The partnership website is now live!
Welcome to the first Weekly Update
When an update is posted on the partnership website, trainees and Class Mentors (CMs) will receive a notification email containing a link to it. All the CM and trainee email addresses we have are now in the system. Please could trainees and CMs check with each other that they have received the email. Sometimes these alerts land in people’s trash and spam folders, so please do check these if you can’t find it in your inbox.
All posts can be viewed directly on the updates page and the most recent are always listed in the footer of every page.
The partnership website also has all the relevant documentation including planning templates, observation forms and handbooks.
Induction
As part of the trainees induction to the school, they should familiarise themselves with the content of the policies listed on pages 6 and 7 of the Professional Development Journal and follow the guidance on p5.
Important Information for Class Mentors
Briefing Video
For those CMs who were unable to attend the briefing meeting at the University on 05 Mar. 2025, please could they watch the video that can be found on the briefing video page. The video provides information about the changes to the programme and the current processes and procedures for School Placements.
All the relevant information, including the handbook, is available via the Guidance item in the main menu on the partnership website, and general mentoring guidance can be found under the Mentoring item.
iPads
All trainees have now been issued with a university iPad or iPad Air. These are to be used strictly for the purposes of recording the trainee’s formal lesson observation each week. These devices should remain in school and should only leave the premises once all the recordings have been deleted. Trainees and CMs should therefore review the recordings in school. More details can be found here.
This Week
The Weekly Expectations are outlined in the handbook (p.34). Please do remember that these are for guidance and CMs should guide trainees through them at a pace that is appropriate for their learning.
Trainees need to remember to complete the Policies and Procedures exercise in the Professional Development Journal (p.5) to familiarise themselves with the school’s policies and guidance, especially on safeguarding and e-safety. Pages 6 and 7 of the PDJ should be printed out, completed and signed by trainees and CMs, as it was for SP1.
Weekly Theme
This week’s theme is Behaviour for Learning and on promoting positive behaviour for learning. Trainees have set this week’s FIA target on this subject which should have been set in conjunction with their CMs from SP1.
There are also two activities for the trainees to complete this week which can be found on this page. They are both straight forward and are likely to be completed as part of routines associated with good practice. Activity 2 is essentially the formal lesson observation and the guidance provided for this activity can be used in reflecting on the recording.
Formal Lesson Observation
This week, a formal lesson observation should take place, and be recorded, of the trainee teaching the whole class. To help prepare for this we recommend that CMs and trainees team teach some lessons together which should recorded on the iPads and informally reviewed together. This will help the trainee begin to feel more comfortable in watching themselves on the video.
Positioning the iPad to the front and side will better frame the trainee than if it were placed at the back of the classroom. We recommend a few trails to find the best position before the formal lesson observation takes place. We recommend this first recording is kept so that it may be referred back to in the future to highlight the trainee’s progress.
The agreed focus of this first lesson observation is this week’s FIA related to promoting positive behaviours.
To save CMs and trainees having to watch the entire lesson again on the video, it is recommended that they remember and/or note significant moments during the lesson that can be later reviewed on the video in greater depth teaching moments.
Weekly Review
Please refer to pages 8 and 9 of the placement handbook for full details. The specifics for this week’s agenda are as follows:
- Discussion about the reflection on the targets trainees have been working on: This will include the FIA on behaviour management
- Discuss the trainee’s teaching moments: Teaching moment 2 will relate to next week’s placement theme of questioning and modelling
- Identify the FIA and action plan (and other targets): The FIA should stem from teaching moment 2 and therefore relate to questioning and modelling. Other targets can be set as appropriate but all must be achievable within the week and for those trainees in KS1 should include a teaching of phonics target.
- Compare the trainee’s teaching moments with those of the CM
Target Setting During SP2
All targets and action plans need to be achievable within the week and each week a Focus Improvement Area is identified (see The Weekly Review on p.8 of the handbook).
Targets and action plans should include addressing areas within:
- the Preparedness to Teach Survey
- the Trainee Progress Tracker
- the trainee’s subject knowledge (if appropriate)
- areas of practice observed by the CM this week
Professional Development Activities
Trainees should plan and begin to start the appropriate Professional Development Activities this week. For CMs’ reference, an electronic copy is available here.
Planning
Trainees should start to become familiar with any planning from which they will be creating lesson plans. Please could CMs therefore take time during this week to model the planning process to their trainees.
Primary Entitlement Document
Please could CMs ensure they are familiar with the expectations that are laid out in the Primary Entitlement Document which can also be accessed from the homepage.