Crisis in vital school placements for Scottish trainee teachers

The two to four week primary and secondary placements are seen as crucial because they represent the first time trainee teachers experience a school environment and get to know staff and pupils.

The situation was even worse last week when hundreds of students from universities across the country including Dundee, Edinburgh and Stirling were unaware of where they would be taking their placements.

The problem has arisen for a number of reasons including a shortage of places in schools close to universities and the fact schools don't have to take trainees. Universities and councils, who are responsible for organising the placements, have also been criticised for a lack of planning.

Larry Flanagan, general secretary of the Educational Institute of Scotland teaching union, called for urgent improvements to ensure all students received a suitable placement in future.

He said: We have been contacted by a number of student members concerned about placements that were supposed to have started, with Strathclyde University a particular problem.

"We were assured it would be sorted out in time for all the students to get their placements at the start of this week, but that does not appear to be happening which is a significant disadvantage to those involved.

"It is completely unacceptable that students do not know where they are going because of this mismanagement, not only because of the stress involved, but also because it prevents sufficient planning by both the student and the school."

Monica Lennon, inequalities spokeswoman for Scottish Labour, said she intended to raise the issue with the Scottish Government.

She said: "Student teachers have been badly let down. Instead of starting their teacher training placements yesterday, many are finding themselves stuck at home or in the university library with nowhere to go.

"I have been inundated with pleas for help from student teachers across the country who want to get on with their training and we will be asking the Scottish Government to do all it can to intervene and make sure this never happens again."

The General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS), the professional body for teachers, said it was the responsibility of universities to secure placements in partnership with local authorities.

A spokesman added: "When a student does not have a matched placement, it is the responsibility of the university and local authority to find a suitable match for the student."

In a letter to students last week, Catherine Whitley, a senior teaching fellow at Strathclyde University, said there had been a shortfall in placements across the country.

She said: "There have been communications at the highest level and we have been working closely with GTCS and the local authorities. The outcome is that the number of unmatched students has decreased significantly and will continue to do so.

"Nevertheless, it seems likely that some students will remain unmatched on Monday morning. We hope that students who find themselves in this situation will be placed within a few days of the start of the week.

"We can assure you that a delay in the start of a placement will not affect our evaluation of your progress. We are endeavouring to place every student as quickly as possible and will continue to update students until this is achieved."

A spokeswoman for Glasgow City Council said: “Our schools have offered placements to more students than ever before this year and we are working with the university to fill any gaps that have arisen since the start of term.”

Two years ago a similar problem arose after the roll-out a new national students placement system where trainees are matched with suitable schools. Most of the problems in 2014 centred on Strathclyde University.

The university had to write a letter for more than 400 of its students to take to schools because they feared some may not be expected. The letter said: "You may receive a student you weren't expecting at all."