Useful websites

There is a wealth of information online to help inform the decisions you make about your career in teaching. Below are a few that you may find useful.

Department for Education – Get Into Teaching
UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service)

Common education abbreviations

CPD
Continuous Professional Development. This is any activity that helps to increase teacher’s knowledge, understanding or effectiveness. Sometimes known as CPLD, Continuous Professional Leadership and Development

CPS
Common Pay Scale – starting point for teacher’s salary scales although academies and free schools can set their own pay scales

DfE
Department for Education

EAL
English as an Additional Language – children whose first language is not English, who may not speak English fluently or at all

ECF
Early Career Framework

ECT
Early Career Teacher. This replaced the term NQT from September 2021.

EYFS
Early Years Foundation Studies

EHCP
Education Health and Care Plan

HE(I)
Higher Education (Institutions)

HOD
Head of Department

HOY
Head of Year (or even AHOY – Assistant Head of Year)

ITE
Initial Teacher Education

ITT
Initial Teacher Training

LSA or LSTA (or simply TA)
Learning Support or Teaching Assistants – this is a widely used job title for assistants who provide in-school support for students with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

MFL
Modern Foreign Languages

NQT
Newly Qualified Teacher

Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills – the regulatory and inspection body for education and children’s care service providers.

PGCE
Post Graduate Certificate in Education

PPA
Planning, Preparation and Assessment time (10% of teachers’ time is allocated to PPA)

PPF
Pupil Premium Funding – sometimes referred to as PP, this is additional funding allocated to schools per student receiving fee school meals. PPF status will also be considered for school trips, for example.

Professional Tutor
Not an acronym, but a key person for any ITT, NQT or RQT the Professional Tutor has responsibility for ensuring that trainees receive wider training opportunities within the school, such as a programme of professional studies sessions, visiting and observing teaching in other classes, meeting subject co-ordinators and spending time in other partnership schools.

QTS
Qualified Teacher Status

SEN
Special Educational Needs – provision to support pupils with learning disabilities. A SENDco is the role of Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator.

RQT
Recently Qualified Teacher

SBT
School Based Training

SCITT
School Centred Initial Teacher Training

SD
School Direct (Tuition / Salaried)

SLT
Senior Leadership Team