GUIDANCE FOR UNIVERSITY VISITING TUTORS
Secondary
October 2013
CONTENTS
SUMMARY OF UVT RESPONSIBILITIES
GUIDANCE FOR UVT VISITS
TRAINEE’S FILE ORGANISATION
THE FIRST VISIT – JANUARY/FEBRUARY
THE SECOND VISIT – APRIL/MAY
GUIDANCE FOR SUPPORTING A TRAINEE IN DIFFICULTIES
IMPACT OF TRAINEES’ TEACHING ON PUPILS’ LEARNING
SUMMARY OFPAYMENTS FOR UVTS September 2012
What to do if…..?
This document should be read in conjunction with the Programme Handbook. Both are available on the University of Exeter website at
Follow the left-hand-side links to UVT Information
SUMMARY OF UVT RESPONSIBILITIES
Before the placement the UVT should:
Attend the UVT training session at the University of Exeter
Become familiar with the Programme Handbook, Guidance for UVTs, Teachers’ Standards (for QTS), new documentation and information in the UVT Pack.
Make arrangements to meet with the trainee to discuss the school-based work placement and to become familiar with his/her strengths/areas for development identified in the IDP.
Contact the school ITE Coordinator to arrange visits, at least TWO weeks before the intended date, using the email pro forma, making clear that the UVT will need an arranged timetable to include opportunities to carry out the responsibilities listed below.
During the placement the UVT should:
Support and monitor the trainee’s progress by
observing the trainee teaching, jointly with the Tutor where possible.
monitoring the trainee’s progress in relation toTeachers’ Standards (for QTS), discussing the trainee’s progress with the trainee/Mentor/Tutor and relating it to evidence in the IDP and teaching files.
giving feedback to the trainee jointly with the Mentor/Tutor, where possible.
within two days of the visit, providing a written report for the trainee, using the UVT Visit Record, and sending a copy to the Partnership Office to be placed on the trainee’s file.
keeping written records of discussions.
calling an additional conference of the trainee and ITE Coordinator/Mentor/Tutor in the case of any significant difficulties, after discussion with the Secondary Partnership Coordinator and approval by the Programme Director.
arranging a review meeting with the Programme Director/Head of ITE where a trainee is considering interruption/withdrawal (part-time UVTs will arrange this through the member of staff buying them in or, for secondary, through the Secondary Partnership Coordinator).
in collaboration with the Mentor, issuing a Cause for Concern letter to a trainee not demonstrating sufficient progress, and reminding the school to send a fully signed copy of the letter to Partnership Office.
confirming and signing the Formative Reflection on Achievement and Progress (Part 2) at the Partnership Office once it has been received from the Mentor (or it can be signed by the full time tutor in place of a part time UVT if necessary).
attending the relevant examination board if required.
providing advice and support for a trainee following a fail decision at the examination board.
Support and monitor school provision by
checking and signing the trainee’s QA Record to ensure that the agreed support is being given by the Mentor/Tutor/ITEC.
ascertaining that the partnership programme is being implemented fully, cross-moderating school provision with that of other partner schools and dealing with any reported difficulties or omissions.
alerting the ITE Coordinator to any shortcomings in the school provision and contacting the school later to check that the situation has been remedied
notifying the Partnership Director of any concerns.
After the placement the UVT should
Ensure that the Partnership Director is informed of the quality of the school’s provision, including specific trainee concerns and in relation to other partner schools’ provision, by completing a UVT evaluation at the end of the placement. This will be emailed to all UVTs by the Secondary Partnership Coordinator.
If hourly paid, submit a claim form for £115 per visit to the Secondary Partnership Coordinator (secondary). This new increased amount is to include subsistence (lunch etc.).
Submit a claim form for travel to the Partnership Office, ensuring that all receipts are attached as claims cannot be paid without them.
* Please note that a copy of each Visit Record and Lesson Observation Form must be sent to the Partnership Office.
Hours and payment
See table at back of handbook.
GUIDANCE FOR UVT VISITS
General:
Our visits are very important in quality assurance: checking that the school provision meets all our requirements. Our target is to help schools get better at what they do, when necessary, rather than to criticise existing provision.The more energy we invest in this, the better the experience for our trainees. If anything is not being provided – demonstrations, weekly meeting, supervisory conferences etc – we must raise it with the relevant school staff promptly yet diplomatically. Our visits are also opportunities to improve the training provided in a supportive way, by modelling effective training, by assisting teachers to see how they can help in more explicit and constructive ways.
Try to see the Principal Subject Tutor (PST), Mentor and ITECoordinator(ITEC) if possible, but don’t worry if you can’t see all three. The PST must be seen, or contacted by phone/email after the visit if s/he was unavailable.
Our visits are important to the trainee.We act as a lifeline to them and, being outside the school, we are impartial observers of their teaching.We should give detailed and focused feedback during the visit, not just enjoy a nice chat (though this is important!).The aim is to leave the trainee feeling good; with a clear sense of what is going well, but also a focused sense of what to work on next.Avoid giving too much feedback, but make what feedback you do give very sharply targeted.
The visit record prompts careful monitoring of provision and reminds us what to look for.If the trainee is well-organised, much of this checking will not take a great deal of time and establishes good routines.If the checking process is taking you a lot of time, make sure the trainee realises the need to be well-organised in advance of your next visit.
Any additional visit mustbe approved by both the Programme Director and the Partnership Director, so that budgets can be effectively managed.
Planning the visits:
Precise scheduling of the two visits will inevitably vary slightly due to timetables and geography but as far as possible should be during the weeks specified in the handbook, with the Summer term visit taking place before FRAP 4, and avoiding the first week of the placement.
Please send your visiting schedule to your subject leader as soon as it is complete so that s/he has an overview.
Where a UVT has a large number of trainees to visit, those who have caused some concern on the most recent FRAP should be targeted for an early visit.
It is CRUCIAL to send the email pro forma to arrange the visit to the ITE Coordinatorwell in advance (at least two weeks). You might like to email the trainee as well to let them know in case the information does not filter down. Failure to inform the school in advance often leads to a complaint from them. We encourage trainees to arrange a timetable for our visits. Ideally, all trainees will adopt a professional and organised attitude towards these visits!
After the visit:
The trainee should be left with a copy of the Visit Record (carbonised) and any notes made on the spare carbonised paper. Send another copy to the ITE Partnership Office so that it can be placed on the trainee’s file, and keep the remaining carbonised copies.
The Visit record is also available on the website at UVTs who prefer to complete it electronically. If you do not complete the visit record during the visit, you should send it within two days.
After the visit, please send the trainee’s University Personal Tutor a brief summary of your visit, which can be based on a photocopy of the Visit Record. Please let Corinne Greaves or the trainee’s Personal Tutor know of any major problems immediately.
If there are any issues raised during your visit or any incomplete documentation, it is important that this is followed up: for example, if the Supervisory Conference was not scheduled, phone the ITE Coordinator a few days later to check it is in place; or if the trainee had been writing poor agendas, request they send the two agendas for the following week by email for you to check. This kind of follow-up is crucial in ensuring the training provision meets trainees’ needs.
You should familiarize yourself with the Programme Handbook before starting on your visits and check that you know how all the documents work.
TRAINEE’S FILE ORGANISATION
Teaching File:
This should be separated clearly into teaching groups (e.g. year 10; year 7 etc)
Each section should have:
Class list
Performance data including IEPs
Scheme of Work (this should be the class teacher’s scheme in January)
Lesson plans
Resources
Miscellaneous information
Some trainees prefer to have a separate folder for each class – this is perfectly acceptable.
Individual Development Portfolio:
This should be organised using the Index given to the trainees and also available on the website.
There should be a clear distinction between the Teaching File, which is a record of teaching and pupils’ learning; and the IDP, which is a record of the trainee’s own learning and development.
THE FIRST VISIT – JANUARY/FEBRUARY
The purposes of this visit are to check that the trainee and school fully understand the system, and to provide targeted support and feedback to both the trainee and the Principal School Tutor. A joint observation with the Principal School Tutor should be arranged if at all possible. The joint observation is an opportunity to achieve consistency of judgments across schools and to model good feedback with the Principal School Tutor
Check that:
you make the joint observation clear on the visit notification card.
thetimetable detailsare correct, that the trainee is not teaching too much or too little
the Weekly Development Meeting is timetabled and that the trainee is completing theWeekly Development Meeting Record: check particularly that the content is focused and the targets set are appropriate and realistic;
Supervisory Conferences are timetabled
theProfessional Studies Programme is in hand;
the IDP is developing appropriately, using the Index on the website, with a particular focus on:
annotated agendas, clearly distinct from lesson plans , with particular reference to the selection of an area of classroom work that the trainee needs to develop; also check whether the annotation is non-evaluative;
the Formative Reflection on Achievement and Progress (FRAP)- completed in discussion with the Mentor and with reference to the evidence;
theAction Plans are deriving from Supervisory Conferences, and contain useful targets.
the Teaching File is well-organised, looking particularly at:
Lesson plans – clarity of learning objective selected; relationship with lesson content; structure of lesson;
Understanding of frameworks within which planning is set e.g. NC for subject or examination syllabuses;
Use of ICT both on a personal level and to support pupils’ learning.
Lesson observations are being undertaken by the PST and that informal and formal feedback is taking place. The formal observation feedback should take place at least twice a week on the Lesson Observation Form.
Lesson evaluations are reflective, critical and forward looking.
Demonstrations are targeting appropriate areas for development and that the trainee has opportunities to observe outstanding practice
that the Quality Assurance Recordis being maintained; you sign this to evidence your visit;
training provision is meeting individual needs: look at how choices for Agendas and demonstrations, target-setting on Weekly Development Meeting Records and Action Plans are directly related to your trainee’s development. Make sure that able trainees are being given sufficient opportunities for independence and that they target the Teachers’ Standards, where appropriate.
THE SECOND VISIT – APRIL/MAY
The purposes of this visit are to check that the trainee and school fully understand the system, and to provide targeted support and feedback to both the trainee and the Principal School Tutor. This visit is also an important point for checking that the trainee is progressing at a rate appropriate to their individual needs, and to ensure that the documentation is both stimulating and recording this progression. Again, a joint observation with the Principal School Tutor should be arranged if at all possible. The joint observation is an opportunity to achieve consistency of judgments across schools and to model good feedback with the Principal School Tutor. This visit is also important in determining whether the trainee is on track to meet the Teachers’ Standards. With able trainees who have already met the Teachers’ Standards (and a level acceptable for QTS) or are likely to do so at FRAP4, this is a chance to discuss what appropriate enrichment opportunities will be provided. With struggling trainees, it is important to identify development needs and training opportunities to ensure success, wherever possible. The observation on this visit should be of the trainee in the class alone unless this is inappropriate.
Check:
that you make the joint observation clear on the visit notification card.
that thetimetable detailsare correct, that the trainee is not teaching too much or too little
the Individual Development Portfolio is developing appropriately, with a particular focus on:
annotated Agendas: especially that they are distinct from lesson plans as at this stage some trainees still muddle the two; and that they are sufficiently challenging the trainee’s thinking;
Action Plan 3 deriving from Supervisory Conferences: especially the usefulness of the target setting.
that the IDP is well-organized and maintained;
the Teaching File is also well organised, looking for clear evidence of short and medium term planning, imaginative resourcing, and well-chosen teaching strategies;
that Supervisory Conferences are timetabled
Lesson observations are being undertaken by the PST and that informal and formal feedback is taking place. The formal observation feedback should take place at least TWICE a week on the lesson observation form.
the Professional Studies Activities (these should be read, not just ticked off, to show they are important);
evidence of assessment: not just the marking of written work against NC or syllabus criteria, but also assessment of oral tasks, the use of diagnostic assessment, the use of peer or self-assessment, and the use of statistical performance data;
evidence of differentiation: appropriate use of IEPs; awareness of the needs of the most able; the use of a variety of differentiation strategies in lessons; appropriate pitch and pace in lessons;
that the feedback on lessons and target setting in Weekly Development Meetings and Supervisory Conferences is sufficiently challenging for able trainees, sufficiently focused and supportive for struggling trainees, and provides evidence of impact of trainee’s teaching on pupils’ learning;
that evaluations of both lessons and Agendas are reflective, critical, forward-looking, and focused on pupils’ learning: you might wish to suggest some more challenging questions to be considered in evaluation by able trainees;
thatdemonstrations are still continuing, pitched at the appropriate level. These may involve seeing demonstrations in lessons outside of the trainee’s timetable, including possible demonstrations in other subjects. These should remain focused on a particular skill, or group of skills, and are distinct from observation opportunities;
training provision is meeting individual needs: look at how choices for agendas and demonstrations, and target-setting on Weekly Development Meeting records and Action Plans are directly related to your trainee’s development. Make sure that able trainees are being given sufficient opportunities for independence and that they target the Standards, where appropriate
that the trainee moves on to the Extension and Enrichment phase if the Teachers’ Standards (for QTS) have been met by the completion of FRAP4. Time for Extension and Enrichment activities is within the required contact time, not in addition to it. Some trainees may undertake Extension and Enrichment activities in a Special School. See programme handbook for details.
that the trainee and the school are aware of the Career Entry Development Paperwork (CEDP) and the procedures for its completion.