Vetting for teacher training to be increased

TEACHERS may have to undergo increased vetting before being allowed to enrol on training courses for the profession, the Scottish Parliament has been told.

Skills minister Angela Constance said academic performance alone was not enough to qualify someone for the classroom.

In a ministerial statement yesterday, she said the Scottish Government backed the recommendations to overhaul teacher training in a recent review.

Among 50 recommendations in the review by former school chief inspector Graham Donaldson were basic literacy and numeracy tests for applicants.

Pyschometric tests could also be introduced to ensure schools would receive the most suitable candidates for education rather than simply the most academically gifted, the report said.

One suggestion has been to create a new national assessment centre for would-be teachers.

Other recommendations included teachers being encouraged to continue their training up to masters level.

Ms Constance said a new National Partnership Group would be set up to hammer out the details.

She said: "Universities are autonomous institutions, with the right to select their own students.

"However, they must also accept that there is a legitimate wider public interest in who trains to become a teacher."

Teachers welcomed the emphasis on quality teacher education, but expressed concerns about how the changes would be financed.

Ronnie Smith, EIS union general secretary, said: "You cannot will the end without first willing the means, and it is now up to the Scottish Government and local authorities to put the finance in place to deliver the high-quality teacher education and CPD (continuing profession development], which will support the best possible learning experience for pupils."