Trainee Development & Support

University tutors use the Formal Lesson Observation & Weekly Evaluative Reviews to track trainee progress across their placements, then, at the end of each term school-based mentors write a formal report which is used alongside the trainee's own presentation to paint a picture of their progress alongside the Strands of our Curriculum.

Where a trainee needs support, the documentation and guidance below is designed to help school-based mentors.

End of Term Reporting

NU Only - Accessing The Online Reporting System, Resetting / Requesting my Password

(2mins)

Completing the End of Term Report

(6mins)

Monitoring The Learning Of Trainee Teachers

Monitoring the Learning of Trainee Teachers 2026-27.docx

(We find this useful when observing lessons, it helps us to determine the stage of progress within the 5 strands of our ITT Curriculum. We also use some of the terminology when providing constructive feedback)

Trainee Teacher Support Processes

If a trainee is struggling to meet the expectations and targets set, the following advice is offered to support them, and you (their mentor).

There are basically 3 steps to this process, and very often, reference to the proposed solutions and ideas offered within Step 1 are sufficient to illustrate the issue clearly and find solutions.

Should the issue require an Extra Support Plan or PPC Focus Card to be raised, we would ask that you ALWAYS involve their University Lead Mentor, and the University Programme Directors.

Why Do Trainees Struggle?

Cognitive Challenges in Initial Teacher Training and Novice Teachers

Learning to teach is complex, and just as our pupils may struggle to learn, so too might our trainee teachers. This summary helps remind Mentors of some of the reasons why a trainee might appear to be making less progress than expected... Sometimes a reasonable adjustment or recalibration of our expectations is all that is needed to support the trainee in overcoming a particular challenge.

Trainee Support Step 1 - Suggested Approaches to some Common Challenges

Secondary PGCE Section 6 - Trainee Teacher Support Processes

(If your trainee is struggling in some way, it is likely that this has happened before! We have tried to provide some helpful advice to the trainee, school and university-based staff in this document as a first step to helping to resolve the issue)

Extra Support Process Overview

Overview of Extra Support Process Event Timeline.pdf

Trainee Support Step 2 - Extra Support Plan Guidance & Template for Progress Issues

Secondary PGCE Section 6.2 Extra Support Planning Process.docx

(For trainees who are not making expected progress and who need clearer instructions, goals and support in place to do so)

Trainee Support Step 2 - Extra Support Plan Guidance & Template for PPC Issues

Mentor Guidance for PPC Issues.docx

(For trainees who are not meeting the expected standards of Personal & Professional Conduct)

PPC Focus Card Example and Templates

PPC Focus Card Templates.docx

(For trainees needing to focus on a specific aspect of their PPC as part of an Extra Support Plan)

Trainee PPC Self-Evaluation

PPC Trainee Self-Evaluation.docx

(Trainees will complete this during the first 3 weeks of their placement and return it to their University Lead Mentor)

Still need help?

Wellbeing Charter

We are committed to placing wellbeing and mental health at the heart of our decision-making and supporting our trainee teachers to make positive choices for their own wellbeing during their initial training year and beyond. The wellbeing charter sets out our commitments to them. We aim to:

Give them a voice.

Give them the opportunity to share their views through the Student-Staff Committee.
Give them regular opportunities to provide feedback to the PGCE team.

Prioritise their wellbeing.

Work with the disabilities team to support them in overcoming specific barriers to learning.
Prioritise mental health support with a named member of the welfare team attached to the PGCE.
Agree clear communications guidance.
Provide opportunities for regular drop-ins while on placement so that they can seek support if needed.
Assign them a personal tutor (Lead Mentor / Teacher-Learning-Tutor) to support them throughout their training.

Support them to organise their time.

Give all dates in a timely way to enable them to organise their workload.
Provide a weekly training plan to help them prioritise activity and ensure they know what is coming up.

Support them to manage their workload.

Carefully sequence assignments to reduce the impact of these when they coincide with peak placement activity.
Focus on utilising and adapting existing high-quality resources and schemes of work.
Adopt a staged approach to lesson planning so that demands reduce over time.
Emphasise a flexible approach when responding to children’s work; self-marking, peer-marking, verbal feedback, live marking.
Continually review our placement documentation to ensure this is necessary and purposeful to both trainees and school-based mentors.

Teaching is the best job in the world, but it can be demanding and present challenges. It is therefore important that they inform us of anything that they might need support with over the course of the year. Please ensure that your trainee does this!

Wellbeing Support

Newcastle University Wellbeing and Student Support

Trainees can be directed to further information on Postgraduate Student Support at Newcastle University here: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/wellbeing/our-support/postgraduate-support/

Durham University Wellbeing and Student Support

Trainees can be directed to further information on Student Support at Durham University here: https://www.durham.ac.uk/colleges-and-student-experience/student-support-and-wellbeing/

Academic Support

Newcastle University Academic Support

In support of completing the PGCE Modules, advice on developing their academic skills can be found here:

https://www.ncl.ac.uk/academic-skills-kit/

Durham University Academic Support

In support of completing the PGCE Modules, advice on developing their academic skills can be found here:

https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/centres/academic-skills-centre/

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse