Well done, ECTs! The autumn term is done, and you are now a third of the way through the academic year. Our tracking has continued here at Teacher Tapp, and we have more insights to share with you.
You can read our first blog here.
Has your experience matched that of other ECTs? Read on to find out…
1. Good news – behaviour is getting slightly easier
Behaviour in December was slightly better for everyone compared to the previous month, and ECTs also saw a little drop in the number of teachers reporting their last lesson was disrupted.
In November, 60% reported their last lesson stopped due to behaviour, whereas in December that fell to 57%.
Looking at all teachers excluding ECTs, behaviour also fell by a similar percentage; however, the important thing to hold onto is that things are getting a little better!
2. ECTs and mentors
Last term we asked some extra questions about how ECTs felt about their most recent mentor meeting.
The good news is that 89% felt supported following their meeting, and just 4% reported feeling very unsupported.
Not only do ECTs leave their meetings feeling supported, but 83% reported they judged their mentor as effective at supporting their development, with just 5% rating their mentor’s support as very ineffective.
And more good news is that 86% said it was easy to raise problems with their mentor (with almost half describing it as ‘very easy’) and just 3% finding it ‘very difficult’.
When the shoe is on the other foot (or perhaps, the red pen held in the other hand), 90% of mentors reported that it was easy to raise problems with their mentees, with just 2% finding it ‘very’ difficult.
This all points towards mentors and mentees who are finding it easy to communicate with each other; something that is essential in these types of professional relationships.
3. Mentors who want to be mentoring
As the saying goes, some people are born great, and others have greatness thrust upon them…and when it comes to mentoring, only 23% volunteered for the role, 41% were asked, and 35% were assigned without any choice in the matter.
However, there is good news to report regarding mentors and their feelings about the Early Career Framework. Since its inception in 2022, Teacher Tapp has been tracking how mentors of ECTs feel about the ECF, and it’s good to report that positive feelings about the ECF mentor training have increased.
- 23% have applied what they learned UP from 18% in 2022.
- 19% are glad they did the training UP from 15% in 2022.
- 33% felt it took longer than it deserved DOWN from 48% in 2022.
- 31% would have skipped it if they could DOWN from 34% in 2022, and 38% in 2024.
- 5% felt it wasn’t applicable for their role, DOWN from 8% in 2022.
4. ECTs and AI
Just under a quarter of ECTs used AI to plan their most recent lesson, compared to 13% of non-ECTs. While this isn’t necessarily a problem, it’s useful to be aware of the different approaches to planning taken by ECTs and their mentors, and to check in with the tools being used.
5. Supporting ECTs
What help are schools giving their ECTs?
Around a third of ECTs told us they have support in addition to their mentor sessions and timetable reductions. The support they receive varies: 10% have fewer break or lunch duties, 9% have support making phone calls home and 8% have support during parents evenings.
13% are given networking opportunities, and 8% have extra time off their timetable in addition to their ECT entitlement.
Words of advice
When trainees first enter the classroom, they are usually bombarded with teachers giving them advice. But how much of that advice is good advice? We asked our Teacher Tapper ECTs to tell us the BEST advice they have received so far, and then did not disappoint. Over 100 Tappers wrote in, and here are our favourite gems:
“Someone in my first week of PGCE said to learn to live in the tunnel rather than try to see the light at the end. Meaning the deadlines are always coming thick and fast, so pace yourself. I use this daily and leave at 5 every day – never afraid to do the priority tasks and sacrifice the less important ones for another day, or not at all.”
“You set the weather in the classroom. Look after yourself and your emotional wellbeing,” advised one ECT, with another also saying: “Make sure you look after yourself too – happy teacher = happy kids.”.
“No lesson will ever go how you want it to, be kind to yourself and get the idea of perfectionism out of your head early doors,” sensible words from one ECT. Another advised: “This is a performance – the students don’t know your lesson plan, so don’t stress if you missed something out by accident; you can always do it next lesson.”.
