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ATL: Teaching is "different to working in a bank"

Those looking to enter into the teaching profession nee to have motivation as well as talent, it has been claimed.

In the opinion of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), working with children is "a very different thing from working in an office or a bank".

The organisation explains that there is more to the profession than simply having knowledge of a subject.

As a result, the ATL has raised concerns about the government's plans to introduce six month training programmes to attract more people into teaching.

Nansi Ellis, head of education policy and research at the ATL, said: "You have to be very careful about maintaining the status of the profession as something that people want to come into, without saying that anybody can do it as long as they have had six months training."

Figures from the Teaching Development Agency reveal that nearly one-third of people entering teacher training are over the age of 30.