27/07/2020
A teacher training provider in the United Kingdom is integrating a psychometric test from Cambridge experts into their training programmes – as part of a drive to support new teachers.
For the second year running, the Suffolk and Norfolk School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) programme are using the Cambridge Personal Styles Questionnaire (CPSQ) for teachers. The questionnaire is designed to identify personality traits, which the teacher trainers are using to support their trainees. Throughout June over 100 trainee teachers from primary and over 60 secondary school teachers took CPSQ.
CPSQ asks a series of questions that help organisations outline people’s personality by assessing their values and behaviours and how they approach tasks and interact with others. Results are delivered instantly via an online platform and enable immediate feedback reporting on seven competency areas:
- Caring and compassion
- Person-centred communication
- Working well with others
- Self-management
- Professional practice
- Engagement with learning
- Coping with demands.
Lyn Dale, Assessment Psychologist and Senior Assessment Manager, from Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing said:
‘CPSQ is helping to provide valuable insight that will be used to support new trainee teachers. The data allows teacher trainers to identify what further support and development teachers need to have a positive experience of teacher training. The information can also be used to check for early signs of withdrawal from courses, which makes it a great way of improving retention among trainee teachers. CPSQ covers key skills that are crucial for success and it’s fast becoming a key tool in training and recruitment, as it helps organisations make fair and balanced judgements.’
Anna Richards, Executive Leader at the Suffolk and Norfolk SCITT, is impressed with the trial so far: ‘The CPSQ has helped us gain a greater insight into them and their styles of behaviour and has helped inform how we support them,’ she comments. ‘Not only does the CPSQ help trainees reflect on their own behaviour styles and needs, it also allows us to make early, targeted interventions. For example, if a trainee’s answers suggest they may have an issue with ‘Coping with Demands’ we have made sure that they work with a particularly experienced and supportive personal tutor and mentor.’
CPSQ is developed by Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing, a department of the University of Cambridge. CPSQ for teachers is an easy-to-administer online assessment which identifies values and behaviours that are at the heart of successful study and a future career in teaching. Trainees can complete the CPSQ in around 20-40 minutes, online and on demand at any location.
Listen to the latest Cambridge Assessment podcast in which Anna Richards, from the Suffolk and Norfolk SCITT, discusses how their teacher training programme is adapting during Covid-19.
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