

Following a two-day induction conference, you will be immersed in classroom practice from the very start of the academic year. Your training is structured into four developmental phases:

• Prepare: September – October
• Develop: November – December
• Embed: January – Easter
• Enhance: April – July

In each phase of the programme, you will typically spend four days in school and one day each week at centre-based training, connecting theory into practice and deepening your understanding of effective teaching. Training is delivered through a blend of face-to-face and online sessions, held at a regional training venue close to you, our state-of-the-art conference centre in Knottingley, West Yorkshire or via Microsoft Teams.

You will be fully supported throughout by a team of specialists including members of the Exchange Teacher Training central team, regional teams, your Lead Mentor, school-based mentor, and phase or subject lead, alongside national and local experts delivering our innovative, research-led curriculum.

As an integral part of the curriculum, you will also participate in Immersive Days and three Intensive Training and Practice (ITAP) experiences. These focus on pivotal aspects of teaching practice and provide structured opportunities to observe, rehearse and apply what you have learned. They strengthen your understanding of the link between research evidence and classroom practice, exploring behaviour for learning, adaptive teaching and oracy and vocabulary instruction.

Our assessment of your progress comprises three Holistic Review Summaries (HRS) across the year, alongside continuous formative review and feedback. This ensures that you can confidently evidence the Teachers’ Standards and are fully prepared to achieve Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).

All our teacher training programmes lead to QTS and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) worth 60 master’s level credits, awarded by Ofsted Outstanding Sheffield Hallam University. You will complete two academic assignments during the year to gain your PGCE qualification.

Benefits

• Research-informed: Our curriculum is underpinned by the best available evidence, including The Model for Great Teaching (Great Teaching Toolkit Evidence Review) – identifying what teachers know, do and believe to make the greatest difference to pupils’ learning.
• Theory into practice: Centre-based training takes place weekly and is immediately applied in school with the support of your mentor.
• Integrated spiral curriculum: Each phase builds on prior learning, providing multiple opportunities to revisit, refine and embed key areas of practice.
• Practical and immersive: You will spend up to 39 weeks in placement schools, engaging directly in professional learning and teaching practice.
• Fully supported: You will work closely with experienced mentors and experts who guide your development as a confident, reflective and inspirational teacher.

In exceptional cases, such as where a trainee already holds a PGCE, we offer a QTS-only route.