‘Letting the right one in’: provider contexts for recruitment to initial teacher education in the United Kingdom

Davies, P, Connolly, M, Nelson, J, Hulme, ML, Kirkman, J and Greenway, C (2016) ‘Letting the right one in’: provider contexts for recruitment to initial teacher education in the United Kingdom. Teaching and Teacher Education, 60. pp. 291-302. ISSN 0742-051X

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Abstract

We exploit policy differences within the UK to investigate provider context and recruitment to initial teacher education (ITE). We identify three dimensions of variation: conceptions of professionalism, universal or context specific preparation and costs and benefits to providers. University-led ITE programmes used similar criteria and processes in each jurisdiction, but there were differences between university-led and school-led recruitment. Our study suggests that the current shortfall in recruitment to ITE in England may be a product of the contextual constraints which schools experience. It also suggests that school-led recruitment may tend to emphasise short-term and school-specific needs.