Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to diversify teaching styles within traditional school settings.

Schools and teachers have the professional autonomy to decide their approach to teaching, provided they demonstrate the Teachers’ Standards.

The in-school factor which makes the biggest difference to pupil outcomes is the quality of teaching. Therefore, the department has a programme of professional development that supports teachers to hone practices shown by evidence to support children’s learning and development.

The Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework (ITTECF) sets out a core minimum entitlement for all trainees of what should be covered during teacher training, which contains and now includes additional statements around adaptive teaching, developing an understanding of different pupil needs, and learning how to provide opportunities for success for all pupils. The government does not prescribe the content of Initial Teacher Training courses. It remains for individual providers to design courses which deliver against the Teaching Standards and that are appropriate to the needs of trainees and for the subject, phase and age range that the trainees will be teaching.

National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) are delivered through a range of providers so that participants can choose which will best meet their needs and preferences. Content on adaptive teaching is embedded throughout the suite of leadership NPQs, and there is also a specialist NPQ in Leading Teaching.

As part of a wider 0-25 special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) professional development offer backed by over £200 million, we are developing new courses for teachers and leaders which will include content on adaptive teaching and how to support all pupils to thrive in schools and colleges.

We are also developing new evidence-led resources to support effective teaching adaptation for all children and young people in schools and colleges, including those with SEND. These adaptive teaching resources, which were committed to in the Curriculum and Assessment Review response, will support teachers to bring the curriculum to life in inclusive and practical ways.