People who make a career switch and end up in education are sometimes too soon in front of the classroom in primary education, the Education Inspectorate reports in a statement. report true Fidelity writes about. These lateral entrants already work in education during their studies at a study program that the Inspectorate evaluated.
“It is a valuable process because it adds a lot of diversity to education,” said Inspector General Alida Oppers of the Education Inspectorate in the NOS Radio 1 News, “but where it goes wrong is that it is not entirely clear when a lateral entrant is suitable to stand in front of the class.”
According to the Inspectorate, most teacher training colleges have a well-designed trajectory for people who start working in education from another job, but the differences between the programs are still large at the moment.
Abstract requirements
A lateral entrant must meet certain requirements, but those rules are abstract according to the Inspectorate. The Education Inspectorate advocates that teacher training colleges and schools look together at what is needed to responsibly put lateral entrants in front of the classroom. According to the Inspectorate, this means, among other things, that heavier supervision is required in the first period.
The PO Council, the sector organization for primary education, also recognizes the problems outlined by the Education Inspectorate. “What matters above all is tight guidance and good agreements about this,” says Vice-President Anko van Hoepen. “You are not ready when you finish the training. And that guidance has to be good in the first phase. We are increasingly making agreements about this, but there is still a long way to go.”
Risen sharply
Lateral entrants are desperately needed to combat the teacher shortage in education. The number of people who register as lateral entrants has risen sharply in recent years, education ministers Van Engelshoven and Slob wrote to the House of Representatives in December. In 2017 there were 495 lateral entrants, that number rose to 1777 in 2020.
The teacher shortage is also tackled in other ways. For example, four universities will start a master’s program for primary education teachers in 2022, reports AD Today.
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