Working with NITE as a Teacher Training Lead Mentor

Introducing Matthew Tragheim

Joining NITE in 2022, Matthew Tragheim brought a wealth of experience from his career in education—a journey that has taken him from leading his own classroom to inspiring the next generation of teachers as an Associate Lecturer and University Lead Mentor on our PGCE courses.

We asked Matthew to tell us about his experience working with NITE trainees and what he sees as the key strengths of NITE’s Initial Teacher Training (ITT) model for students, mentors, and schools.

What has your experience been like working with NITE trainees?

One of the things I value most is the breadth of life and professional experience that NITE trainees bring to the course. Some have worked in schools for many years as Higher Level Teaching Assistants, Teaching Assistants or unqualified teachers. Others are about to leave university or change career and have chosen NITE because it works for their family and financial commitments beyond school.

This eclectic range of trainees means that tutorials are always full of rich professional dialogue on everything from perspectives in education to emerging pedagogical practice. Trainees can magpie ideas and adapt strategies that work well in mainstream schools, specialist settings or village schools, applying them to their own context and approaches. This can be a hugely empowering process, bonding a diverse community of students who are learning to teach across the entire country!

How helpful do you find working with NITE?

Technology enables us to communicate with convenience, but it doesn't necessarily provide greater connection. I feel privileged to work in a team that values the importance of connection in shaping our community of teachers and education practitioners. We leverage the convenience of technology to maximise time within busy school timetables, but we also make sure that trainees and mentors have regular opportunities to connect; to share best practice; to work on strategies to support effective student learning and teacher development; to unpick learning concepts and theories. But also, importantly, to celebrate success.

What do you feel are the strengths of NITE’s Initial Teacher Training for students, mentors and schools?

Schools can be incredibly frenetic and dynamic places. NITE's Initial Teacher Training (ITT) model reflects this diversity of demand by providing a range of pathways for schools and trainees. Threaded through these pathways is a robust schedule of study, alongside a responsive support system, to ensure that both trainees, and mentors, are successful. Being able to actively create, collaborate and connect is another strength within NITE's ITT model.

A huge part of becoming an outstanding practitioner is developing the conceptional understanding, pedagogical experience and reflective practice required to support meaningful teaching and learning. Often, academic courses can frame the student as a consumer of knowledge. However, as future teachers, it is important that trainees are empowered to apply their learning, establishing a foundational set of core skills which they can use to craft their own teacher toolkit.