Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of awarding Qualified Teacher Status to PhD holders without requiring completion of a Postgraduate Certificate in Education.

Qualified teacher status (QTS) is the professional qualification for teachers in primary and secondary schools. Having a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) is not required to become a qualified teacher but many Initial Teacher Training (ITT) courses also offer an academic award such as a PGCE.

QTS is usually achieved following successful completion of an ITT Course. All ITT courses leading to QTS must incorporate the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework in full. This framework is underpinned by the best independently verified evidence about what makes great teaching.

To achieve QTS, individuals must demonstrate all Teachers’ Standards. Subject expertise is a critical part of great teaching, but teachers also need to understand how children learn; how to plan a curriculum and structure lessons; how to adapt their teaching to the needs of the children in their classes, including those with special educational needs; and how to manage behaviour effectively.

Evidence shows that high-quality teaching is the most important in-school factor that improves outcomes for children, which is why we think it is right that only teachers who have met the Teachers’ Standards are awarded QTS.