FAQs

Why is the EBITT route best for me?

The employment-based route to qualified teacher status is designed for people who learn best whilst doing the job.  We all have different learning styles and a different aptitude for how we build up our store of knowledge.  Some people excel in a study-based situation; where they can learn from others in workshops and discussions. Some learn far better from individual research and study. Others may enjoy a certain amount of this type of learning, but gain far more skills from actually doing the work and learning as they progress.  EBITT is ideal for this latter group.

I have no teaching experience at all – can I still join the programme?

The Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP) is perfect for people who have not taught before as you will get every opportunity to progress towards your qualification in a classroom environment with maximum support.  You will need to have a lead school that has agreed to sponsor you as an employee throughout the programme.  And you will need to have completed a reasonable amount of work within a school before you will be accepted on to the programme.  This might be as a volunteer,  for example helping young children with reading or as a sports coach or even producing the school play.  Generally the applicants with the most experience of the school environment do better in the application process so the more time you can spend in a school, the more chance you will have of getting on to this very competitive course.  This is all part of STORM ensuring that we select the most appropriate candidates who will become part of a select group and go on to become the highest quality teachers.  Schools are interesting and unique places and the more you know about how they operate the better position you will be in to start training in one.

The GTP programme is also a very popular route for teaching assistants and technicians who want to step up into the qualified status of the profession.  Some of our students have worked in schools for years as classroom support staff but have been unable to adopt the responsibilities of teaching.  Our programme provides the training and support to secure that essential qualification.

There are also valued and experienced members of the teaching profession who have not yet had the opportunity to qualify.  The GTP route provides these individuals with the much-desired qualified teacher status (QTS).  They are still required to follow the programme along with other students and their presence often provides a valuable asset in training sessions as they share their first hand experience.

I’ve heard that some areas get priority – what does this mean?

The government has recognised that there are shortages for teachers in certain subjects and categories of teaching.  We are all keen to help more people into these categories and we provide additional support for trainees who want to teach in these areas.  These are :

MPC Group

• Maths
• Physics
• Chemistry

Priority Group

• Design and technology
• ICT
• Modern foreign languages
• Biology

Primary Schools

• Male teachers in primary schools *

*There is a national shortage of male primary teachers and this area has been given priority in previous years.

Does STORM have a diversity policy?

At STORM we are very keen to create a new profile in schools – one where the diversity of teachers reflects that of the pupils they are teaching.  In this respect STORM has a commitment to diversity and welcomes appicants from all backgrounds and across all sections of society.  You can read more on our diversity policy here.