‘Examine restriction of teacher applicants’

The Department of Education’s chief inspector has suggested looking at restricting the numbers going into teaching as a possible way of keeping up standards in the profession.

Questions have been raised about regulating intake to teacher-training degrees, as the 3,000-plus annual graduates have had more difficulty in recent years finding work because of education cutbacks. The rise in teaching graduates without work because of these cuts, along with reduced pay for the profession, may be behind a fall of almost 20% in numbers listing teacher-training courses as their first choice on college application forms.

The department’s chief inspector, Harold Hislop, said that, although high-calibre candidates are still applying to teaching courses, international research suggests that restricting access to the profession and the overall entrant numbers have advantages for the long-term good of teaching and schools.