Teacher Support
Becoming a Physics Teacher
If you are considering a career in teaching physics, fortunately for you, physics teachers are in great demand. The national shortage of physics teachers means that the subject is classed as a priority subject by the government’s Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA). To encourage new people to enter the profession the TDA awards the highest possible tax-free training bursary to physics teacher trainers and provides a range of training routes.
Your path to becoming a physics teacher may follow a number of routes to reach Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), which is the legally required qualification to teach pupils aged 4 to 16 in state maintained schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. QTS can only be obtained by successfully completing Initial Teacher Training.
The Options
Initial teacher training comes in all shapes and sizes– no matter what your qualifications, experience, preferences or personal circumstances. The TDA website details all the training options available to you, including information on funding, bursaries, application guidance and how to gain teaching experience. Visit www.tda.gov.uk
Initial Teacher Training Courses
Once you have selected the training route of your preference, a comprehensive list of Initial Teacher Training Institutions can be found on the Graduate Teacher Training Registry (GTTR) website, www.gttr.ac.uk. This is the centralised site for Initial Teacher Training applications, and applications are now open for the 2010/11 academic year.
Subject Knowledge Enhancement Courses
If you have a degree in a science related subject such as Archaeology, Building Science, Ecology, Environmental Science, Psychology or Sports Science for example, you can still train to become a physics teacher by attending a Subject Knowledge Enhancement Course prior to your training. Courses are available nationwide, for further information on these course refer to the pages on the TDA website.
After visiting the TDA and GTTR websites, if you still have unanswered questions please email our Marketing Manager for Teacher Recruitment, Kirsty Jones kirsty.jones@iop.org who will be able to assist you.
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