What I look for in a new teacher
I’ve just finished conducting interviews for the PGDE course that I teach on here in Scotland. Although I obviously can’t share anything relating to our current applicants, I thought it would be interesting to reflect on what I look for in a teacher, and what you might need to think about if you are (or someone you know is) thinking of entering psychology teaching in the future.
Teaching Psychology
I have taught psychology for most of my career, beginning at around the time that it was first introduced to schools and colleges here via the (at the time) new Scottish Higher and Intermediate qualifications.
Since then, the subject has steadily grown – especially at school level. When I started it was relatively unusual for secondary schools to offer the subject at all, and when they did, it was usually done via a school-college partnership, with pupils travelling in to an FE college once or twice a week.
That still happens, but it's now much more common for schools to have an in-house psychology department, or to offer the subject in partnership with another local school. Higher and N5 Psychology are both widely taught, and some schools have started to offer the subject at younger ages as well.
There is still huge room for growth, though – far too many pupils are denied the opportunity to study this vital subject. Check out this blog post for more about the benefits of studying psychology at school level.
How can I get into psychology teaching?
As with any form of secondary teaching, the standard approach is to have a degree plus a teaching diploma (for Scottish schools, usually the PGDE – ‘Professional Graduate Diploma in Education’).
In Scotland, it used to be the case that most school teachers of Psychology began by training in a different subject, meaning that ironically it was quite hard to become a psychology teacher if you had a single honours degree in the subject! Now, the University of Strathclyde offers a PGDE in Secondary Psychology Teaching – and I teach on it.
The PGDE can also prepare you for work in the FE sector (some of our students do placements in colleges), or you can alternatively complete a TQFE (a training course aimed specifically at this sector) in Social Science teaching.
What are you looking for in an applicant?
It's hard to specify what we want in an applicant because there isn't just one type of person who will make a good teacher. But for me, an important starting point would be:
A good degree in the subject (or be in your final year of a degree at the time of application)
Some experience of working or volunteering with young people.
Psychology is still a bit of a niche subject, so it would also be helpful if you have enough university credits (usually 80) to qualify in a second teaching subject as well.
Of course, I also like to see some drive and passion for the profession! Prospective teachers will usually have given some thought to what is in the syllabus, and to the teacher’s role more generally. They will have considered some potential challenges that lie ahead, and will be ready to take these on.
Some tips (beginning with the quick and easy and getting progressively more time consuming):
Don't assume that your own school experiences will be a good guide to what teaching is like today.
Look at the SQA course specification documents and recent past papers for the relevant courses.
Find out what the most popular textbooks are (for Psychology, some of them are here).
Get in touch with one or more current teachers of the subject – if you don't know any, then use Twitter. Ask them what courses/topics/year groups they teach. You can also ask them about links with other areas of the curriculum such as PSHE/mental health and wellbeing.
Try doing an N5 or Higher specimen paper yourself, and mark it using the online marking instructions.
If possible, arrange to visit a local school and shadow the teacher for a day (however, do not expect a traditional 'work experience' placement – that model doesn't work well in teaching, as schools are already busy mentoring student teachers).
Read some books about teaching, whether or not they are specific to psychology teaching (there is a great list here).
If possible, gain some relevant experience with young people e.g. volunteering at weekend study support sessions in a local school or library.
If possible, gain some direct classroom experience e.g. by spending some time teaching English abroad.
What is the interview and selection process?
I’ll focus on what I do for the Strathclyde PGDE – it may differ for other courses.
The first step is to apply via UCAS, with the standard January deadline for summer entry (the PGDE lines up with school terms, so it starts in August).
Some applications are then invited to interview, and I make offers on the basis of a combination of the strength of the paper application/qualifications and the interview itself. Entry is competitive, but I'm always keen to interview enthusiastic applicants.
Some do's and don't's for the interview (most of which would apply to any teaching subject):
Do show your passion for the subject, even if you think it makes you sound geeky.
Don't be rude – and that includes making assumptions and comments about the interviewer such as age or appearance (you'd be surprised how often this happens!).
Do present a long-term commitment both to teaching and to the subject. Show ambition – I won't laugh if you say you want to be a headteacher one day.
Don't repeat cliches or myths about education (this indicates that you haven't read sufficiently widely).
Do be specific about courses, age groups and topics that you hope to teach.
Don't focus on the difficulties that you have experienced, or how hard your current job is. I want to hear positive reasons that you want to get into teaching, rather than about other options that haven't worked out.
Do get in touch (if you are not successful) to ask for feedback, and consider applying again after taking that feedback on board. We have taken teachers on at a second or even third time of applying.
A call to action
Overall, there's never been a better time to become a psychology teacher! Higher Psychology is now a huge course taught at many Scottish schools and colleges, and an increasing number of centres are offering the subject to the S1-4 age group, too. It’s even more widespread south of the border.
And yet there is still considerable room for growth. Denmark, a country with a comparable population to Scotland, has 4x as many psychology teachers as we do! Many of our schools still don’t offer the subject at all, and a large proportion of those that do restrict the subject to S5-S6.
We’d always love to see more applications, as the more good candidates we get, the better the chances are of ensuring that the subject is taught by committed, high-quality teachers. Getting in now has its challenges, for sure, but there are also great opportunities to be a future leader in the subject.
Further reading: What’s it like to teach psychology?