An Early Career Teacher Survival Guide

This edition of the SecEd Webinar will offer practical advice, support and encouragement to new teachers everywhere.
Taking place just five weeks or so into the autumn term, the hour-long webinar will feature useful tips and advice from experienced teaching professionals to help early career teachers (ECTs) thrive and survive at the chalkface.
The webinar complements SecEd’s annual ECT supplement, which published in June 2024 and similarly offers a range of practical guidance for new teachers. The webinar will feature a number of the experts who contributed to this supplement.

You can download this 16-page supplement for free at: www.sec-ed.co.uk/content/downloads/supplement-a-survival-guide-for-early-career-teachers

In the webinar, we will discuss key topics for ECTs including handling workload, creating a workable work/life balance, avoiding burn-out, tackling ECTs’ common classroom “mistakes”, wider teaching tips, and advice for managing behaviour.
Ultimately, we will discuss ideas that can ensure ECTs begin creating healthy working habits now that will last you an entire career.

Who is this webinar for?
This webinar is designed for early career teachers (ECTs), especially those in the first or second year of their teaching careers. The webinar will also be of great use to trainee teachers and those involved in the mentoring and induction of ECTs.

Meet our experts
The webinar will be hosted by Pete Henshaw, the editor of SecEd, who has been a specialist education journalist and writer for more than 20 years.
Our expert panel have all contributed to this year’s SecEd ECT supplement in June 2024 (see above). They include:

Sean Harris is a doctoral researcher with Teesside University investigating poverty and educational inequality in schools. He is also a trust improvement leader at Tees Valley Education, an all-through multi-academy trust serving communities in the North East of England. Sean has extensive experience working with new teachers, including as an ECT mentor. Find Sean on X @SeanHarris_NE

Shanti Chahal has worked in teaching at both secondary and primary level, including as an English subject lead and a curriculum-developer. She currently works for e-Qualitas Teacher Training as a English subject lead and lead mentor for wellbeing. Find Shanti on X @ChahalShanti

Jessica Hannan is a programme manager for the Staff Wellbeing Service at Education Support UK, a UK charity dedicated to improving the mental health and wellbeing of the education workforce. Jessica has more than 15 years experience in education. She has helped schools develop strategies to improve the wellbeing of their staff and has developed a programme of wellbeing service to schools in Wales. Find Education Support on X @edsupportuk

Matt Bromley is an education journalist, author, and advisor with 25 years’ experience in teaching and leadership including as a secondary school headteacher. He remains a practising teacher. Matt is the author of numerous books on education and co-host of the award-winning SecEd Podcast. Find Matt on X @mj_bromley

THIS WEBINAR WILL ANSWER KEY QUESTIONS
During the one-hour discussion, we will address the following themes and broad questions:
• What are the biggest workload challenges for ECTs and how can you handle the workload that comes with life at the chalkface?
• How can we get a handle on workload associated with marking and feedback?
• What steps can ECTs take to create a workable work/life balance from day one?
• It is well-known that 1 in 3 teaches will quit the chalkface after just five years, with workload and burn-out being key factors – what are the vital healthy working habits that ECTs must develop now in order to protect themselves from future burn-out?
• What are the common classroom “mistakes” that ECTs make – and how can we avoid them or address them?
• What are the common challenges for ECTs when it comes to managing behaviour – and what advice can we offer?
• We will ask each of our experts for their “top tips” for ECTs to help make the first years of teaching successful, enjoyable and rewarding.

Question & answer from the audience
• We will leave time for questions at the end of the webinar