Portsmouth SCITT News Feed - Our Reflections

The role of a mentor in teacher training, and why it matters

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 13:12:13 GMT

When people think about teacher training, they often picture the classroom.

Standing at the front. Planning lessons. Managing behaviour. Gradually finding your feet.

What is less visible, but just as important, is the role of the mentor.

At Portsmouth SCITT, mentoring sits at the heart of the training experience. It is the steady thread that runs alongside everything else, helping trainees make sense of what can sometimes feel like a fast-moving and demanding year.

When is the best time to apply for teacher training?

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 09:50:08 GMT

It’s a question many prospective trainees ask, and understandably so. Applications open early in the academic year, advice often suggests applying as soon as possible, and it can quickly feel like there is a “right” window that you might miss.

The reality of teacher training: the good and the challenging

Tue, 21 Apr 2026 16:14:55 GMT

Choosing to train to teach is a big decision. For many of our trainees at Portsmouth SCITT, it is not just a career step, it is a life step. Some are coming straight from university, others are changing career, and many are balancing training alongside family life and other responsibilities.

So what is it really like?

The short answer is that it is incredibly rewarding, and at times, incredibly demanding. Both things are true.

We don't have all the answers, and that's the point.

Thu, 29 Jan 2026 15:08:08 GMT

Over the past few months, we’ve shared a series of posts on LinkedIn that bring to life our DEIB work at Portsmouth SCITT. Alongside this, we’ve shared a set of ads on Facebook and Instagram as a kind of front bookend to that work, capturing where we are now and what we are trying to do next. It hasn’t been a campaign in the traditional sense. Instead, it’s been an attempt to articulate what we’re noticing, what we’re learning, and what feels different about this stage of the work.