Teach First 2017

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Hi guys I had my assessment on Thursday, and I haven't heard back yet but several others who attended on the same day Have had offers.

My question is, I know that they say 7 days but when did everyone here actually get their offers??

Do they send out the successful responses first?

I heard back the second working day after the assessment centre.

Reply 61

NLP123

Hi guys! Does anyone know when abouts we will be told where we are based once we receive an offer (if we receive an offer 😂), does anyone know how likely it is to get their preference for location too! I put London as my top preference

Reply 62

8781

Original post by NLP123

I was told November-December as the first wave of allocations.

Reply 63

T ankin

Original post by 8781

I was told November-December as the first wave of allocations.

Yes it's from November onwards. They also said that even if you're unconditional you may not be allocated in the first round as they want to make sure they place you in the right area.

Reply 64

Gingham_Apple

Original post by SarahGrace92

I received my offer to teach secondary RE last week. I am over the moon and can't wait to start! (It sucks that I have one more year of uni left..)*
In regards to the changes to the PGDE and pay, I had a look on the website and they have updated the info to include the PGDE and it still states that LDP participants will receive NQT salary in their 2nd year. Obviously, this isn't conclusive information but it would be odd for them to change the website for one thing and not another.

<https://graduates.teachfirst.org.uk/leadership-development-programme/salary-benefits>*

Hi, I've just been given the title of my RE sample lesson and I'm really struggling with it! If you don't mind me asking, how did you prepare and present your sample lesson?

Reply 65

amiekey

Hi guys! I have my assessment centre on Friday (30th Sept) and I'm pretty nervous! Applying now to defer my entry ready for when I graduate in 2018.

What tips would any of you recommend for the lesson? I'm a little daunted by it!

Reply 66

jcbayliss

Original post by amiekey

Try to plan something that you can either extend or cut short if you get through your material quicker (or not as quick) as you are expecting.
Expect the two assessors to behave like the age you are teaching! In mine, one pupil was very keen to answer questions whilst the other was slouching and seemed disinterested. So, have a plan for if a pupil is misbehaving or seems bored-this may be because they are acting 'more advanced' than their peers and are finding the task easy.

I had my assessment centre last Friday 23rd September and am pleased to have been made an offer to teach Secondary Maths-I heard by 11am Monday so they do get back to you very quickly.

Reply 67

Kresta

Original post by amiekey

Yes, I'd say plan for the age you feel comfortable with if you have no preferences regarding topics/subjecs.

Reply 68

amiekey

Original post by jcbayliss

Wow, well done! Thank you for sharing your experience - will make sure I have more body planned :smile:

Reply 69

SarahGrace92

Hey, I struggled with mine too. I found it hard because RS is a very expansive subject and the title's are very broad for 7 minutes! I spoke to my recruiter about this and he said that at this stage they are not so bothered by the content but more the teaching style.
I made my lesson super interactive and asked both the students questions directly. They will have their names written in front of them so it's easy to address them by their names. I picked out the important words that the students need to remember and laminated them so that I could teach the topic around those words and play games with them later.
Just make sure your topic fits into the brief. For example I was given the core values of two or more religions and chose to focus on life after death.
Make sure you practise it over and over as this will increase your confidence when teaching it. It's the only part of the day you can really prepare for. I found the interview and group task much harder than the lesson so it's nice to have that to fall back on. Hope I've helped!

Reply 70

Gingham_Apple

Original post by SarahGrace92

Thanks for that. I have that question too! I feel a bit more confident about it now that I've had more time to prepare - fingers crossed for me!

Reply 71

minnow

I got my offer to be a Primary Teacher earlier this week. I was a little surprised as I'd prepped for ks3 English and was under the impression that unless I'd specified that I wanted to do Primary I'd be given older children. Really psyched though!

For people who have the Assessment Centre coming up, couple of general tips (that hopefully aren't too repetitive if you've already read what everyone else has had to say) -

1) Self Evaluation is a really important part of the day. It's one of their key competencies and you are given ample opportunity after every exercise to reflect and report back on how it went. Think about areas you struggle with/have improved on as well as the ones you're extremely excellent in and how you'd discuss that with a potential employer.

2) Don't stress too much about the activities. Your lesson and the group activity aren't designed with a pass/fail mentality, they're designed to see how you react in specific environments. With that in mind, let me reiterate what everyone else has said and say that you don't need to cram everything about your chosen subject into 7 minutes. If there are three aspects of topic in your title you only need to cover one of them if you want. If you can come up with activities that get the 'children' talking rather than you, all the better.

3) Be positive about the experience. I was genuinely shocked by how many people at my Assessment Centre said that they didn't like teaching, or didn't like discussing things in groups ect ect. It's fine to be nervous (I know I was)! But why would you be applying to this opportunity if you don't like the things you'll be doing while you're on it? And why would you say so in front of the people who are potentially employing you?

Good luck everyone!

Reply 72

Gingham_Apple

Really great advice here. So how did you guys deal with the children in the sample lesson?

Reply 73

ejn2

Hi guys, do you know how long it takes for Teach First to get back to you about your initial application and whether you've got through to the AC or not?

Reply 74

T ankin

Original post by ejn2

Hi guys, do you know how long it takes for Teach First to get back to you about your initial application and whether you've got through to the AC or not?

I heard the next day, but I think it is up to ten days. Good luck 😊

Reply 75

Akbar2k7

OMGGGGGG,

Got an assessment date ! so AMPED! I am confident I can prove myself I already have classroom experience. Fingers crossed.

Reply 76

scindapsus95

Original post by ejn2

Hi guys, do you know how long it takes for Teach First to get back to you about your initial application and whether you've got through to the AC or not?

Original post by T ankin

I heard the next day, but I think it is up to ten days. Good luck 😊

Same, for me it was around a day or so. Now that the recruitment season is picking up though it may take them a little longer. Should be relatively soon though - best of luck!

Reply 77

star9005

Original post by Akbar2k7

OMGGGGGG,

Got an assessment date ! so AMPED! I am confident I can prove myself I already have classroom experience. Fingers crossed.

Hey, congrats for your invitation! :smile:

Just a quick heads up - don't rely too much on your classroom experience, as most people won't have any, so it's not the only or biggest criterion for getting accepted.

The AC has three different sections, and only the last one is about actual teaching - I got rejected even though I had classroom experience and they said my sample lesson was 'fantastic'.

Don't forget to keep in mind all the competencies. Good luck! :smile:

Reply 78

TheWuzzy

Wasssup yoooooo! I did the assessment centre last Monday (10th) and currently filling out my CKA - it's an absolute stinker! I'm worried that I'll have got this far ... and then suddenly fail at the last hurdle! :frown:

Any motivation from those of you who did the CKA already please? :P :smile:

Congrats/good luck to you all!

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 79

TheWuzzy

Original post by Gingham_Apple

Really great advice here. So how did you guys deal with the children in the sample lesson?

It'll be two assessors pretending to be kids. What I found hardest is not letting them distract you! Don't be afraid to have a firm word if they continue being disruptive. Most importantly don't let any naughty 'kids' slack behind the attentive ones - ask them questions to keep them involved and held to the same standard.