As part of our new feature, we are talking with members of the ̨��swag Family and finding out how life has changed for them since the school closures announcement.

This time we chat with Emma Tate, Director at the ̨��swag Institute of Education (OIE) and Teach North Programme Lead. 

Read on to see how Emma’s day to day life has been changed due to the social distancing measures taken by the Government.

[̨��swag.com] Hi Emma, thanks for taking the time to chat with us. We appreciate you’re busy, so let’s get to it! Things have been turned upside down recently, for reasons we are all too aware of. So, for you what has been the most difficult aspect of the lockdown period for you and your work?

“Hi, it’s no problem at all. I’m happy to take part!

“Well this is quite easy to be honest. The most difficult part has definitely been ensuring I stay connected to our current trainee teachers and NQTs, making sure they continue to feel as supported as they did prior to the current measures being introduced. 

“In the summer term I had planned to visit every trainee teacher in their placement setting, in preparation for the end of the programme. Obviously I can’t do this now, so it’s been important to me that each trainee has still had a good level of contact from myself and the Teach North team. 

“This is important because both the current trainee teachers and NQTs had lots of unanswered questions at the time of lockdown. 

“For instance - Will I pass my placement even though it has been suspended? Will I gain QTS? Am I ready to be a teacher in September? How can I support the academy remotely? Will I pass my induction year? What if I haven't secured employment for the next academic year yet? Will my teacher training funding still continue during this time? Will I see my classes again? 

“So it’s been imperative for us to continue supporting them as best we can and finding ways to do this has been tough but thanks to things like Google Meets we’ve been able to keep up a good level of face to face contact.”

The uncertainty that came with the lockdown announcement must really have been difficult for trainees and NQTS, given what is at stake for them. It is great you and your team have recognised this and worked hard to continue the great level of support you give them.

Now we know about your work and commitment to keeping in touch with the NQTs and trainees, what is a typical working day for you?

“I mentioned it earlier, Google Meets. My typical day is lots of Google Meets! 

“The Teach North team will conduct approximately 12 remote interviews each week for our teacher training programme - we're still recruiting high-quality trainee teachers for September! Also, phone calls with current trainees to discuss vacancies that they've seen and giving them some top tips for remote interviews!"

That is a lot of interviews! It must be encouraging to see high-numbers of people continuing to apply for the Teach North School Direct Programme even in this period of uncertainty. Do you think you’ll continue to use Google Meets for remote interviewing even when we have returned to a more normal state?

“I'll definitely be open to completing teacher training interviews remotely, if this is more suitable for the applicant.”

A positive development to come from all this then. So what has surprised you most since lockdown began?

“Well it’s less of a 'surprised' moment - but more of a 'hit home' moment.

“I always knew that our trainees teachers were dedicated to their placement settings, but when their placements were suspended, it was evident that they had all found where they needed to be whilst on training and they didn't want to leave the children and the staff.

“It was an emotional few days!”

That must have been a very satisfying realisation. Would you say that’s been the most satisfying moment?

“It is definitely up there. Personally, I spend a lot of time on motorways travelling to lots of different placement settings and universities - so another satisfying element is that I've saved a lot of time, and petrol, just travelling to the kitchen table each day!”

That rounds this off nicely. Thank you very much for your time, Emma.