Initial Teacher Education in England: outlining the field

ITE has been through a radical and wide-ranging shift over the past five years in England. This is after a period of more general instability since at least 2010. This book will explore some of the core issues which underpin both the nature and purpose of ITE as well as explaining the nature and impacts of the recent policy changes which have changed the ITE landscape. Therefore, the book will begin by explaining the purpose and structure of initial teacher education and why it is an important part of the wider school ecosystem. This will act as a basis for contextualizing the nature of England’s ITE system in comparison to those of international partners. How is it different? How is it similar and why? There will then be a longer, historical view of the English system, describing and highlighting the major trends in ITE and the major policy and sectoral changes which have led to the current system.

These discussions will then allow us to explore how England can be identified as an outlier in terms of the characteristics and policies dictating the English system and how we evaluate this difference. Can we learn anything form other countries, are they able to learn anything from us? The final element in the book will then consider some of the issues facing the ITE sector, including continued recruitment issues, pressures and opportunities impacting those who work in ITE, and the degree to which the sector is incoherent or at the forefront of ITE reform.

This book will play an important role in locating ITE in the current educational landscape, by looking at its immediate history, the issues which are currently important in dictating its role, and the challenges it faces, all within a wider international context. This is important as this book will act as the foundation for a new series exploring issues in ITE by a number of educational academics, and as such will not only set the context for his series but will also pose a number of important questions.